SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- Mayor London Breed is off to Europe to bring more tourism back to the city.
According to Breed's office, San Francisco is seeing more domestic travelers but is missing a large number of international travelers.
The number of international travelers arriving at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is about 60% less than pre-pandemic levels.
Owners of local businesses are also facing a decline in customers.
Kevin Chan, owner of Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory, has seen a dramatic decline in visitors.
He says he rarely sees international travelers who have historically been some of his best customers.
"We need help," Chan said. "We do need help because we don't have tourists coming in from around the world, only just local coming in."
Breed left with city travel officials on a European tour Monday in hopes of bringing in new faces to the city. She is stopping in London, Brussels, Frankfurt and Paris.
The Mayor is meeting with airlines, airports and local leaders during her stay to reestablish SFO as a hub for European markets. The mayor's officer says her travel is funded by SFO.
"Local doesn't carry as much on the buying power," Chan says. "We need travelers, just like the Pier 39. We need travelers to come in from around the world."
Since December, domestic passengers at SFO were close to 70% of their pre-pandemic levels while international passengers were approximately 40% of their pre-pandemic levels, according to officials.
The drop has taken a large toll on tourism in the city.
Rodney Fong with San Francisco Chamber of Commerce says many small businesses across the city heavily depend on international visitors. Many establishments were forced to close due to the decreased levels of tourism during the pandemic.
"We have to remember San Francisco really depends on tourism," Fong says. "One-third of our economy is from tourism, Fisherman's Wharf, Union Square all benefit from tourism and while we've seen some signs of domestic travel bouncing back, it's really the international focus who spends a lot of money in San Francisco."
San Francisco's accommodation industry recovered just 53% of their jobs, while the arts, entertainment and recreation industry recovered 62%, as reported in December. Meanwhile food and drinking establishments recovered 82% of their jobs.
Fong and several others are hopeful that the Breed's trip will continue moving San Francisco forward in its recovery.
She will return back in the city in 10 days.
from KRON4 https://ift.tt/5gKoJkb
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