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New York City: Partly Cloudy With A Chance Of Markdowns

Millions of people watched the ball drop in Times Square to ring in 2009. But how many of them will go on to visit New York City in 2009? Here are three travel trends we're predicting for the Big Apple this year:

Crazy deals, and getting crazier. Tourism to NYC was up in 2008, but only by two percent, compared to a percent increase in visitors between 2006 and 2007. Mayor Bloomberg didn't even bother to sugarcoat the news, commenting in a press conference last week that "We're going to have some very tough times... People are starting to get to the point where the bad news is going to come and come at an ever growing rate." As if it isn't hard enough to be regarded as one of the most expensive places in the US, New York will be forced to compete with aggressive cost-cutting and special deals from the likes of Orlando and Las Vegas. Free carriage rides on visitors' birthdays? Well, not if the city council bans them...

Even more recession restaurants. Fine dining may not be able to rely on foreign traffic this year as the credit crunch goes global. A poster on the culinary forum eGullet suspected the city's steakhouses are especially vulnerable because, besides being "pitilessly expensive," they are supported by expense accounts that will undoubtedly be cut back this year--if they continue to exist at all. The famed Rainbow Room, which announced it will shutter its in-house restaurant, may have been the first major casualty. How about more menus like City Bakery's Bad Economy Beer Menu?

Inconspicuous consumption. Didn't you know it's poor form to be seen spending money when others can't? Shopping tours are out, experiential activities like Food Network studio tours or chocolate shop visits are in. Watch for active travel to spike, particularly anything cheap or free like kayaking the Hudson with the Parks Department. These freebies may have been secret in the past, but not for long! (Yes, we know, we're not helping.) PR maven Karen Weiner Escalera calls this category "transformational travel"; we call it having something to show for that vacation, even if that is a photo of Rachael Ray's garbage bowl.

Related Stories:
· New York City Kayaking: Completely Free, Not As Slimy As You'd Think And Fun As Hell [Jaunted]
· New York Tourism Up, Though Growth Slows [AP, via WSJ]
· New York City Restaurant Economy in January 2009 [eGullet]
· Rainbow Room to Close Restaurant [AP, via Yahoo!]
· The City Bakery's Bad Economy Menu [Jaunted]
· Luxury Travel and Lifestyle Trends to Watch in 2009 [BusinessWire]

[Photo: yukonblizzard]