Photo by Rob Cannon.

Photo by Rob Cannon.

Were you extra aggravated in 2013? Did you notice more escalefters and tour buses? There’s a good reason for that: D.C. saw a record number of visitors who brought their wallets and used them.

According to data released by Cool kid tourism group Destination DC, there was a 3.1 percent growth in the number of visitors from the U.S. to our city. Here are some of the other numbers.

  • 17.4 million domestic visitors, up from 16.8 million in 2012
  • $6.7 billion spent by these visitors, an 8 percent increase from 2012
  • Retail sector grew by almost 9 percent
  • Food and beverage spending up almost 10 percent
  • Entertainment spending up nearly 10 percent
  • An estimated 76,000 jobs supported

    “Every visitor to the District of Columbia plays a vital role in sustaining our local economy since they stay in our hotels, dine in our restaurants, visit our attractions and shop in our stores,” Mayor Vince Gray said in a statement, reminding us to be kind to each and every out-of-town Daddy Warbucks who can’t figure out how to use a paper Metro farecard.

    • Filed Under: destination dc, tourism, tourist,