With the NYPD sending more police officers to Times Square and the busiest stations on the subway system to convince the public of their safety, the reopening of New York City means more than just locals needing to reassure.

Especially as the city emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic, the tourism industry is vital to the city’s economy: in 2019, visitors will spend $ 67 billion here. And visits will pick up pace as the weather improves and vaccinations increase – along with easing COVID-19 restrictions.

130,000 people visited Times Square on Monday. That is more than last Monday, at 113,000, even afterwards a shot that injured three spectators.

The once deserted steps in front of the Metropolitan Museum of Art are filling up with visitors again. Hotel lobbies are losing their dreary feeling. Downtown, people are again taking selfies with the Charging Bull statue near Wall Street.

There is still a long way to go before the still closed theater district is inundated by international travelers again.

But recently, indicators like hotel occupancy and museum attendance have risen thanks to domestic travelers and day-trippers who don’t mind running the city in less than the usual hustle and bustle.

City officials are optimistic even after the Times Square incident on Saturday and a Sunday attack on a tourist on a # 2 train. NYPD officials will flood the city’s 20 busiest subway stations, in addition to an increase of the surface patrols.

“In the end, people want to come to this city,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio on Monday. “It’s an overwhelmingly safe city when you compare New York City to cities across the country and around the world.”

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