The city of Los Angeles has reported its fourth consecutive year of record-breaking tourism and record-breaking passenger levels at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).
Mayor Eric Garcetti said that 43.4 million tourists visited Los Angeles in 2014, an increase of 1.2 million visitors over 2013 levels. Of these, a record 6.5 million were international tourists.
Mayor Garcetti also reported that a record 70.7 million passengers traveled through LAX in 2014 – up approximately 6% than the 66.7 million passengers in 2013. The previous record was 67.3 million passengers in 2000. Of the 2014 total, an estimated 18.9 million (or 26.8%) were aboard international flights – a 6% increase over the previous record set in 2013 of 17.8 million international passengers.
The announcements were made at LAX’s New Tom Bradley International Terminal, where four additional aircraft gates recently became operational, for a total of 12 new gates. New dining and retail concessions in the terminal’s Great Hall are also now open, operated by Westfield and the DFS Group.
Currently under construction, Westfield will debut 17 new dining and retail destinations in the Bradley Terminal’s departures and arrivals areas in 2015.
“The continuing, record-breaking growth and strength of tourism in Los Angeles is a shining light for our economy, creating good-paying jobs for our families, benefiting local businesses, and generating significant revenue for the city that goes toward the public services our city needs,” said Mayor Garcetti.
“The fourth consecutive record-breaking year for tourism and strong growth in international visitation underscores that Los Angeles has emerged as a leading global tourist destination,” said Ernest Wooden Jr., president and CEO of the Los Angeles Tourism and Convention Board (LA Tourism). “Our 2014 visitation growth, combined with LA Tourism’s accelerated marketing efforts, is keeping us on track to reach our goal of 50 million visitors by 2020.”
