If it sometimes seems like the city is being overrun by more tourists than ever, that’s because it is.
A record 54.3 million visitors will have swarmed into the Big Apple by the end of the year, city officials estimated Tuesday.
That’s up from the previous record of 52.7 million last year.
And another record of 55 million is projected for 2014.
Tourists are annoying stumbling blocks to anyone trying to get somewhere through Times Square, but they’re manna from heaven as far as Mayor Bloomberg is concerned.
“Tourism plays a vital role in our city’s economy, and the work that we’ve done to strengthen tourism over the past 12 years has helped our city weather the national economic downturn and come out in far better shape than most other cities,” the mayor said.
When he took office in 2002, 35.2 million tourists were converging on the city.
The avalanche of visitors has sparked a hotel boom — and rising room rates.
Hotels were 88 percent occupied this year, with the average daily rate up 4 percent to $296.
By next year, city officials predicted 100,000 hotel rooms would be covering the boroughs, including in such far-afield areas as the South Bronx and Gowanus in Brooklyn.
There were 1 million more hotel room rentals this year than in 2012.
Lisa Linden, a spokeswoman for the city’s Hotel Association, said the mayor deserved credit for “showcasing New York on the global stage” and putting so much time and focus on driving up tourism.
The visitors came ready to spend.
Bloomberg said they will part with almost $40 billion this year.
Mark Marmurstein of Twin America Gray Line New York Sightseeing, which operates double-decker buses that roam the city with wide-eyed tourists, said they feel like New York has everything they want.
“It’s common sense — New York City has one-of-a-kind attractions, world-class shopping and food, and, most important, safe streets and neighborhoods,” he said.