It appears the uncertainty surrounding President Donald Trump's suspended travel ban has had a direct effect on travel to the U.S. from the Middle East.
Citing new data from the Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC), ABC News reports how planned travel to the U.S. from that region is down 5.77 percent since Trump began his efforts to temporarily ban visitors from half of a dozen Muslim-majority countries in the Middle East and Africa.
According to the ARC, customers purchased 383,154 fares from the Middle East to the U.S. during the first quarter of 2017 compared to 406,611 fares in the same period last year.
ARC Managing Director of Enterprise Information Chuck Thackston told ABC News the figures are "reflective of some uncertainty."
"Given the back-and-forth on the executive orders and the court challenges-and we're not sure yet where that's going to shake out-I think that uncertainty for travelers that have discretion is leading them to say, 'well, maybe this year, we'll go to a different destination,'" added Thackston.
Interestingly, average fares from the Middle East to the U.S. has jumped considerably this year.
While the U.S. is hosting fewer travelers from the Middle East, those that are visiting are paying an average airfare of $1,026.98-up nearly $200 from $857.48 a year ago.
As for the bigger picture, ARC's data shows that the number of trips to the U.S. continues to climb. However, the rate of growth has fallen off, dropping to 5 percent in the first quarter of 2017 compared to 8.5 percent during the same period in 2016.
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A recent poll conducted by tourism marketing agency Brand USA of travelers from 11 countries (not included in Trump's executive order) shows that more international travelers now say they are less likely to visit the U.S. due to the changing political climate compared to late last year.
Another recent survey conducted by luxury travel network Virtuoso uncovered similar sentiment.
According to the poll, 42 percent of Virtuoso-affiliated travel advisors outside of the U.S. said their clients are avoiding travel there because of multiple factors, including opposition to U.S. foreign policy and concerns over obtaining visas.
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