Despite America’s 'great' economy under Trump, why are tourists going elsewhere?

Donald Trump's antim immigration rhetoric is leading to a decline in tourists
Donald Trump's antim immigration rhetoric is leading to a decline in tourists Credit: AP

There is, to put it mildly, a frisson of anxiety being felt by those in charge of the US tourism industry given the less than encouraging figures released by the US Department of Commerce earlier this year.

While much of the country’s economy is booming, the picture for the travel industry is looking rather less rosy, which is not good news for a country increasingly reliant on tourism. Figures produced by the US Travel Association show that one in nine jobs in the United States is dependent on travel and tourism, an industry which generated nearly $160bn (£114bn) in tax revenue in 2016.

Thanks to a recovering world economy, global tourism is up and the US would have expected to prosper along...

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