Contact: Colleen Roche (212) 788-2958 or Kim Serafin (212) 788-2958
"From the museums to the galleries, from the shopping to the restaurants, from Broadway shows to the Statue of Liberty, there is more to see and do in New York than any other City in the world all year round," said Mayor Giuliani. "New York City is the number one international tourist destination world wide. Last year 30 million people visited New York to enjoy our many spectacular attractions -- a record year for New York City tourism."
"Public private partnerships like New York for a Song FunPass are excellent ways to further promote and expand this vital area of New York's economy," he continued. "When the City and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority combines their resources with American Express and the Grammy Awards, spearheaded by the fantastic talents of Liza Minnelli and Julie Andrews, it is a benefit to New Yorkers and visitors alike."
When visitors check into participating hotels between January 13 and March 31, they will receive a NYC FunPass, a special edition MetroCard providing significant discounts at hotels and over 199 restaurants, entertainment venues, stores , museums and sightseeing tours. In addition, 27 of the City's finest restaurants will offer a special "fixed price" lunch and dinner for $19.97 throughout the promotion.
New York City has set a new record for tourism in each of the last two years since the Hotel Occupancy tax was lowered. The total economic contribution of the tourism industry is over $18 billion. The tourism industry employs more than 130,000 people in the City.