International Travel & Pennsylvania's Economy

In a recent piece for the UK's Guardian newspaper, former Labor Secretary Robert Reich made a provocative case: boycott the United States. When it comes to the tourism industry, I've got some skin in the game - my wife and I co-own a small business in a tourism-dependent community and I'm on the board of our local tourism agency. Naturally, it's difficult to hear the case made for travel boycotts to the United States. I'm not alone - my friends and neighbors in the tourism industry here in the Poconos and elsewhere are nervous about how the a potential economic downturn will affect the industry. Reich argues that travel to the United States at this time rewards President Trump's bad behavior on the world stage. When looking at it from the perspective of a foreign traveler, it's not hard to see why someone would have second thoughts. Americans aren't the only ones who can be patriotic, so of course if the President of the United States insults your country, culture, or government, you might not feel so good about spending your money in the U.S. I can't blame an American for encouraging potential travelers to act in alignment with their values - the real casue of the impending decline in tourism are the actions of the Trump administration.

It's a multifaceted problem, because the President and his administration keep creating new reasons for international travels to avoid the United States. Not wanting to reward the President's bad behavior is just one reason. Some visitors are surely cancelling plans due to the administration's tariffs threatening their own livelihoods. Others will reconsider based on the administration's chaotic immigration enforcement. A spike in ICE detentions, including detentions of tourists, has led to issuance of new travel advisories in the UK, Germany, Denmark, and Finland cautioning their citizens who are considering travel to the United States. Black, brown, and LGBTQ+ travelers may have fears about traveling here safely, exacerbated by a constant barrage of mean-spirited messaging from the White House. In a statement, the U.S. Travel Association euphemistically said that there is "a question of America's welcomeness." Still others may simply decide the uncertainty isn't worth the risk and choose another destination.

The stated philosophy of the President's trade policies is that we should use tariffs to bring industry back to America. However, international tourism is an export industry, and it's meaningful to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania's Tourism Office publishes statistics annually on visitor spending. Pre-COVID, international travelers spent nearly $3 billion per year in Pennsylvania, accounting for about six percent of all travel spending.

The most recent data show that international travel spending in Pennsylvania has recovered more slowly since the pandemic. It rebounded to nearly $1.3 billion in 2022 from a low of $520 million in 2020, but still stood at less than half of pre-pandemic levels and accounted for less than three percent of statewide visitor spending. At a time when the international segment of the tourism industry is already fragile, aggressive ICE detentions, tariff wars, and provocative statements from the President undermine any hope for growth in the international market.

Data from the 2022 Economic Impact of Travel & Tourism Report commissioned by the Pennsylvania Tourism Office shows that international visitors spent nearly $3 billion per year in the Commonwealth pre-COVID, about six percent of all travel spending in Pennsylvania.

While it's difficult to predict exactly how much international travel trends will be impacted, some data points are beginning to emerge. Summer bookings to the U.S. from Europe are down 25 percent, and businesses that normally cater to Canadian snowbirds are reporting canceled reservations left and right. One challenge is a lack of detailed, publicly available data on international travel - Pennsylvania Tourism Office's reports only provide international statistics at a statewide level, leaving the scale of the issue for Pennsylvania's unique tourism regions unknown. Datasets that account for 2025 data will also not be published for several years, and DOGE's efforts have reduced the federal government's capacity to collect and publish reliable economic data.

While Pennsylvania's tourism economy derives most revenue from the domestic market, impending losses in the international segment could prove extremely harmful for businesses throughout the tourism sector. Many operate on thin margins already and simultaneously face an uncertain economy that could also hamper the domestic segment. The power to stop the collapse of international tourism spending in Pennsylvania and nationwide rests squarely with the Trump administration: stop the chaotic immigration enforcement and unjustified detention of tourists at the border, deescalate the tariff wars, and return to real leadership on the world stage instead of insults and provocations toward our allies.