International tourist arrivals to the United States fell by 4% in the first seven months of 2017, according to the US National Travel & Tourism Office. The decline, which some in the tourism industry have dubbed a 'Trump slump', contrasts with a 7% rise in global tourism over the same period.
Visits from key markets including Mexico, the UK, and China all dropped, while Canadian arrivals increased by 4.6%. The overall decline accelerated from a 2% fall in 2016, following a peak of 77.5 million visitors in 2015.
Industry figures point to President Donald Trump's 'America First' rhetoric, anti-immigrant comments, and tighter visa rules as contributing factors. Vincent Wolfington, former chair of the World Travel and Tourism Council, said: 'The perception is it's probably too much trouble at this point in time to visit the US.'
While the weaker pound may deter UK travellers and the dollar has fallen against many currencies, sentiment is seen as a key driver. Global surveys show declining approval of US leadership, similar to the period after the 2001 terror attacks and the Iraq war.
ForwardKeys, a travel analytics firm, expects long-haul bookings to the US to continue to lag behind the rest of the world in 2018. The Visit US coalition, a group of travel industry bodies, has called the decline 'troubling' and urged the government to balance security with welcoming legitimate visitors.
Spending by international visitors fell by 3.2% in the first ten months of 2017, a loss of over $250 million. Tourism contributed about 8% to US GDP in 2016, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council.
