Chapter 2: Price Changes in Global City Destinations

Americans’ Most Preferred International Destinations

This year, there has been little change when it comes to the top three international cities traveled to by Americans; London, Paris, and Rome remain the most popular. Vancouver and Toronto still round out the top five for 2011 so far. However, according to hotel prices paid in the first two quarters of this year, Toronto is now the slightly more popular of the two, thus claiming its new spot as the fourth most popular destination in the world among American travelers.

While other major European cities such as Madrid, Amsterdam, Dublin, Florence, and Venice each moved up one to three spots in the hearts of American tourists, it is still the up-and-coming Asian cities of the East that continue to sweep U.S. travelers off their feet. In the first two quarters of 2011 alone, these destinations made enormous advances on the top 50 list – larger than those of any other region in the world. This is best exemplified by strides made by Beijing (up 12 spots), whose budget for tourism promotion is reportedly one of the highest in the world, with the goal of capitalizing on the global recognition it gained by hosting the Olympic Summer Games in 2008, an event that helped the city cultivate the quality of services that international travelers could expect. Bangkok (up 16 spots) and Seoul (up 15 spots) also rapidly gained popularity among U.S. travelers this year.

One rising star from 2010, that has made a dramatic drop to twenty-sixth place from its eighth place position last year, is Tokyo. Following the catastrophic earthquakes and tsunami that shook the country of Japan in March 2011, the once thriving business and cultural hub is now struggling to attract visitors. Although Tokyo is located nearly 200 miles south of the earthquake’s epicenter, it is still recovering from the devastating event and experiencing higher-than-normal radiation levels, which is of serious concern to many travelers as well as its residents.

	Americans' Top 50 Favorite International Cities Rank City 1 London 2 Paris 3 Rome 4 Toronto 5 Vancouver 6 Barcelona 7 Montreal 8 Hong Kong 9 Madrid 10 Cancun 11 Amsterdam 12 Florence 13 Venice 14 San Juan 15 Niagara Falls 16 Dublin 17 Bangkok 18 Shanghai 19 Prague 20 Beijing 21 Dubai 22 Riviera Maya 23 Munich 24 Singapore 25 Berlin     26 Tokyo 27 Mexico City 28 Istanbul 29 Copenhagen 30 Seoul 31 Milan 32 Carolina 33 Vienna 34 Los Cabos 35 Sydney 36 Buenos Aires 37 Athens 38 Punta Cana 39 Victoria 40 Vallarta 41 Stockholm 42 Brussels 43 Budapest 44 Rio De Janeiro 45 Edinburgh 46 Frankfurt 47 Phuket 48 St. Thomas 49 Montego Bay 50 Quebec