Foreign tourism to the United States continues to fall, with policies introduced under US President Donald Trump’s administration creating apprehension among potential visitors.
Recent preliminary government data reveals a 3 percent decrease in foreign visits to the US in July compared to the previous year. This decline follows a pattern observed nearly every month since Trump assumed office, with foreign tourism dropping in five out of six months.
“Everyone is afraid, scared – there’s too much politics about immigration,” said Luise Francine, a Brazilian tourist in Washington, DC, reports Al Jazeera.
Experts and some local officials point to Trump’s tariffs, strict immigration policies, and controversial statements about acquiring countries like Canada and Greenland as contributing factors that have deterred international travellers.
Tourism Economics, a travel research firm, recently forecasted an 8.2 percent drop in international arrivals to the US in 2025, an improvement from their previous estimate of 9.4 percent but still well below pre-pandemic levels.
“The sentiment drag has proven to be severe,” the firm stated, noting that data from airline bookings indicated a “sharp inbound travel slowdown” in May, June, and July, which is expected to persist.
While July 2025 figures do not include travel data from neighbouring Canada and Mexico, Canadian tourism has sharply declined. According to Tourism Economics, visitors from Canada are one-quarter lower compared to the same period in 2024.
According to Canada’s national statistical agency, more US residents travelled into Canada in June and July than Canadians visiting the US. This marked the first occurrence of this trend in nearly two decades, except for two months during the pandemic.
On the other hand, Mexico has seen an uptick in tourism to the US. Travel from Central America increased by 3 percent through May, while South American travel rose by 0.7 percent, but Western European visits declined by 2.3 percent.
Among the top 10 countries that are tourist-generating, only Japan and Italy saw an increase in visitors in July. Tourists from India, ranked second, declined by 5.5 percent, while visitors from China fell nearly 14 percent.
Relations between India and the US have cooled under Trump, particularly due to tariffs and rising geopolitical tensions, while the trade war and Trump’s remarks on Chinese students have caused anxiety among Chinese travellers.
Since starting his second term in January, Trump has reinforced some of the hardline policies from his first term, including reviving a travel ban primarily affecting African and Middle Eastern countries, tightening visa approval processes, and escalating immigration raids.
Additionally, the push for tariffs on foreign goods has fostered a sense of alienation among international visitors.
A new “visa integrity fee” of $250, set to take effect on October 1, will further complicate travel for citizens of non-visa waiver countries like Mexico, Argentina, India, Brazil, and China. The additional charge will bring the total visa cost to $442, one of the highest fees in the world, according to the US Travel Association.
International visitor spending in the US is projected to fall below $169bn this year, down from $181bn in 2024, according to the World Travel & Tourism Council.
