A US welcome mat is rolled up. At the very least, it's how some international travelers see it, according to the World Travel & Tourism Council, a global organization representing the travel and tourism industry. And the cost of the hospitality process is high.
The US is steadily losing $12.5 billion in international travel expenses this year, down from $181 billion in 2024 to less than $189 billion, according to the latest economic impact study published by WTTC on Tuesday.
This is down 22.5% from the US international spending peak of $217.4 billion in 2019. And it comes after months of Trump administration policies that blocked foreign tourists from visiting because they feel unwelcome or dangerous.
Julia Simpson, president and CEO of WTTC, said last year that US travel spending fell below 2019 levels, while dollar strength has become more expensive for international travelers.
“People near Canada, Canada or Mexico are not travelling,” Simpson said he has mentioned a decline in travelers from those countries in response to Trump's administration's immigration crackdown, tariffs and politically accused statement. “There are also concerns about visas. People are very afraid of whether they have the correct visa or whether they could be arrested by mistake.”
The United States is the only country in 184 economies analyzed by the WTTC and the World Economic Advisory Company Oxford Economics. This is expected to see a decline in international visitors in 2025.
“The US government is erecting 'closed' signs while other countries are deploying welcome mats,” Simpson said. “I am confident that President Trump, with a hospitality background, understands that holiday makers enjoy beautiful countries, people and history and want to go home again,” she said. “They don't want to live there.”
The US remains the world's largest tourism and travel market, and last year it contributed to a national economy of $2.36 trillion. However, 90% of tourism spending in 2024 came from domestic tourists.
The WTTC says that it is not encouraging international tourism to the US, which is an opportunity that has been missed because there is real growth. According to the American Travel Association, foreign tourists spend an average of $4,000 per trip. This is eight times more than domestic travelers. In 2024, the US welcomed 72.4 million international visitors. 7 million fewer than 2019. International arrivals have steadily declined this year, with a significant drop in major markets such as Canada, the UK and South Korea in March.
Part of that decline could be attributed to the fact that Easter has delayed this year, pushing back the popular travel window, particularly from Western Europe, but many US travel agencies have revised their summer forecasts to reflect the downward trend.
“Without urgent action to restore international traveller confidence, it could take several years for the US to return to the pre-simultaneous level of international visitor spending,” Simpson said.
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