U.S. International Visitor Arrivals Declined 5.5% in 2025 as Americans Increased Overseas Travel :: Hospitality Trends

International travel patterns to and from the United States showed diverging trends in 2025, with inbound visitor arrivals declining while outbound travel by U.S. citizens continued to expand. Data released by the National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO) indicates that international arrivals to the United States remained below pre-pandemic levels, while Americans increasingly traveled abroad.

International Visitor Arrivals to the United States in 2025

For the full year ending December 2025, the United States recorded 68,287,793 international visitor arrivals, representing a 5.5 percent decrease from 2024. The total volume reached 86 percent of the international arrivals recorded in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted global travel.

Overseas visitor arrivals, excluding Canada and Mexico, totaled 34,289,238 for the year, a 2.5 percent decline compared with 2024.

Mexico remained the largest source market for visitors to the United States in 2025, with 17,980,030 arrivals, reflecting a 6.4 percent year-over-year increase. Canada ranked second with 16,018,525 visitors, though arrivals from Canada declined 20.9 percent compared with the previous year.

Three regions reported year-over-year growth in visitor arrivals during 2025. Central America recorded the strongest increase, with visitor volume rising 4.7 percent to 1,688,028 arrivals. Eastern Europe saw a 2.5 percent increase to 1,126,172 visitors, while the Middle East recorded a 2 percent increase to 1,123,909 visitors.

Among U.S. ports of entry, New York received the highest number of international visitors in 2025, with 5,846,403 arrivals, followed by Miami with 4,725,981 and Los Angeles with 3,200,172.

December 2025 Monthly Snapshot

In December 2025, the United States recorded 6,048,545 international visitor arrivals, a 6.2 percent decline from December 2024. The figure equaled 88 percent of the visitor volume recorded in December 2019.

Overseas visitor arrivals for the month totaled 3,208,088, down 1.3 percent year over year.

The largest numbers of visitors in December came from Mexico (1,639,874), Canada (1,200,583), the United Kingdom (319,162), Brazil (227,273), and Japan (180,627). These five markets accounted for 59 percent of all international arrivals to the United States during the month.

Among overseas markets, the United Kingdom led with 291,982 visitors, followed by Brazil (218,892), Colombia (158,728), Japan (156,826), and South Korea (143,425).

Business travel arrivals were highest from India (27,538), the United Kingdom (25,416), Japan (22,371), Germany (13,518), and South Korea (13,442). Student arrivals were led by China (16,110), followed by India (14,900), South Korea (4,228), Taiwan (2,588), and Brazil (2,102).

Outbound Travel by U.S. Citizens

While inbound travel declined, outbound travel by U.S. citizens continued to increase.

In December 2025, 10,205,347 U.S. citizens traveled abroad, representing a 3.6 percent increase compared with December 2024. This total equaled 115 percent of the departures recorded in December 2019.

For the year, North America (Canada and Mexico) accounted for 48.6 percent of outbound travel, while overseas destinations represented 51.4 percent.

Mexico remained the most visited destination for U.S. travelers in December, with 4,263,541 departures, accounting for 41.8 percent of all departures that month and 36.3 percent of outbound travel for the year.

The Caribbean was the second-largest destination region, recording 11,339,823 U.S. departures for the year. Europe also remained a key market, with 1,590,280 U.S. travelers visiting the region in December, representing 15.6 percent of all outbound travel for the month and an increase of 2.9 percent year over year.

However, travel to Canada declined, with U.S. visits falling 9.2 percent compared with December 2024.