CoStar News reported on 20 February that the United States recorded a 6 percent drop in foreign visitors in 2025 and another 4.8 percent year-on-year decline in January 2026—the only major destination to lose ground, according to World Travel & Tourism Council data. Analysts blame a strong dollar, visa backlogs and what one executive called the “anti-welcome perception” created by restrictive policies.
The timing could not be worse: eleven U.S. cities will co-host the FIFA World Cup this summer, and destination-marketing organisations had banked on a tourism windfall to offset pandemic losses. Erik Hansen of the U.S. Travel Association warned that 11 million “missing” visitors translate into multi-billion-dollar revenue hits for hotels, restaurants and convention centres.
![U.S. inbound tourist numbers fall again, threatening hotel and meeting-industry recovery]()
Services such as VisaHQ can help soften that blow by streamlining the visa-application process for individual travellers and large event delegations alike; its online platform (https://www.visahq.com/united-states/) offers checklist tools, real-time status updates and dedicated support that reduce processing uncertainty and keep travel plans on schedule.
For global-mobility and meeting managers the slump means negotiating leverage. Many large hotels in gateway cities are reporting softer group demand and may offer favourable room blocks or attrition clauses for corporate events. Conversely, fewer international arrivals could delay the return of some services—reduced airline frequencies or curtailed airport shops—that mobility teams rely on.
Industry groups are using the latest data to lobby against new entry fees and for faster visa processing, arguing that without action the U.S. risks ceding market share to Canada, the EU and Asian hubs competing aggressively for meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) business.
The timing could not be worse: eleven U.S. cities will co-host the FIFA World Cup this summer, and destination-marketing organisations had banked on a tourism windfall to offset pandemic losses. Erik Hansen of the U.S. Travel Association warned that 11 million “missing” visitors translate into multi-billion-dollar revenue hits for hotels, restaurants and convention centres.
Services such as VisaHQ can help soften that blow by streamlining the visa-application process for individual travellers and large event delegations alike; its online platform (https://www.visahq.com/united-states/) offers checklist tools, real-time status updates and dedicated support that reduce processing uncertainty and keep travel plans on schedule.
For global-mobility and meeting managers the slump means negotiating leverage. Many large hotels in gateway cities are reporting softer group demand and may offer favourable room blocks or attrition clauses for corporate events. Conversely, fewer international arrivals could delay the return of some services—reduced airline frequencies or curtailed airport shops—that mobility teams rely on.
Industry groups are using the latest data to lobby against new entry fees and for faster visa processing, arguing that without action the U.S. risks ceding market share to Canada, the EU and Asian hubs competing aggressively for meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) business.
