Why foreign tourism to the U.S. is declining under Trump

America is celebrating its 250th birthday and hosting the world’s biggest sporting event this year. But these days, we are welcoming fewer guests to the party.

Foreign tourism to the United States has slumped since President Donald Trump returned to office in 2025. The administration’s eagerness to raise barriers to people entering the country—even when they just want to come here temporarily to spend some money and then go home—is one likely reason why. That, in turn, is contributing to growing anti-American sentiment among travelers who might have otherwise vacationed in the United States.

That latter issue seems to be particularly salient for would-be travelers from America’s northern neighbor. Canadian government data show a 25 percent decline in trips across the border into America in 2024 and 2025. The actual decrease might be even bigger. In May, the University of Toronto School of Cities published a report, based on cellphone data, that found Canadians made 42 percent fewer trips to the U.S. last year than they did in 2024.

Declining travel is a material indicator of a dynamic that pollsters have identified: Canadians are pretty miffed right now. A February Politico poll found that most Canadians believe America is not a “reliable ally” at the moment. Nearly 80 percent of Canadians said Trump’s presidency had weakened the relationship between the two countries.

It is hard to blame them, considering that Trump rolled into office last year and immediately began making threats to annex Canada as America’s “51st state.” If your neighbor was talking loudly about stealing your land, you probably wouldn’t go to poker night at his place.

It’s not just the Canadians who are staying away. International travel to the U.S. declined by 5.5 percent last year, according to TravelPulse, an industry newsletter. It was down another 4.3 percent in the first four months of 2026. In late 2025, Tourism Economics, a travel data forecasting company, said the United States is experiencing severe “sentiment drag.”

New federal policies are unlikely to reverse that trend. Last year, the State Department imposed a new requirement that visitors from about 50 countries post a bond of up to $15,000 before being allowed to enter the United States.

The Trump administration framed that demand as an attempt at limiting the number of visitors who overstay their visas—a common source of illegal immigration. But like many policies intended to stop illegal immigration, the bond requirement imposed a conspicuous penalty on peaceful, law-abiding visitors from the affected countries. In May, the Trump administration implicitly recognized that point, saying it would lift the bond requirement for World Cup ticket holders.

In December, the administration announced plans for a new rule requiring many foreign visitors to disclose their social media accounts and histories before being allowed to enter the country. The proposed rule would apply to tourists from the 42 nations (including the United Kingdom, Australia, Japan, and many European countries) with access to the Electronic System for Travel Authorization, which allows visa-free entry for up to 90 days.

The proposed rule drew strong rebukes from civil libertarian groups, who said it threatened the free speech and association rights of visitors (as well as American citizens who may have interacted with them). In a World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) survey, 34 percent of respondents said the proposed rule made them less likely to travel to the United States in the coming years.

You may not care if a bunch of loony Canucks or effete Europeans don’t like America. But those foreign tourists support millions of American jobs in the hospitality industry, generating trillions of dollars in economic output each year. When foreigners stop showing up, it means less work, smaller earnings, and fewer tips.

“International visitation has been an issue, not only for Las Vegas, but a lot of destinations,” Bill Hornbuckle, president and CEO of MGM Resorts, told investors during an August 2025 earnings call. Data from the rest of the year backed up his concerns. Spending by international visitors in the U.S. fell by 4.6 percent in 2025 relative to the year before, according to the WTTC.

That happened even though 2025 was a record year for travel worldwide. The WTTC says 80 million more people traveled across national borders last year compared to 2024, despite a 5.5 percent decline in travel to America.

The implications are clear. On a planet that is getting wealthier by the day, travelers are increasingly choosing to spend their leisure time and money elsewhere.

The United States has a lot to offer foreign visitors—Disney World, the Grand Canyon, Broadway. But perception is reality, and the perception of America is not good right now. When overstaying your visa can earn you a one-way, no-due-process-granted trip to a Central American prison, it’s not hard to figure out why many travelers are choosing to stay away.

Successful, prosperous societies are the ones that attract more people—both as immigrants and as tourists. Regardless of why it is happening, the decline in foreign visitors is another worrying sign that the Trump administration is cutting the ties that connect America to the rest of the world.