Nearly 2.9 million overseas visitors went to San Francisco in 2011, according to the San Francisco Travel Association, the official tourism marketing organization for the City and County of San Francisco.
The 2,872,000 international visitors in 2011 represent an increase of nearly 10 percent over 2010 and an almost 30 percent increase over 2009.
With nearly 1.5 million visitors in 2011, Europe continues to be the largest overseas market for San Francisco. That represents an 11.6 percent market share and an increase of nearly 17 percent over 2010.
Asia is the second-largest overseas market for San Francisco with more than 800,000 visitors in 2011. Nearly a quarter of these visitors came from China.
Oceania is the third largest overseas market for San Francisco. The fourth-largest overseas market for San Francisco is South America, with 169,000 visitors in 2011, an increase of nearly 45 percent over 2010.
“The continued growth in the overseas market is a positive sign that our economy is improving and that San Francisco continues to be a desirable destination for both business and leisure travelers,” Joe D’Alessandro, San Francisco Travel president and CEO, said in a news release. “We are extremely fortunate to have been the host city for the U.S. Open in June of this year and look forward to welcoming the America’s Cup World Series later this summer and the America’s Cup in 2013, which will attract even more visitors to San Francisco.”
The international market represents nearly 20 percent of San Francisco’s total visitors, which was 16.35 million in 2011, an increase of 2.7 percent from 2010. These visitors spent $8.46 billion in 2011, up 9.8 percent from the previous year.
“The Tourism team at San Francisco Travel works very closely with San Francisco International Airport to promote San Francisco internationally as one of the most appealing destinations in the world,” Tom Kiely, executive vice president, Tourism for San Francisco Travel, said in a news release. “We are confident that these international marketing efforts, which include an aggressive travel schedule to maintain and develop relationships with new and existing airlines and tour operators, as well as international media, will result in continued growth of overseas visitors to San Francisco.”