People from all over the world are hitting the road, air and sea; Travel is up and everything is great.
Except in the United States.
Domestic tourism is down despite the overall warm and fuzzy feelings people seem to have about the prospect globally. Business Insider notes that tourism from International visitors into the United States is suffering at the moment. It claims the reason is that guy in the White House.
Policies and rhetoric streaming out of the Donald Trump administration are hurting the travel market, according to a study recently released by Foursquare. Its CEO, Jeff Glueck, examines the current state of the industry and discovered some startling numbers pertaining to travelers (not) visiting the Unites States.
American share of the International tourism market saw a decline of 16 percent in March-a trend that started during October 2016 when that share experienced a drop of six percent. In total, tourism into the states is down:
"Over the full October 2016 to March 2017 timeframe, there was an average decrease of 11 (percent) YoY," notes the report.
That's particularly troubling as the domestic industry enjoyed modest growth year-over-year in August and September. But the truly painful part is the fact that travel seems to be up elsewhere: "Share of visits for leisure categories in other countries is up year-over-year by about 6%, by definition at the expense of the U.S. since we are talking about market share."
Glueck doesn't mince words: "The U.S. is losing tourist activity to foreign destinations."
The big question, then, would have to be what could cause such a discrepancy, especially when American visits had just increased prior to the period that began in October 2016.
Travel continues to thrive around the world, yet the United States is missing out on an increasing share of the fun and, most importantly, the boost to the economy tourism represents.
Yes, the reasons go beyond just Trump. (The dollar's strength doesn't help matters.)
However, when you consider what has been said by the president, what takes place at the borders and the policies that are still being debated in court, it's no wonder that countless potential travelers would want to sit out this administration for a trip to somewhere a bit more inviting.
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