Indians visiting California increased by 8%

Around 199,000 Indians visited the Golden State which is a jump of 8% as compared with last year. Indians are among the top 10 international visitors visiting California in the year 2011 if we exclude Canada and Mexico. Overall, 6.2 million Overseas travelers visited California in 2011, a 22.3% share of all overseas travel to the U.S. California's top Overseas visitor markets in 2011 were: U.K. (710,000), Japan (565,000), Australia (562,000).

The travel and tourism industry continues to be shining bright for the Golden State. Tourism generated $102.3 billion in spending in California in 2011.  This total is up 7.6% from last year. During 2011, travel spending in California directly supported 893,000 jobs, up 1.6% from 2010, while earnings increased by 3.1% over last year, at $30.4 billion. Travel spending generated the greatest number of jobs in accommodation and food services (523,000) and arts, entertainment and recreation (221,000 jobs).

International Spending in California International travel is a vital component of California's tourism industry and represents the highest long-term growth potential. Twenty percent of tourism related dollars in the state in 2011 were attributable to spending by international travelers. Those overseas visitors spent approximately $12.6 billion in the state. Travel spending in 2011 generated $2.3 billion in local taxes and $4 billion in state taxes.

"The new national goal is to welcome 100 million visitors per year by the year 2021. Visa reforms are a key step, but we also need to interact with visitors and attract them to California through social media, marketing, like California's "Summer of Fun" campaign, and using qualitative research to determine how visitors make travel decisions. We are providing content on Google Currents, Google+, Digg, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn and other platforms to build on our state's global brands", says Caroline Beteta, President and CEO, Visit California.

About Visit California:

Visit California is a non-profit organization with a mission to develop and maintain marketing programs – in partnership with the state's travel industry – that keep California top-of-mind as a premier travel destination. According to Visit California, travel and tourism expenditures total $95.1 billion annually in California, $17 billion of which is international; supports jobs for 873,000 Californians; and generates $6.1 billion in state and local tax revenues.

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