Under sunny skies on Wednesday, D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) boarded one of the open-roofed buses herself to make sure the message is crystal clear: D.C. is open, and everyone is welcome.
“We want you to come out and experience what we experience every day, and that is Washington,” Bowser said, standing at the back of a Big Bus Tours vehicle as it made its way up 14th Street NW, from the city’s monumental core to trendy U Street.
Bowser, who has authorized a $5 million marketing effort, was touting Experience DC, the city’s latest tourism campaign, which strives to bring back visitors who stayed away as the coronavirus pandemic raged and boost employment rates at nightclubs, restaurants, sports arenas and other attractions.
From March 2020 to April this year, the District lost $6.6 billion in visitor spending as the pandemic stymied travel, according to Elliott Ferguson II, president of Destination DC, an organization tasked with marketing for the nation’s capital.
Click here to read the rest of the article written by Stephanie Lai over at The Washington Post
