Status: 07/15/2021 1:37 a.m.
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Corona made it quiet in the city that never sleeps. Many enjoyed the time, but at the same time they want the tourists back. New York needs tourism. Many jobs depend on it.
From Antje Passenheim,
ARD-Studio New York
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There it is again: the noise of Manhattan. Swollen almost imperceptibly since the corona sleep. New Yorkers were home alone for over a year. Ellen fondly thinks back to winter: “Just me on the street and maybe two others. Also on 5th Avenue.” Now it is getting full on the sidewalks, in the museums. The queues in front of MoMa, Met and Co. are getting longer again. Ticket prices are rising. Sometimes a taxi is hard to come by. Ellen longs to return: “I really liked New York without tourists.” Most of them still come from the USA. The borders remain closed for many foreigners – also for Europeans. “I’m happy for the city when you come back.”
Antje Passenheim
ARD-Studio New York
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Everyone knows: New York needs these tourists to be New York – and to survive economically. At its peak, around 66 million visitors came here in 2019. The New Yorker Neill is ambivalent: “It’s nice when the streets belong to us alone. But I was often elsewhere as a tourist myself and was welcomed there. And we have to do that too.” 280,000 jobs were in the tourism industry. Many of them disappeared in the Corona year.
New York is waiting for tourists
Marc Steinhäuser, ARD New York, topics 22:15, 15.7.2021
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Broadway shows are not worthwhile without tourists
To bring them back, the international guests have to come back, says tour bus driver Mark: “If you add up the four main attractions, it’s Broadway, the restaurants, the museums, the sightseeing buses – they leave the heart of New York City beat. ” Tickets are on sale. But the first Broadway shows won’t be there until September. They are not worthwhile without tourists. It is not just the glittering mile that hopes that President Joe Biden will reopen the borders for them.
Judy Paul also relies on it. She is the owner of the Washington Square Hotel. “That stresses us a lot. Half of our guests came from Europe or South America. We haven’t got them back yet.” Last year she had to lay off half of her workforce. Jobs only come back when the tourists do it too, says Paul, and he can’t understand it: “If US citizens are allowed to Europe, why aren’t Europeans allowed to come to us too? That doesn’t make any sense!”
“We can’t wait”
The city is putting millions into a campaign to lure tourists back to the Big Apple. Hotel manager Paul is particularly hoping for visitors from Germany. “Yes, we miss you! Please come back as soon as possible! I have German roots, my mother was born in Berlin. We can’t wait until the German tourists come back.” New York is hoping for 36 million visitors this year – about half as many as in good times. It could take another three years before things go back to normal, according to the prognosis.
How nice it was at home alone! New Yorkers still long for tourists
Antje Passenheim, ARD New York, July 15, 2021 12:42 am
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