By Eva Xiao in New York, Philip Georgiadis and John Burn-Murdoch in London, and Claire Bushey in Chicago
International visitors stay away as political and economic tension and fears of a hostile border rise
‘In just two months [Trump] has destroyed the reputation of the US, shown one way by diminished travel from the EU to the US,” said Paul English, co-founder of travel website Kayak. “This is not only one more terrible blow to the US economy, it also represents reputation damage that could take generations to repair.” .. “it’s very clear something is happening . . . and it is a reaction to Trump”.’
cancellation rates for bookings to the US were 16 per cent higher in the first quarter than a year earlier — with travellers from the UK, Germany and France showing an even higher cancellation rate of 40 per cent.
Sébastien Bazin, chief executive of French hotel giant Accor, told Bloomberg that reports of detentions at the US border had created a “bad buzz” around visiting the US.
Accor last week said bookings for Europeans visitors to the US this summer were down 25 per cent.
Last year, international visitors spent more than $253bn on US travel and tourism-related goods and services, according to the ITA, or more than 19 per cent of $1.3tn in US travel spending in 2024.
Gloria Sync, an artist and author in Nottingham, England, said she cancelled a May trip to San Francisco after seeing reports of detained tourists.
“The borders seem unsafe,” said Sync, who is transgender and said she was also worried about the “unwanted attention” her identity could bring at the border. “I don’t know if I’ll ever go back, to be honest.”
Sacks also pointed to Trump’s aggressive rhetoric towards the EU, Greenland and Canada. “These are all unforced errors, and they have a significant effect on sentiment towards the US, and therefore travel.”
“I am now contacting my US friends to visit me in Paris,” said Harrington. “I will not visit the States until Trump is gone.”
