
Summer is here. The international tourists are not. Why the US is losing billions in visitor revenue.
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Diverging Reports Breakdown
US travel industry losing billions as international visitors dwindle
Airlines are dropping or reducing transatlantic flights, and hotel occupancy rates in cities like New York are not keeping pace with last summer. Tourism Economics, a global economic consulting firm, is sticking with its earlier predictions that international visitor spending will fall by $8.5 billion this year. The biggest declines have been from Canadian and Mexican travelers, while Western Europeans are also going elsewhere.Multiple countries have issued travel advisories in recent months, including Australia, Germany, France, Denmark, and Finland. The UK’s Foreign Office is warning travelers to the United States that minor entry mistakes could lead to detention or deportation. In October, visitors to the US should also be prepared to pay a $250 “Integrity Fee’ to enter the country for international visitors. The application fee for Visa Waiver Countries is rising from $21 to $40 from $6 to $24 this October, but it is intended to deter the new “integrity fee’’ The White House has dismissed the advisories, saying that the US is much safer than four years ago.
The missive came from a group of 140 Canadian golfers who decided to forgo their summer getaway at Jay Peak, where Wright is president and general manager, and boycott the United States. The text was just another in a steady stream of canceled reservations that began last winter at the resort, which is situated four miles south of the Canadian border.
As Steve Wright was waiting to testify before Congress last month, he received a text that underscored the point he had traveled to Washington to make.
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Predictions about tourism losses in the United States began shortly after Trump took office. But now that we’ve arrived in the thick of summer, a time when international tourism should be hitting its peak, those predictions have become reality. Airlines are dropping or reducing transatlantic flights, and hotel occupancy rates in cities like New York are not keeping pace with last summer.
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The losses are hitting the travel industry across the board with ever-changing volatility, said Dulani Porter, an executive vice president with Spark, an agency that works with travel brands such as Visit Fort Lauderdale, Norwegian Cruise Lines, and Hilton Hotels & Resorts.
Visitors walk along an uncrowded Hollywood Walk of Fame on May 28, in Los Angeles. Justin Sullivan/Getty
“It’s all sectors,” she said. “Domestic travel has remained consistent, but the international travelers are not coming to the US this year. It’s off 20 percent in some markets. The biggest declines have been from Canadian and Mexican travelers. Western Europeans are also going elsewhere.”
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New research published last week from Tourism Economics found a 20 percent drop in visitation from Canada and a nearly 6 percent drop from Western Europe. Tourism Economics, a global economic consulting firm, is sticking with its earlier predictions that international visitor spending will fall by $8.5 billion this year.
“Factors contributing to the negative outlook include Trump administration posturing and policy announcements, such as ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs across long-standing trade partners,” Aran Ryan, director of industry studies, concluded. “Media coverage of border security incidents and national travel advisories also pose risks.”
Multiple countries have issued travel advisories in recent months. Australia updated its advisory last month, citing gun violence and unpredictable immigration enforcement in the United States. Germany, France, Denmark, and Finland all issued warnings about new US gender policies that may affect travelers who use nonbinary identifiers in their passports. The UK’s Foreign Office is warning travelers to the United States that minor entry mistakes could lead to detention or deportation.
Old Orchard Beach in Maine was quiet the weekend before the Fourth of July. The author didn’t see a single Quebec license plate during his visit, which is highly unusual in the summer. Christopher Muther
A Canadian actor on a work visa was detained at the Tijuana border for 12 days before being sent home, according to the New York Times. A British tourist spent 11 days in an ICE processing center in Washington state and was also denied entry into Canada, over a “visa mix-up,” according to the BBC.
Musicians have also been canceling US tours. Bells Larsen, a transgender singer-songwriter based in Montreal, said he was canceling a tour because he could not apply for a visa due to US Citizenship and Immigration Services’ policies that do not recognize transgender identities. Earlier this month, the French band Yelle was slated to perform a string of North American shows but has opted out.
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“The current political climate in the US, especially in regard to immigration and freedom of speech, is very worrisome,” the band wrote in a message on Instagram.
The White House has dismissed the advisories. At an April press conference, Karoline Leavitt, White House press secretary, said that the US is “a much safer country than four years ago under the previous president.”
In addition to the warnings, fees to enter the country for international visitors are rising. The Electronic System for Travel Authorization fee is rising from $21 to $40. The application fee for Visa Waiver Countries is rising from $6 to $24. Beginning this October, visitors to the US should also be prepared to pay a $250 “Integrity Fee.” Details of the new fee are sparse, but it’s intended to deter visitors from overstaying their visas.
“These fees are not reinvested in improving the travel experience and do nothing but discourage visitation at a time when foreign travelers are already concerned about the welcome experience and high prices,” Geoff Freeman, president of the US Travel Association, said in a statement.
All of these factors have made the United States a less appealing place for international tourists to spend their vacation dollars.
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The travel industry publication Skift polled residents in five countries — Canada, Germany, India, Mexico, and the UK — and asked if they are more or less likely to travel to the United States this year. Of the five, only travelers from India said they are more likely. The sentiment among residents of Canada, England, Germany, and Mexico was down steeply, particularly in Canada, where 36 percent of respondents said they’d be less likely to travel to the United States.
A man walks past Delusions of Grandeur furniture shop in Ottawa in April. Signs that once announced sales are replaced with an anti-American sentiment that has not waned. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff
New Englanders don’t need an industry survey to see that those numbers are down. A quick drive through Old Orchard Beach, where French becomes the unofficial second language each summer, shows a distinct lack of license plates from Quebec in hotel parking lots.
Wright, of Jay Peak, said he spent two weeks calling nearly 100 long-time Canadian customers who purchased season passes last year but haven’t yet this year.
“They cite the present administration’s flagrant disrespect of Canadian independence as not only a challenge to Canadian sovereignty, but to their own identity, and they feel the need to respond,” Wright said.
The World Travel and Tourism Council estimates the loss of international tourism to the US economy at $12.5 billion.
“This is a wake-up call for the US government,” said Julia Simpson, president and CEO of the council. “The world’s biggest travel and tourism economy is heading in the wrong direction. . . . While other nations are rolling out the welcome mat, the US government is putting up the ‘closed’ sign.”
Simpson’s assessment may sound dramatic, but at a time when tourism is dropping, the government has slashed funding to market the country as a tourism destination. Part of Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” slashed funding to Brand USA from $100 million to $20 million. Brand USA serves as a national visitor’s bureau, marketing specific destinations and events happening in the country to international markets.
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A Brand USA representative said that despite the cuts, the organization is proceeding with an America the Beautiful campaign slated to begin next month.
“We’re trying to do all we can,” said Chris Heywood, chief communications officer for Brand USA. “Despite our budget restrictions and limitations, we’re putting all our chips on the table and still trying to deliver.”
He’s also optimistic that 2026 will be a stronger year for tourism, with events such as the World Cup, the US semiquincentennial (America 250), and the Route 66 centennial.
But in the interim, the losses are piling up. The latest Skift projection found that Trump-related losses to the US travel and tourism industry will amount to $43 billion in 2025. The study found that international travelers aged 18 to 24 and those over 65 specifically mentioned Trump as a reason why they are less likely to come to the United States.
No matter what the financial loss, perhaps the largest hit is to the goodwill tourists feel toward the United States.
In Perth, Nigel Goodman said he will “not step foot in the US until the current administration is gone.” In New Brunswick, Adam MacDonald said he will not be visiting relatives in Massachusetts this summer. In Spain, Maria García is not comfortable with the thought of a US vacation.
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“I know the risks are low,” she said earlier this month at a rooftop bar in Madrid. “But vacation shouldn’t come with any risks at all.”
Christopher Muther can be reached at christopher.muther@globe.com. Follow him @Chris_Muther and Instagram @chris_muther.
Source: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/07/23/lifestyle/travel-industry-losing-billions-trump-slump/