London, New York in new tourism agreement

The mayor of London- Boris Johnson, and his New York counterpart have signed an agreement aimed at boosting tourism between the two cities. The deal was reached during the London Mayor’s visit to New York City to promote leisure and business travel to Britain.

The deal constitutes a two-year agreement wherein both cities will swap advertising space and share best practices on stimulating their local tourism. London will provide New York with 250 posters on the London Underground twice annually, for four weeks. In return, 71 bus shelters in New York will run advertisements promoting London city for four weeks each year.

The annual value of the media exchange is said to be $178,500 for each city. As part of the agreement, NYC & Company and Visit London will organise at least one publicity event in London and New York per year.

New York City is the top US destination for British travellers. Last year, the city received 1,328,000 visitors from the United Kingdom.

The UK has emerged as the top source of international visitors to the city.

Conversely, America is London’s number one source for international visitors, with almost two million Americans visiting England’s capital last year.

The New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg said that the two cities are significant sources of travel for each other’s markets, and that they could learn a great deal from each other. He added that the cities would work together to highlight each other’s strong points.

Mayor Johnson pointed out that the two cities share many similarities, including an appreciation for diversity and innovation. He said that the cities’ dedication to providing world-class experiences and services to tourists and residents put London and New York City in an excellent position to combine knowledge and resources to shape their economies and future.