San Francisco Thrives On Domestic Tourism Surge, Yet Faces Major Setback With Dwindling Numbers From Canada And International Markets In 2025, Including The Us

Published on August 28, 2025

Tourism successful San Francisco has shown resilience successful 2025, mostly driven by home travelers, contempt challenges successful world travel. This dependable betterment is attributed to nan continued request from U.S. visitors, coupled pinch awesome events and infrastructure improvements that are helping to offset declines successful world arrivals. However, while San Francisco’s tourism is connected nan rise, world numbers, particularly from Canada and Mexico, stay little than expected, impacting nan wide growth.

Tourism successful San Francisco and passim nan U.S. has demonstrated awesome spot successful nan first 7 months of 2025, successfully navigating hurdles successful world travel. Although nan metropolis has yet to scope nan record-breaking visitant numbers seen successful 2019, caller information from SF Travel indicates a dependable summation successful tourism, pinch home travelers playing a cardinal domiciled successful nan recovery. While world tourism remains down, peculiarly from cardinal markets for illustration Canada and Mexico, nan city’s tourism outlook remains cautiously optimistic. This affirmative inclination reflects a broader nationalist recovery, arsenic home recreation continues to beryllium nan superior driver of maturation successful nan U.S. tourism sector. With upcoming events and ongoing infrastructure improvements, some San Francisco and nan U.S. are positioned for continued tourism maturation successful nan coming months.

The latest figures uncover that San Francisco’s tourism manufacture is gradually recovering from nan terrible impacts of nan pandemic, pinch an wide emergence successful visitant numbers. Domestic travelers are playing a pivotal domiciled successful this resurgence, fueling nan city’s tourism growth. However, world arrivals person been slower to bounce back, pinch SF Travel reporting a noticeable alteration successful world visitors for 2025. Notably, nan numbers of visitors from Mexico and Canada person seen a marked decline.

International tourism is expected to full 2.26 cardinal visitors by nan adjacent of 2025, marking a 3.2% diminution from nan erstwhile year. Spending by world visitors is besides expected to driblet by 2.7%, totaling $4.89 billion. Among nan world markets, Canada stands retired for its important decline, pinch a 15% driblet successful arrivals. Mexican tourists, too, are expected to alteration by 7.8%. Despite these setbacks, nan wide measurement of tourism successful San Francisco is projected to summation by 1.3%, pinch a full of 23.49 cardinal visitors by nan year’s end, compared to 23.2 cardinal successful 2024. As tourer numbers increase, spending is projected to scope \$9.35 billion, driven chiefly by nan maturation successful home travel.

The dependable home influx has been further supported by a bid of awesome events that person helped prolong tourism momentum. Among these, nan 60th-anniversary Dead & Company concerts astatine Golden Gate Park person drawn thousands of fans from crossed nan country, providing a important boost to nan city’s tourism. Other upcoming events, specified arsenic nan Laver Cup tennis tourney astatine nan Chase Center successful September and nan engaged autumn normal season, are expected to bring further visitors and support section hotels and venues bustling.

Hotel occupancy rates are anticipated to scope 65.2% by nan extremity of nan year, a clear denotation of nan city’s ongoing tourism recovery. The Moscone Center, 1 of nan city’s cardinal arena venues, is scheduled to big 34 awesome events successful 2025, expected to make astir 657,000 edifice room nights—an awesome 64% summation compared to nan erstwhile year. This maturation successful edifice room nights underscores nan vitality of nan section system and nan spot of nan city’s betterment successful nan hospitality sector.

Looking up to 2026, San Francisco’s tourism prospects stay bright, bolstered by respective high-profile events that are expected to tie important crowds. Among these, nan Super Bowl successful Santa Clara and nan World Cup games are anticipated to pull a ample number of visitors. Although nan Moscone Center has already planned 30 events for 2026, San Francisco is group to spot moreover much arsenic further events are finalized. These gatherings are expected to importantly boost San Francisco’s tourism assemblage and supply a further assistance to nan city’s economy.

In summation to these large-scale events, San Francisco’s tourism assemblage is benefiting from infrastructure improvements that committedness to heighten nan wide visitant experience. The highly awaited reopening of nan recently renovated Westin St. Francis, a historical edifice successful nan city, is group to tie a greater influx of visitors. This, alongside nan improvement of caller unit spaces successful Union Square, will further bolster nan area’s appeal. While nan destiny of Macy’s successful Union Square remains uncertain, caller unit outlets and taste events, specified arsenic nan Tony-winning accumulation of Stereophonic astatine nan Curran Theater successful October, should thief revitalize nan area and pull a dependable watercourse of tourists.

Despite nan challenges posed by world recreation declines, San Francisco’s tourism assemblage remains connected a affirmative trajectory. The operation of sustained home travel, world-class events, and cardinal infrastructure upgrades will proceed to position nan metropolis arsenic a premier destination for tourists. As nan twelvemonth progresses, San Francisco’s resilience and strategical initiatives should thief guarantee its spot astatine nan forefront of world recreation destinations.

While nan metropolis continues to navigate nan impacts of world tourism challenges, it appears poised for sustained recovery. The efforts of section authorities and nan broader tourism manufacture are paving nan measurement for a stronger future. As home travelers proceed to flock to nan metropolis and awesome events pull world attention, San Francisco’s tourism outlook remains favorable. With accrued spending and an optimistic outlook for nan coming years, San Francisco is making important strides toward regaining its pre-pandemic tourism numbers.