Dear Member,

If the final tourism results for 2014 are any indication, 2015 promises to be a spectacular year for the Los Angeles hospitality industry.

For the fourth consecutive year, the region enjoyed record-breaking visitation, with a whopping 43.4 million tourists choosing Los Angeles as their ultimate destination. This is an increase of 1.2 million visitors over the 2013 total.

The city also broke past records of international visitors with 6.5 million; hotel occupancy rate with 79 percent and room-nights sold at 28.04 million, an increase of 3.2 percent compared to 2013.

While our hotels and other hospitality providers stayed busy, so did our airport:  LAX reported a record 70.7 million passengers in 2014, a 6 percent increase above the 2013 total. The previous record was 67.3 million passengers set way back in 2000. Of the 2014 total, an estimated 18.9 million passengers (or 26.8 percent) arrived on international flights – an increase of 6 percent over the previous record set in 2013 of 17.8 million.

These records are attributed to the opening of new attractions, growth in the international marketplace (particularly China), revitalized neighborhoods including Hollywood and Downtown Los Angeles, growing recognition of L.A. as a culinary hot-spot and cultural destination, and LAX’s current multi-billion-dollar modernization and improvement program. In particular, the opening of the new Tom Bradley International Terminal in late 2013 contributed significant service in 2014, including Norwegian Air, Etihad and Saudia Airlines, as well as added daily flights on existing routes by several foreign air carriers.

With a strong 2014 behind us, we have charged ahead with a focus on an even stronger 2015 beginning with our bi-annual dineL.A. Restaurant Week, taking place from Jan. 19-Feb. 1. Diners can choose from an extensive list of more than 360 restaurants. new this year, dineL.A. has challenged participating restaurants to create an exclusive menu item or alternatively offer a menu that is 15 percent off the existing price.

Tourism is among the largest and healthiest segments of the L.A. economy. In 2013, tourism accounted for $18.4 billion in direct visitor spending in the local economy, and in fiscal year 2014, tourism supported some 442,000 jobs in the Los Angeles region and generated $184.4 million in transient-occupancy taxes for the City of Los Angeles.

Los Angeles’s 2014 unprecedented visitation growth and L.A. Tourism’s accelerated marketing efforts are keeping us on track to reach our goal of 50 million visitors by 2020.

Thank you for helping Los Angeles to achieve its greatest tourism year ever.

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