Some international LGBTQ+ travelers pull back on U.S. trips

Canadian citizen Robert Sharp was planning to go to Provincetown, Massachusetts — one of the LGBTQ+-friendly places in America — for his friend’s milestone birthday in July.

But against a backdrop of ongoing trade tensions sparked by President Donald Trump’s tariff policies and increasing anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric and policies within the U.S., he said his plans modified.

“Do we wish to have that stress before occurring vacation? Or do we wish to support our own country?” Sharp said.

The group he was planning to travel with decided to cancel the trip and can as a substitute visit Montreal, he said.

Sharp and his partner were also planning to go to Chicago or Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for a separate trip this yr, but they shifted their plans to a Canadian road trip between Calgary and Vancouver.

“We have been hit hard in Canada with tariffs and there is been an actual sense of patriotism up here. So, we ultimately decided to explore our own country, and do a road trip to the Rockies and spend money inside Canada to assist our economy,” Sharp said.

Sharp’s change in plans reflects a bigger trend of international travelers rethinking where they’re spending their travel budgets and pulling back on visits to the U.S.

The variety of foreign visitors to the U.S. by air dropped 10% in March from a yr prior, in keeping with the International Trade Administration, a part of the Commerce Department. Including land border crossings, inbound visitors to the U.S. fell 14% in March from the identical period last yr, in keeping with the industry group.

Oxford Economics estimates spending amongst international visitors to the U.S. will fall $8.5 billion this yr, as negative perceptions of the U.S. tied to trade and immigration policy lead travelers to other destinations.

Among the many LGBTQ+ population, bookings for queer-friendly housing accommodations within the U.S. on the LGBTQ+ travel platform misterb&b saw a 66% decline amongst Canadian users and a 32% decline amongst European users from February to April, compared with the identical period last yr.

The corporate said it had a 22% increase in bookings in blue states and a 9% decline in red states during that point period. It also saw declines in cities inside red states including Salt Lake City, Phoenix, and Austin, Texas.

Misterb&b CEO Matthieu Jost said overall bookings on the platform aren’t down globally but are increasing. Jost said LGBTQ+ individuals look like continuing to spend on vacations, but they’re changing their destinations.

The corporate said nearly all of misterb&b users it surveyed this yr said they use their travel budget as a type of activism — supporting inclusive destinations and economies.

Sharp, who owns LGBTQ-friendly travel company Out Adventures, shouldn’t be alone in changing his travel plans.

In February, the LGBTQ+ advocacy group Egale Canada issued a press release saying its members wouldn’t take part in person at conferences or events happening within the U.S. this yr, including WorldPride, which took place at first of June in Washington, D.C.

The choice was made primarily to guard individuals’ safety, said Helen Kennedy, executive director of Egale Canada.

In his second term, Trump has signed several executive orders targeting transgender people, including stopping them from serving openly within the military and attempting to keep transgender athletes out of ladies’ and ladies’s sports.

One other executive order, which says the federal government recognizes only two sexes, female and male, prompted several countries, including Denmark, Finland and Germany, to issue official cautions for LGBTQ+ travelers visiting the U.S., particularly transgender travelers. Canada has also updated its travel guidance with specific advisories for individuals with an “X” gender listed on their passports.

Kennedy said another excuse for the choice to not travel to the U.S. was to beat back on what she views as “economic warfare” from the U.S. toward Canada.

“People speak about Canada and the U.S. having an extended history of being incredible neighbors. And yes, we do, but that is based on economic interests numerous the time,” Kennedy said. “While you put that human element with the economic element, you then think, well, OK, why would I’m going there?”

Kennedy said members of Egale Canada who’re involved in nongovernmental organizations would normally spend anywhere from $3,000 to $5,000 per person during a visit to attend a conference or event. Corporate travelers often spend no less than $5,000, she estimated.

“We do spend a good chunk of change in hotels,” she said. “We do excursions, we rent bikes, we do the entire things that everyone else does.”

The LGBTQ+ travel market is important. The purchasing power of LGBTQ+ consumers overall is estimated to be $1.4 trillion, in keeping with a 2022 study by the market research firm Pride Co-Op.

In 2023, the worldwide LGBTQ+ tourism market size was $296.8 billion, and it’s expected to greater than double in 10 years, reaching $634.9 billion in 2033, in keeping with Market.US.

Research from Arival Travel shows that LGBTQ+ travelers usually tend to be affluent, with a household income of over $150,000, compared with other travelers.

When traveling, LGBTQ individuals book more activities and tours and spend more on these experiences than other populations, the Arival research found.

John Tanzella, CEO of the International LGBTQ+ Travel Association, said his organization is already sensing a pullback in international LGBTQ+ travel to the U.S. He said he has heard hesitations from international members about attending the organization’s global convention in October in Palm Springs, California.

“They do not feel welcome here, so why come and spend their money here?” Tanzella said.

“On the surface, it affects airlines and hotels. But in case you dig just a little deeper it does affect other businesses, whether it’s barber shops or restaurants, bars, spas. A whole lot of communities depend on tourists to are available and spend their money,” he added.

Despite concerns of waning visits from international LGBTQ+ travelers, in addition to some pullbacks in corporate sponsorships for Pride celebrations, Pride organizations across the U.S. said attendance was strong at Pride Month events, lots of which happen on the last weekend of June.

But many organizations said it’s still too soon to get official attendance numbers or difficult to estimate, on condition that many Pride celebrations are non-ticketed and open to the general public.

Matt Şenız-Cheng, associate director of partnerships for NYC Pride, said attendance for its Pride events last weekend is predicted to total 2.5 million — according to its typical numbers.

He said NYC Pride lost roughly 25% of its corporate sponsorships initially this yr, attributable to the economy, tariffs and pullback surrounding diversity, equity and inclusion. But he estimated the number of individuals and contingents participating within the Pride march this yr can be larger than in previous years.

Ryan Bos, executive director for the Capital Pride Alliance, which ran WorldPride this yr, said organizers were “pleasantly surprised” that folks still showed up amid concerns concerning the Trump administration’s policies.

Bos said he had heard calls to cancel the event this yr attributable to political tensions in Washington, he said.

“If we were to retreat, what message would which have sent to all the opposite Prides who’re also experiencing similar challenges?” Bos said.

While WorldPride doesn’t have official attendance numbers yet, Bos said he believes attendance was strong. Nevertheless, Tanzella, of the International LGBTQ+ Travel Association, said he heard numbers for WorldPride were down this yr.

Cities in red states have also continued on with their pride celebrations.

Attendance rose from about 28,000 last yr to 33,000 this yr at Phoenix Pride’s annual Rainbows Festival in April, Executive Director Michael Fornelli told CNBC in a press release. Its pride parade can be celebrated in October attributable to the summer heat.

In Salt Lake City, SLC Pride estimated its celebration last weekend brought in 17,000 attendees, greater than the ten,000 it saw last yr, in keeping with Bonnie O’Brien, festival director.

“We’re in just a little little bit of a blue bubble here in Salt Lake,” O’Brien said. “We’re not expecting people to come back from big, big cities or foreign countries. But will we get people from Wyoming? Yes. Will we get people from rural Utah or rural Idaho? Yes.”

“It isn’t about travel. It isn’t about red or blue,” she said. “It’s concerning the closest place that they’ll find community. And that they know that they are secure, if only for a weekend.”