Montreal tourists to reach 11 million, a 50-year high

MONTREAL — Tourism Montreal estimates that 11 million tourists will visit the Canadian city this year — the most since 20 million flocked to the metropolis for Expo 67.

“We have a good first half of the summer, good trend now, and we’ll have a very good result at the end of the summer,” said Pierre Bellerose, vice president at Tourism Montreal.

Hotel occupancy rates were at about 87 percent in August, and many restaurants and stores that cater to visitors reported increased sales.

Bellerose credits Montreal’s 375th birthday, new attractions and multiple conventions.

Gilbert Rozon, founder of Just for Laughs and president of Montreal 375, believes Montreal is regaining its shine after several decades of hard times.

“We had every day in July over 100,000 people in the streets so a lot of them, I would say 23 to 25 percent, are tourists,” Rozon said.

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