PHILADELPHIA – September 22, 2016 – In 2015, 638,300 overseas visitors traveled to Philadelphia, an increase of 3.2 percent over 2014, driven in large part by travelers from emerging markets, including China, Australia and India*. These visitors generated $982 million in economic impact for the region, versus $966 million in 2014.  

The top five markets for overseas visitors to Philadelphia in 2015 were the U.K., Germany, China, India and France. While the U.K. remains the largest market, with a 4.5% increase over the previous year, Philadelphia's emerging markets saw the most year over year growth. China, Australia and India contributed to a significant increase in visitation from the Asia Pacific region as a whole, despite the fact that Philadelphia lacks a direct flight from Asia Pacific. China grew 14.7% over 2014, while Australia increased 11.8% and India grew 5.6%. The PHLCVB has supported this momentum and interest in Philadelphia by opening a representation firm in China as of March 2015, complementing the existing office in India, and expanding our work in the region.

“Overseas visitors continue to be a vital part of Philadelphia's travel and tourism industry,” said Julie Coker Graham, president & CEO, Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau. “We look forward to continued success in driving overseas visitation, capitalizing on the interest generated by our targeted sales and marketing efforts.” 

Visitors to Philadelphia from overseas in 2015 were most interested in spending their leisure time shopping, sightseeing or visiting the city's art galleries and museums, as well as seeing national parks and monuments and historical locations. As a result, the top spending categories for overseas visitors (excluding food, lodging and transportation) were shopping, gifts and other purchases, with an average of $434 per visitor per trip, followed by entertainment and recreation, with an average of $200 per visitor per trip.

“As a longtime Philadelphian, it is exciting to see increased interest from overseas visitors to our city,” said City of Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney. “As the first World Heritage City in the United States, we are proud to have visitors from across the globe experience our rich history, cultural attractions and diverse neighborhoods. We appreciate the valuable work the PHLCVB does to attract overseas visitors to Philadelphia.”

The PHLCVB employs six overseas representation firms that promote Philadelphia in 10 overseas markets, which include the U.K, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Italy, Spain, India and China. In addition to overseas sales and marketing efforts, the PHLCVB also relies on robust global public relations outreach within those markets to grow awareness of Philadelphia as a top tourism destination. Throughout 2015, in addition to working with overseas international media in Philadelphia to cover the World Meeting of Families Congress and Papal Visit, the PHLCVB hosted 53 journalists from 12 countries to showcase the city's assets and ultimately generate future visitation.

“As an international gateway to the state of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia is a major driver for tourism, one of the largest industries in the commonwealth,” said Carrie Fischer Lepore, Deputy Secretary of Marketing, Tourism & Film at the Department of Community and Economic Development. “We are thrilled with the global attention the city generated by hosting the World Meeting of Families and Papal Visit as well as the Democratic National Convention. As an active partner in promoting tourism to the state, we support the PHLCVB and their continued efforts to expand Philadelphia's global footprint and drive economic development through tourism.”     

The PHLCVB uses strategic partnerships to expand its marketing reach globally through cooperative programs with organizations like Brand USA, Expedia and ESPN International, as well as partnering with other East Coast destinations, including New York City and Washington, D.C. The team also travels extensively to overseas international markets to tell the Philadelphia story, often in conjunction with local tourism partners. In 2015 they attended 26 tourism industry tradeshows and conducted 10 sales missions. In addition, the PHLCVB hosted 48 familiarization trips to Philadelphia, bringing 295 travel trade influencers from 11 countries to the region.

To learn more about the PHLCVB's work in the international markets, visit www.discoverPHL.com/international.

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Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau (PHLCVB), www.discoverPHL.com, a private non-profit membership corporation, is the official tourism promotion agency for the City of Philadelphia globally, and the primary sales and marketing agency for the expanded Pennsylvania Convention Center. The PHLCVB competes with its counterparts worldwide for convention and tourism business. The organization has divisions dedicated to the multicultural, sports, and life sciences markets.

*Sources: National Travel & Tourism Office (Profile Data), Tourism Economics, an Oxford Economics Company (Visitation/Spend)

In 2015, the Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau changed their source for international visitation to better reflect the overall impact of international travel from overseas. The historic data has been updated to reflect these changes so year-over-year comparisons and trends are aligned.