The US travel impact is becoming increasingly visible as tourism to the United States plunges because of perceived risks, with some travellers now second-guessing whether it is safe to visit destinations that US President Donald Trump has recently threatened.
A landmark year for US tourism derailed
This was supposed to be a huge year for tourism to the US. In 2026, the nation is not only celebrating the centenary of its iconic Route 66 highway and the 250th anniversary of its independence, it is also co-hosting the FIFA World Cup. In a normal year, any one of these events would put a broad grin on the faces of US hotel owners and airline executives. But the events of the past 12 months have been anything but normal.
Since taking office again in January 2025, Trump and his administration have issued tariffs on longtime allies, repeatedly threatened to annex Canada, detained foreign tourists at the border, implemented mass deportations and may soon be rolling out a programme that scrutinises foreign tourists’ social media profiles before they are allowed to enter the country.
Travel warnings and economic fallout
As a result, a growing number of nations have issued travel warnings to the US and many would-be visitors have called for an all-out boycott of travel to the country, with some even calling it a “hostile state”.
According to a report by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), the US was projected to lose a staggering $12.5bn (£9.35bn) in international visitor spending in 2025. Of the 184 nations analysed by the WTTC and Oxford Economics, the US was the only one forecasted to see a decline in international visitor spending last year.
“Once aspirational, a US trip now feels, for many, like both a political act, a leap of faith for entry and a financial burden,” writes Sarah Kopit on the tourism industry website Skift. The site also reported that 46% of travellers polled last year said they were less likely to visit the US because of Trump.
2026 developments widen traveller concerns
But that was last year.
In the first few days of 2026, the US government has conducted airstrikes in Caracas and captured President Nicolas Maduro; says it will now “run” Venezuela; renewed talks to acquire Greenland; and has threatened Cuba, Iran, Colombia and Mexico.
Now, it seems that Trump’s actions are not just affecting travellers’ decisions to visit the US; they may be affecting travellers’ decisions to visit these other destinations too.
Greenland trips reconsidered
Heather Storgaard, a Danish resident, was planning to visit friends in Greenland in February, but Trump’s ramped-up invectives about buying or taking the mineral-rich island by military force has given her pause.
“I’m still thinking of going,” Storgaard said, “and am still looking, but cautiously.”
Jackie Arruda, a Brazil-based hospitality marketer, was also planning to visit a friend in Greenland in May, but is now watching closely to see if she will need to cancel her trip.
“What these recent events [in Venezuela] showed me was that these threats can become real plans very quickly,” she said. “If something happens in the next months, I will cancel this trip, but I’m more worried about my friend’s safety, the Greenlanders as a nation, their future, and the impact and consequences this invasion would have on the whole world.”
Immediate impact on Cuba tourism
Meanwhile, Jesús Noguera, owner of the Havana-based Cuba Careo Tours, notes that there has been an immediate impact on tourism as a result of statements from Trump describing the country as “ready to fall” after Maduro’s capture.
“The rhetoric has generated real and immediate alarm for potential tourists coming to Cuba,” said Noguera, citing multiple examples of rescheduled plans and concerned emails from prospective travellers. “I am concerned about the future of the sector. I honestly do not see any clear signs of recovery in the near term. Tourism simply does not thrive in instability, uncertainty and a heightened perception of risk.”
Mixed impact across Latin America
According to Laura Rendell-Dunn, a spokesperson at the specialist Latin American tour operator Journey Latin America, the US’s actions in Venezuela have not impacted the company’s bookings so far to Colombia, after Trump warned the nation’s President Gustavo Petro to “watch his ass”, nor to Mexico, where Trump has offered to send US troops to fight drug cartels.
UK travel advice and insurance implications
While it may be difficult for individual travellers to gauge how seriously to take Trump’s proclamations, for British travel agents and tour operators, the decision is simple.
“There’s a clear line in the sand,” said Sean Tipton, spokesperson for the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA). “As soon as the Foreign Office gives advice against travel, they will not send anyone. It is a duty of care issue: when you travel against Foreign Office advice, standard travel insurance does not cover you.”
While British tour operators and travel agents will not offer trips to places designated as too dangerous by the government, independent travellers can still go, but their travel insurance may be invalidated.
For those weighing whether it is safe to visit, Tipton recommends would-be travellers check the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office website, which is updated multiple times each day.
Official travel advisories compared
Of the countries Trump has recently threatened, at time of writing the FCDO advises against all travel to Venezuela and Iran, and cautions against all but essential travel to some areas of Colombia and Mexico. It does not currently advise against travel to Greenland.
Meanwhile, the US State Department’s warnings range from “exercise normal precautions” to “do not travel” to certain parts of Mexico; “increased caution” in Cuba and Greenland; “reconsider travel” to Colombia; and “do not travel” to Iran.
Tourism industry reacts to global attention
Local tourism organisations are considering how to work with the unexpected attention that Trump’s recent threats have brought.
“Is it terrible or is it good to get this kind of media focus?” said Inga Rós Antoníusdóttir, a travel executive with extensive experience of working in the Arctic and Nordic regions. “It all depends on what the tourism industry does with the attention.”
Antoníusdóttir says that for emerging travel destinations like Greenland, the increased media attention could raise global awareness of the island and be used as a springboard to showcase its culture, nature and history.
Iran tourism decline predates current rhetoric
In Iran, Mahdi Eshraghi, CEO of Tehran-based tour agency Surfiran, says Trump’s recent statements about intervening in Iran’s protests are not the real issue behind falling tourism demand.
“In our experience, the decline in demand for travel to Iran has been continuous since the US withdrawal from the nuclear agreement in 2018, rather than a short-term reaction to current political rhetoric,” he said.
Perception and the future of travel
In the travel industry, perception is everything. Less than two years since the US was named the world’s top tourism destination by the World Economic Forum, the country is now seeing what can happen when travellers feel the risk of visiting is not worth the reward.
While it may be too early to gauge whether travellers feel similarly about other countries Trump has put in his crosshairs, if the first few weeks of January have proven anything, it is that things can change quickly.
Source: BBC
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