'It Feels Good': New York Welcomes Back Tourists After 20 Months
NDTV
The city welcomed almost 67 million tourists in 2019. They brought in $70 billion and more than 400,000 jobs.
New York is welcoming back visitors with open arms after the US ended its 20-month Covid travel restrictions, but it will likely take several years before the number of tourists to the Big Apple reaches pre-pandemic levels.
The economic and cultural powerhouse of Manhattan is already feeling busier since the United States lifted its ban on "non-essential" travel on November 8, with Europeans among the early returnees.
Eglantine Lasserre, a 40-year-old from Bordeaux, was on the first flight to NYC out of France on Monday.
"New York has always been a dream of mine, so when I heard about the reopening of the borders I jumped at the opportunity," she told AFP beneath the giant electronic billboards of Times Square.
