- Nearly 1m fewer European tourists visited the US between January and August 2026
- Around 6.3m Europeans travelled to the US compared with 7.3m in 2024
- England saw the largest volume reduction, down over 700,000 travellers
- Germany inbound travel fell 16pc year-to-date
- Western European travel to Tennessee surged by 24pc
Nearly one million fewer European tourists visited the United States between January and August 2026 compared with the same period two years earlier. Around 6.3m Europeans travelled to the US for tourism in the first eight months of 2026, down from almost 7.1m in 2025 and 7.3m in 2024.
The sharpest declines were among Danish, Swiss and German travellers. Higher travel and accommodation costs, entry policy concerns and global uncertainty contributed to the drop while more than 10.7m Americans visited Europe in the first half of 2026, up 2.2pc.
England witnessed the largest volume reduction, down over 700,000 travellers compared with pre-pandemic baselines. Germany inbound travel collapsed by 16pc year-to-date with total visitors slipping from 2m down to 1.8m. France visited numbers dipped 15pc year-to-date sliding down to 1.6m arrivals. Italy remained a notable exception, actually sending more visitors to the US than in previous baselines.
Western European travel to Tennessee surged by 24pc as travellers opt to swap large coastal metropolises for smaller US cultural regions. Industry leaders from organisations like the US Travel Association voiced concerns over the continuing slide noting that the country is actively losing global market share despite major upcoming athletic events like the FIFA Men’s World Cup.
