Trump's Anti-Trade Policies Are Scaring Off Tourists

Trump’s tariffs and immigration crackdown are hurting the travel industry.

Since January 20, 2025, headlines about tariffs and immigration enforcement have been ubiquitous. Notably, both policies are anti-trade. Tariffs restrict Americans’ right to trade with companies abroad, and immigration restrictions violate Americans’ right to associate with foreigners.

An underappreciated consequence of these anti-trade measures is that they motivate boycotts of the U.S. as a travel destination and scare away tourists. Foreigners rightly object to the tariffs on their country and on the prospect of arbitrary immigration and border enforcement, which severely impacts businesses in our own tourism industry.

Before tariffs, travel bans, entry fees, and aggressive immigration enforcement went into effect, tourism to America had been increasing since the end of the pandemic, and international arrivals were initially projected to surpass 2019 levels. As of 2024, the U.S. was still a big travel destination that welcomed visitors: more than 70 million people visited that year. Tourists and Americans benefited from the exchange.

But tourism numbers are now dramatically down and expected to remain so.

In April, Axios reported a sharp decline in the number of foreigners entering the U.S. at the 10 busiest airports. This matches the lower turnout of visitors reported by business owners in places like New York this year.

A report by the World Travel & Tourism Council found that travel spending in the U.S. is projected to decline by $12.5 billion this year compared to last year. The U.S. may be the only country among 184 developed economies to see lower visitor spending in 2025.

Theme parks, which have a big international client base (for example, Disney World’s is approximately 23%), are already taking a hit from the decline in tourism. So are other businesses around them, like travel agencies and hotels. Smaller businesses, such as souvenir shops or the taxi and Uber drivers who service airports, are also affected. All want to work to earn foreigners’ business and make a profit. All are prevented from doing so by asinine anti-trade policies.

Americans will be worse off: the business owners, waiters, and hotel workers, who work in the travel industry and rely on trading with international travelers to make a living, will earn less or lose their jobs due to the government’s capricious policies.

What explains travelers’ new reluctance to visit America?

The administration is sending a clear message to foreigners: you are the enemy, we don’t want to trade with you or let you visit America either. It’s precisely because foreigners want to trade with America that they’re being rejected.

This anti-trade mentality has prompted travel boycotts of the U.S. A boycott doesn’t violate the rights of American businesses. But in this case, government policies these businesses didn’t ask for are prompting the boycotts, unfairly impacting their business.

Tourists are especially worried about border policies. Reports of tourists being detained for weeks or turned back at the border have increased under Trump, and his violent immigration crackdown has sent chills down the backs of would-be tourists worldwide. Travelers entering the U.S. have long been detained sporadically. But the Trump administration’s highly publicized detentions, which have prompted travel advisories worldwide, are sending a clear message to foreigners: don’t even try to come trade with us or you might be sent back or jailed for days. Prospective visitors rightly fear falling victim to such arbitrary power.

An Australian traveler recently told CNN that “There is doubt as to whether people will get in [to the country] . . . and that causes people to think of a better destination to visit than the USA.” That uneasiness is shared by many people worldwide and is a logical response to the administration’s hostile message to foreigners.

Tourism can always decline for market reasons, as when new and better travel destinations pop up. Businesses can address that by making their offers more attractive and can plan according to foreseeable risk. But when government uses force to dramatically reduce tourism overnight, rational planning is impossible.

The right of Americans to earn a living is being sacrificed in favor of arbitrary and nonsensical anti-trade policies.

The federal government should protect U.S. borders against threats, as it has been doing for decades with an extremely high degree of success. But there is no justification for threatening peaceful foreigners or restricting their commerce with Americans. It’s an attack on their rights and on the rights of Americans.

A version of this article was originally published by The Hill on September 3, 2025.