Donald Trump's policies are threatening the US tourism industry, travel experts warn, as the number of European travelers visiting America has plummeted in recent weeks.
Political and economic tensions as well as horror stories from travelers crossing the US border have resulted in a sharp decline of tourists. Visitors from western Europe who stayed at least one night in the US dropped by 17% in March compared to figures from a year ago, according to the International Trade Administration.
Denmark saw one of the steepest declines in visitors traveling to the US, which could be an indication of the growing anger over Trump's plans for the US to take ownership of Greenland, a Danish territory. Meanwhile, travel from Ireland, Germany and Norway plummeted by more than 20%, ITA data analyzed by the Financial Times showed.
In total, the number of overseas visitors traveling to the US dropped by 12% last month in comparison to March 2024 figures, marking the steepest decline since 2021 when the travel sector was thrown into chaos by Covid-19 pandemic restrictions. It signifies a serious threat the US tourism industry, which accounts for 2.5% of the country's GDP, travel experts warn as they point the blame at Trump.
“In just two months [Trump] has destroyed the reputation of the US, shown one way by diminished travel from the EU to the US,” Paul English, co-founder of travel website Kayak, told the outlet. “This is not only one more terrible blow to the US economy, it also represents reputation damage that could take generations to repair.”
Adam Sacks, president at Tourism Economics, said data from US airports and land crossings from Canada, showed “it’s very clear something is happening . . . and it is a reaction to Trump”. Transatlantic routes are some of the most profitable flight paths and have soared in demand since the pandemic but last week Virgin Atlantic warned of a "modest" slowdown in demand.
On Wednesday, Air France-KLM’s CEO Ben Smith also announced that the airline had been forced to slash economy-class transatlantic fares amid a “slight softness” in the market. However, British Airways owner IAG and US carrier Delta Air Lines said they had not noticed any impact.
Sébastien Bazin, chief executive of French hotel giant Accor, says detentions at the US border had created a "bad buzz" around visiting the country. He told Bloomberg last week that bookings for European visitors to the US were down 25% this summer.
Gloria Sync, an artist from England, told the Financial Times that reports of detained tourists led to her canceling her May trip to San Francisco. “The borders seem unsafe,” Sync, who is transgender, said. She was worried about the "unwanted attention" her identity could bring. “I don’t know if I’ll ever go back, to be honest," she added.
Trump's controversial trade and cost-cutting policies have also led to people canceling trips to the US. Paul Harrington, a British man living in Paris, canceled his trip to Washington DC next year due to Trump's tariffs and his administration's dismantling of foreign aid agency USAID.
Sign up to our FREE newsletter and get the top stories to your inbox
DAILY NEWSLETTER: Sign up here to get the latest news and updates from the Mirror US straight to your inbox with our FREE newsletter.
The retiree has two daughters who both work in education and a recession could put their jobs at risk. “I am now contacting my US friends to visit me in Paris,” he said. “I will not visit the States until Trump is gone.”
It's not just Europeans that are canceling travel plans, visits from Canadians have also been declining amid Trump's aggressive rhetoric. “These are all unforced errors, and they have a significant effect on sentiment towards the US, and therefore travel," Sacks said.