New statistics show that tourism in Toronto reached an all-time high in 2015.
Last year, the city welcomed more than 14 million overnight visitors and 26 million people on day trips -- a total of about 40 million tourists. The total tourist spending in 2015 was $7.2 billion -- the most economic activity ever generated by Toronto’s tourism industry.
That means there were an estimated 110,000 tourists in Toronto on any given day.
“Really, what’s driving it is a growing demand for Toronto and an awareness that this is one of the great cities to experience some urban vibrancy, to come see some live music and eat in some great restaurants and walk the great roads,” said Andrew Weir of Tourism Toronto.
Tourism in the city grew for the sixth year in a row. And tourists say it’s easy to see why.
“We’ve been here just a few minutes, but it’s amazing,” said a tourist visiting the Harbourfront Centre.
The 2015 Pan Am Games are in part responsible for the tourism spike, driving business in two key markets -- Mexico and Brazil. Tourism from both countries grew by 24 per cent last year.
The low Canadian dollar continued to attract Americans who got more bang for their buck and could stay longer for less.
As a result, Toronto-area sold a record-breaking 10 million rooms in 2015.
Experts say 2016 is already on track to surpass 2015 tourism numbers with events such as NBA All-Star Weekend, the Hockey World Juniors and the Grey Cup.
With a report from CTV Toronto’s Natalie Johnson
