Forecasts show US losing foreign travelers
The World Travel & Tourism Council projected ahead of Memorial Day that the U.S. would be the only country among the 184 it studied where foreign visitor spending would fall in 2025. The finding was “a clear indicator that the global appeal of the U.S. is slipping,” the global industry association said.
“The world’s biggest travel and tourism economy is heading in the wrong direction,” Julia Simpson, the council’s president and CEO, said. “While other nations are rolling out the welcome mat, the U.S. government is putting up the ‘closed’ sign.”
Travel research firm Tourism Economics, meanwhile, predicted this month that the U.S. would see 8.2% fewer international arrivals in 2025, an improvement from its earlier forecast of a 9.4% decline but well below the numbers of foreign visitors to the country before the COVID-19 pandemic.
I’m in the same position. It’s going to be a minimum of 3 years before I visit. We’re only 1/8th of the way through the current regime (assuming there are elections at the end of it) and there is plenty of opportunity for Orange Turd and Babyface By-product to make things a whole lot worse. Once all that damage is reversed enough for foreign visitors to feel safe, then I’ll consider my holiday plans. Until then, just NOPE.