The Metropolitan Museum in New York had a record attendance last year

The Met Breuer

New York - A record attendance of approximately 7.36 million people was recorded at the Metropolitan Museum in New York in 2018. Compared to the previous year, this represents an increase of 5.1 percent, despite the introduction of a fixed admission price for visitors who are not residents of New York, reported AFP.

Starting from last March, the museum broke with tradition for the first time in history, which allowed any interested visitor to pay an amount for admission according to their discretion. Now, all visitors who do not reside in New York must prepare $25. New Yorkers still have the original option of voluntary admission pricing.

Data published by the Metropolitan Museum on Friday shows that 32 percent of last year's total visitors were residents of New York, 34 percent came from the rest of the United States, and an equally sized group consisted of international visitors. The largest number came from China, close to five percent.

Despite the unprecedented attendance last year, the Metropolitan Museum remains behind the Louvre in Paris. The Louvre welcomed a record ten million visitors last year.