The situation for city tourism is changing in a New York minute. The latest guidance from the Governor gives us extended bar and restaurant curfews, zoo and museum capacity expanded to 50%, and movie theaters up to 33%. Sports and large event capacity moves to 25% as of May 19th. The city’s COVID rate is the lowest its been in almost five months. In addition, there are plenty of green shoots on the reopening front, especially for culture:
- The Downtown Alliance presents Downtown Live shows May 15th-16th and 22nd-23rd
- The Affordable Art Fair NYC is returning, to the Metropolitan Pavilion in Chelsea, May 19th-23rd
- Bryant Park’s live Picnic Performances return, starting June 9th
- Immersive art favorite Happy-Go-Lucky Exhibit 2021 starts up again June 23rd
- Capital One City Parks Foundation SummerStage will be back with in-person shows
- The Mermaid Parade will take place in-person on Coney Island
On the national recovery front, restaurant sales spiked last month to return to 2019 levels. The most recent retail sales report suggests the U.S. will see its fastest growth since 1984. Since the first of the year, Google searches for hotels are up 92%. With each passing day, recovery draws closer.