The Brief
Mayor Lurie and China’s consul general stressed cultural and business connections beyond politics.
Chinatown business owners note visitor spending is still below pre-pandemic levels from 2019.
There is optimism ahead as leaders see policy changes and cooperation boosting Chinese tourism to SF.
SAN FRANCISCO – San Francisco city leaders are working to bring Chinese visitors back to the city.
Luring visitors from China
What we know
On the mayor’s balcony at San Francisco’s City Hall, Mayor Daniel Lurie and China’s Consul General to San Francisco, Zhang Jianmin raised the Chinese flag to honor Chinese National Day, honoring the establishment of the People’s Republic in 1949.
The mayor highlighted the deep history between San Francisco and China. “Now, we know the global political climate is challenging,” said Mayor Lurie. “But we have chosen a clear path to rise above politics and focus on what unites people. By nurturing relationships between students, artists, businesses, and families, we can strengthen understanding and build lasting trust.”
Slow economic recovery
Nancy Yu Law runs four businesses in San Francisco’s Chinatown and said tourism from China has been slow to recover after a high in 2019, and said it’s impacting her bottom line. “The relationship between the US and China is very important and has deeply impacted our business as a small business in Chinatown depending on those tourists,” said Law.
Tuesday’s ceremony was aimed at building bridges between China and San Francisco.
The mayor said, despite what may be happening on the international level, San Francisco is ready to welcome visitors from China. “We want people coming to visit from China, and so we’re going to do everything in our power to increase tourism working with SFO and airports in China,” said Mayor Lurie.
New opportunity
The consul general agreed, that there is a way to forge a path forward for China and San Francisco. “With further opening of policy in China, I think there will be more opportunities for mutually beneficial cooperation,” said Consul General Jianmin.
Businesses that rely on visitors from China say they’re hopeful that gatherings like this will lay the groundwork to bring tourists from China back to Chinatown and the rest of the city. “I would love to see our Chinese visitors come back because it would directly bring benefits to small businesses like us in Chinatown,” said Law.
Tourism is trending in the right direction. We’re talking about an estimated $9.3 billion in spending. As much as that is, it’s still shy of the pre-pandemic high of $10.3 billion in 2019.
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