https://www.cnbc.com/2025/04/23/international-tourists-domestic-american-travel-abroad.html
In March, U.S. air arrivals dropped by about 10% compared to last year and 13% from pre-pandemic levels, totaling 4.54 million foreign visitors, according to the International Trade Administration. This decline was partly due to Easter shifting vacation schedules. Meanwhile, U.S. citizens traveling abroad by air rose 1.6% from last year and 22% from 2019, reaching 6.56 million. Delta and United Airlines report strong international and premium travel demand, offsetting weaker domestic main cabin bookings. The U.S. travel industry, generating roughly $1 trillion annually, faces a growing trade gap exceeding $50 billion due to higher American spending abroad. Including land borders, total inbound visitors fell 14% in March, potentially costing the U.S. $21 billion in travel-related exports, per the U.S. Travel Association, despite expectations of a 12% rise in international tourism spending this year.
Won't be surprised if additional Tariffs are implemented to tackle the growing travel deficit. But what kind of tariffs ? how will they call it?
Tourism/Travel deficit : International tourism to the U.S. slumps, but Americans can’t stop traveling overseas
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Posted by azavio
9 Comments
Americans are the only thing America exports, haha.
Other countries are still treating us very badly. tariff plane tickets!
In terms of travel, expect to see the same as what happened in South America back in the 70s and 80s. Brazil and Argentina put some very high tariffs on industrial goods to protect their own industry. So things like VCRs, radios, clothing, tools, stereo system, toys, sporting goods, etc… became ridiculously expensive. In the tiny and poor country of Paraguay, which had no such tariffs, shops began to pop-up near the borders with Brazil and Argentina. Millions of “tourists” would cross the border, buy those products in bulk and resell them for a profit in gray markers back in Brazil and Argentina.
The same thing might happen to the US, where in Mexican and Canadian border towns, hundreds of these types of shops might pop up to serve American “tourists” making border runs to bring back those goods into the US and try to resell it via Ebay or Craig’s List, as there are not enough custom officials in this world to monitor and tax individuals bringing trinkets through a 5,000 mile border.
10% drop? That is a far cry from the doom and gloom I saw being upvoted on reddit for months now. They want you to believe its a 75% drop or something.
Most foreigners book way in advance. These numbers will definitely drop differently in a few months.
On the American side I think it’s just because traveling has become a massive trend on social media. On tinder I see girls talking about traveling in like 30% of profiles at a minimum.
Oh please no. Stay home and bake apple pie or something.
So now the US has a tourism deficit, will they force the other countries to send tourists or simply invade and kidnap? Stay tuned.
bought curreny and now spending it abroad to not make a taxable event by de minimus exception.