So, tourists from Scotland, America and London all walk into a Boston bar — what do they have in common? A U.S. Government Shutdown (insert clever hashtag).

And in case you haven’t noticed, tourism in Boston is kind of a big deal. Our city depends largely upon thousands of tourists every year to boost the state’s economy. In fact, according to a 2012 study by the Research Department of the U.S. Travel Association, domestic and international travelers directly spent $17.7 billion in Massachusetts and directly generated $2.6 Billion in tax revenue for federal, state and local governments.

That’s a lot of cash money.

Bottom line — we need tourists. And despite mocking their funny-looking fanny packs and segway tours, you know deep-down it’s true. But with popular tourist attractions such as “the Boston National Historic Park — encompassing Faneuil Hall, Charlestown Navy Yard, the USS Constitution and Bunker Hill Monument” all closed today, according to the Boston Herald — tourists could be in trouble.

Thanks a lot Congress.

So what is a tourist to do? We decided to find out. I spoke with several tourists who were at Faneuil Hall today. Many traveled from far away and some were from right next door. All were unsure of how their Boston stay would pan out.

“Luckily, we did most of our touring last week and are leaving tomorrow. As long as the Boston Logan airport is open, we are just fine,” stated Ian, a tourist from Scotland traveling with this wife Dorothy. The couple, both in their mid-50s and wearing “Boston” ball caps told me they will spend today “shopping instead of touring.”

Other tourists are not so lucky to be leaving the U.S. immediately. Connor and Susan, a young tourist couple from Ireland, explained that they had only been in the U.S. for 24 hours and “received news of the government shutdown” upon their arrival. Connor told me, “we are very disappointed that the USS Constitution and Bunker Hill are closed. Those were the top two tourist sites on our list. Very disappointing.” Susan nodded her head in agreement.

But otherwise as they carouse the Freedom Trail, the Irish couple haven’t noticed much of a difference – “except, due to the shutdown even the restrooms are closed in Faneuil Hall, which is a big problem.” I didn’t inquire any further.

In addition to international tourists, there was a high school field trip group of 120 students from nearby Quincy, MA, lingering around Faneuil Hall. Two of the students, Haley and Carly, told me that they are here for a school project but with many historic sites closed – they are heading to the Paul Revere House, which is still open today. Besides a shortened Freedom Trail experience, the shutdown wouldn’t affect their trip.

Besides general concerns about openings, most tourists gave positive feedbacks about their overall Boston experience. And with Boston Duck Tours and Trolley Tours still going strong – many will opt for those alternatives in place of the typical Freedom Trail tour.