Tourism in Toronto is still below its pre-pandemic levels, while traveler-related spending reached a record high of $7 billion due to inflation in 2023.

Destination Toronto issued a new report on the visitor economy in 2023 today, Monday, showing that the city is still at 93 percent of pre-COVID-19 levels when it comes to tourism.

In 2023, 8.95 million visitors came to Toronto, down from 9.6 million in 2019, but a healthy increase from 6.5 million in 2022.

The $7 billion spent last year represents a large jump from $5.2 billion spent in 2022 and $6.7 billion in 2019.

Local travelers were the main driver of this growth, representing 71 percent of total visitors. Meanwhile, international visitors, including people from the United States, remain 25 percent below 2019 levels.

When it comes to business travel, Andrew Weir, Executive Vice President of Destination Toronto, said the sector is still lagging behind leisure travel.

Weir added, "For our visitor economy to be the economic engine that has proven important for jobs and growth, all of these vital markets and sectors need to return at full strength."

Major meetings held over several days and attracting more than 1,000 participants accounted for only 290,000 visitors to Toronto last year, a sharp decline from 444,000 in 2019.

The accommodation sector's recovery was also slow, down 19 percent from pre-pandemic levels in 2023.

Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow said in a statement released today, Monday: “The visitor economy in Toronto is a very important sector of the city’s economy.”

"We salute all sectors of this industry and the contribution they make to Toronto’s vitality and prosperity."