Indians rush to America as world turns back on US

The TOI Correspondent from Washington: Indians are visiting America in greater numbers than ever before, even as travellers from other countries are shying away from the US, which is infused with MAGA fervour, according to recent surveys and travel industry data.
Nearly 1.9 million Indian visitors travelled to the US from January to October 2024, marking a 48 per cent increase compared to 2019 pre-pandemic levels, according to the US National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO), which now says India as the 6th largest market for US inbound arrivals.
While the numbers are from just before the Trump victory in the 2024 Presidential elections, the NTTO says India has emerged as the largest source market for outbound travelers in Asia, surpassing China, South Korea, and Japan in recent times. Tourism receipts from Indian visitors reached $13.3 billion in 2022, and with the 2024 increase in arrivals, this figure is likely higher, reflecting India’s high spending power, which the NTTO said averaged $5,200 per visitor.

At the same time, globe-trotters from other parts of the world, rest of the world, particularly Europe, are turning their backs on US amid a flaming trade war and unremitting hostility from MAGA mouthpieces towards immigrants and foreigners. Even neighboring Canadians and Mexicans have been singed by MAGA rhetoric.
A report from Tourism Economics revised its 2025 forecast for US inbound travel from an expected 9 per cent growth to a 9.4 per cent decline in international arrivals compared to 2024 -- a nearly 20 per cent swing. Data from March 2025 showed a 11.6 per cent year-over-year drop in overseas visitor arrivals, with significant declines from Canada (31.9 per cent by land, 13.5 per cent by air), Germany, and the UK.
The NTTO also backed that data, reporting a more modest 3.3 per cent decrease in international visitors to the US in the first quarter of 2025 (7.1 million visitors) compared to 2024. Specifically, it said March 2025 saw an 11.6 per cent drop in overseas arrivals, with air travel from Mexico declining by 23 per cent.
The organisation warned that the decline could result in a $64 billion loss in tourism revenue in 2025, even as political pundits wondered about the damage to US prestige and reputation from MAGA's overheated rhetoric, including Trump's repeated assertion that the US is being "ripped off" by the world and referring to other countries as "scavengers" feeding off the US market.
While US travel industry executives are urging the administration and Congress to streamline visa issuance, immigration and customs processes etc to improve travel to America amid competition from other parts of the world, MAGA hardliners are worried about rare instances of "birthright citizenship tourism" where travel to US is planned in a way that pregnant women deliver the child in the US to obtain American citizenship.
The travel industry meanwhile is spooked by seemingly hostile comments coming from Trump administration officials, including a recent statement from the White House podium that "All foreign nationals present in the United States longer than 30 days must register with the federal government. Failure to comply with this is a crime punishable by fines, imprisonment, or both... If not, you will be arrested, fined, deported, never to return to our country again."
There is no federal requirement for tourists to register with US agencies during their stay, regardless of duration, unless specific conditions apply (e.g., visa overstays or changes in status).