San Francisco Expects 25 Million Visitors and $10.6 Billion in Spending in 2027

San Francisco Travel released its 2026 results and its 2027 forecast at the annual Visitor Impact Summit, held at the Curran Theatre on August 26, 2026. The association projects 25 million visitors and $10.6 billion in visitor spending in 2027, both above this year, and it expects hotels to be fuller and rooms to cost more.

Where 2026 Landed

The figures presented at the summit, reported by Meetings Today from the room, put 2026 visitor volume at 24.4 million and visitor spending at $9.94 billion. Citywide hotel occupancy came in at 70.7%, up 5.2% year over year. The average daily rate was $266.16, up 8.5%. Revenue per available room reached $188.06, a 14.1% increase. Moscone Center hosted 38 major events generating more than 656,000 room nights.

Set against the pre-pandemic peak, the picture splits in two. Spending has recovered and passed 2019. Visitor numbers have not: the San Francisco Examiner reported that 26.2 million people visited in 2019, about two million more than this year, and that 2025 closed at 23.7 million visitors and $9.4 billion in spending.

The 2027 Forecast

San Francisco Travel forecasts hotel occupancy of 72.1% next year, an average daily rate of $271.43, and revenue per available room of $195.61. It expects Moscone Center to host 33 major events producing more than 640,000 room nights, which is five fewer events than this year.

Mayor Daniel Lurie, speaking at the summit, said the city is “on track to set tourism spending records of nearly $10 billion, exceeding the previous spending high of 2019,” and that “in 2027 we are set to break a new record with $10.6 billion in visitor spending expected.”

Anna Marie Presutti, president and CEO of San Francisco Travel, pointed to the convention calendar as the anchor. “June was San Francisco’s best occupancy month since the pandemic, and that’s exactly the kind of momentum we want to build on,” she said. Speaking to NBC Bay Area, she added that domestic travel is up while international visitation is only inching up.

What This Means If You Are Booking a Trip

The forecast average daily rate is about $5 a night higher than this year’s, and occupancy is forecast to rise 1.4 percentage points. In practice, room supply gets tightest around the Moscone convention calendar, so it is worth checking the Moscone Center event listings for your dates before booking. Fewer events are scheduled in 2027 than in 2026, but they still account for roughly 640,000 room nights.

Big events continue to drive the calendar. The 2026 Pokemon World Championships, running August 28 to 30, sold 54,000 tickets, Lurie said at the summit. San Francisco is scheduled to host the WNBA All-Star Game in 2027, and the MLB All-Star Game and the PGA Championship in 2028.

One counterweight sits outside the city’s control. Geoff Freeman, president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, told the summit that international arrivals to the United States are expected to be down 5% year over year, citing federal immigration enforcement, visa restrictions and entry procedures among the causes.

For what is on in the city over the next few weeks, see our guide to things to do in San Francisco in September 2026.

Photo: Beyond My Ken, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.