Nashville is #1 for International Travelers

According to a TripAdvisor study, Nashville leads as the U.S. city gaining popularity among international travelers. TripAdvisor evaluated major U.S. tourism cities seeing the greatest increase in interest from travelers outside the U.S. based on searches on TripAdvisor¹, and Music City topped the charts with a 38% year-over-year increase in interest.

“People all over the world are hearing about Nashville and looking at making a visit to Music City,” Mayor Megan Barry said. “Our hospitality community has worked extremely hard for many years to expand our reach beyond the United States, and having a TV show named for and set in our city has broadcast Nashville’s name far and wide. Thanks to our live music scene, the spirit of creativity that permeates the city, our parks and greenways, our growing list of first-rate restaurants and iconic attractions such as Ryman Auditorium, The Hermitage, the Nashville Zoo and the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, the word is out about Nashville.”

The study from the world’s largest travel site is not the only one that bodes well for Nashville tourism. The Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp (NCVC) estimates that 5-7 percent of overnight visitors in Nashville are from outside the country. From 2013 to 2014, Nashville saw a 10 percent increase in international visitation, according to the Global Cities Travel report by Oxford Economics.

International visitors are also traveling to Music City to attend some of the city’s largest music-related events. At the CMA Fest this past June, 10.3 percent of attendees were international visitors. At the Music City July 4th: Let Freedom Sing! event earlier this year, 5.6 percent came from other countries. And the Jack Daniel’s Bash on Broadway: New Year’s Eve in Music City in 2014 saw 7.7 percent of attendees come from abroad.

In addition to Trip Advisor naming Nashville as the #1 destination for International travelers, Lonely Planet also named named Nashville in a recent travel list.

Lonely Planet announced  that Nashville is one of ten cities around the world it has named as part of its Best in Travel 2016 collection of top destinations to visit in the upcoming year (#BestinTravel). The list, compiled by the world’s leading travel media company, ranked Kotor, Montenegro at No. 1. Nashville came in at No. 9 and is the only city in the United States to make the list.

“It is great to see that Lonely Planet recognizes that the unique culture and welcoming atmosphere of Nashville makes our city a premier tourist destination for travelers the world over,” Nashville Mayor Megan Barry said. “The visitors who choose to vacation or convene in Nashville help to keep our city thriving while also contributing to our economic vitality. From the world-class Music City Center, to our one-of-a-kind music scene, to our growing list of fantastic restaurants, Nashville is a wonderful, creative place to live, work and play.”

Top 10 Cities
1. Kotor, Montenegro
2. Quito, Ecuador
3. Dublin, Ireland
4. George Town, Malaysia
5. Rotterdam, the Netherlands
6. Mumbai, India
7. Fremantle, Australia
8. Manchester, UK
9. Nashville, USA
10. Rome, Italy

Lonely Planet’s new U.S. magazine, Lonely Planet, which will hit the newsstands on Nov. 3. The magazine also will include a “What to eat in Nashville” article.

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