International tourism tips

The U.S. travel industry will see a full recovery in Chinese and Japanese tourism by 2026 — one year earlier than previously projected, according to the U.S. National and Travel Tourism Office’s latest annual forecast released Tuesday.

The next U.S. president is going to preside over the one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world and can influence how many travelers from abroad can come to the U.S.

India’s outbound tourism market is expected to reach $55.4 billion by 2034, annual growth of over 11%, according to a new report by Indian commerce body FICCI (Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry). The market is projected to reach $18.8 billion in 2024.  

Everyone at the IPW travel trade show in Los Angeles was banking on doing big business for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, but several tour operators told us much of it would be coming from corporations and large groups.

The U.S., Britain, and other Western destinations are still waiting for Chinese group tours to return to their pre-pandemic levels. Canada, however, has been adapting to the continued absence of Chinese groups. The country has sought other sources of tourism growth, such as through its new fund to attract business events and its plans to co-host the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

International tourism will rise by 15% in 2024 from last year, according to data shared by United Nations World Tourism Organization Friday. In fact, it will also exceed 2019 levels by 2%.

Alex Lasry has been sworn in as the new deputy assistant secretary for travel and tourism at the U.S. Department of Commerce. Lasry will report to Brian Beall, director of travel and tourism, who started on May 8.

Chinese tourists won’t be coming back to New York City at their pre-pandemic levels next year. Affordability and limited flights are two issues holding back the rebound, say travel executives.

The French Senate has greenlit measures to apply value-added tax (VAT) to Airbnb and similar platforms, aiming to address perceived competition imbalances with the hotel sector. 

Americans went abroad in large numbers in 2023, and data on flight bookings has revealed their top destinations internationally and domestically — along with their most common departure cities.

International travel to the U.S. continues to make a post-pandemic recovery, according to new data on international air travelers released Monday by the U.S.’s National Travel and Tourism Office. International air travelers spent $18.9 billion in the U.S. in the second quarter, up 33% from the same period in 2022.

Nearly 6.5 million international travelers came to the U.S. in July, representing 84% of its pre-pandemic level, according to the National Travel and Tourism Office’s latest data release. Compared to July 2022, international travel to the U.S. is up 25%.

Multiple historic sites in Marrakech were reopened to tourists on Sunday, a month after a devastating earthquake hit Morocco and took the lives of nearly 3,000 people. The reopened sites include Bahia Palace, Badi Palace, and the Saadian Tombs, reported Morocco World News.

The U.S. has added Israel to the Visa Waiver Program, the U.S. Department of State announced Wednesday. Starting November 30, Israeli citizens and nationals will be to travel to the U.S. for tourism or business without first obtaining a visitor visa for up to 90 days. Israeli citizens and nationals will only need to complete Electronic System for Travel Authorization.

International tourism reached 84% of its pre-pandemic level between January and July 2023, according to the UN World Tourism Organization. Around 700 million tourists traveled internationally.

In the first half of 2023, Europe experienced tis hight number of tourist stays in the past decade, according to the Eurostat, the European Union’s statistics agency. Europe recorded 1.19 billion night stays between January and June 2023, up by 0.9% and 12.9% from the same period in 2019 and 2022, respectively.

Over 10 million Americans traveled abroad in June, a 20% rise from the same period last year, according to the National Travel and Tourism Office’s latest data. June’s volume was 99% of its 2019 pre-pandemic level.

Brazil will mandate visitors from the U.S., Australia and Canada obtain an e-visa prior to entering the country starting January 10, 2024, according to Embratur, Brazil tourism’s board.

The travel spending gap between outbound American travelers and inbound international travelers amounted to $802 million in September, the third month this year with a deficit for the U.S., according to the National Travel and Tourism Office. In May and June, the U.S. also experienced a spending a gap of $800 million.

International inbound travel to the U.S. is projected to be at 63 percent and 75 percent of its pre-pandemic volume in 2022 and 2023, respectively, according to the U.S. Travel Association’s biannual forecast. At this rate, international travel won’t reach pre-pandemic levels until 2025.

International inbound visitors spent more than $15.8 billion on travel to, and tourism-related activities within, the United States in October, making it the highest monthly level of spending since Covid struck in February 2020, according to the National Travel and Tourism Office.