U.S. Expects Continued Growth in International Travel During Next Five Years

U.S. Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker today announced that the United States can expect four percent average annual growth in tourism during the next five years, and that a record 72.2 million foreign travelers are projected to visit the United States in 2014 alone. The Spring 2014 Forecast for International Travel, released semi-annually by the U.S. Commerce Department’s International Trade Administration, predicts continued strong growth through 2018 following four consecutive years of record visitor volume. 

"A record number of international visitors continue to choose the United States as their travel destination, which is contributing to our economic growth and supporting millions of jobs," said Secretary Pritzker. "The Obama Administration is committed to building on this success, and meeting the challenge President Obama laid out in his National Travel and Tourism Strategy to welcome 100 million international visitors to the United States and grow our economy by $250 billion by 2021.”

All top-20 visitor origin countries are forecast to grow from 2013 through 2018. Countries with the largest total growth percentages are China (139 percent), Colombia (56 percent), India (54 percent), Taiwan (52 percent), Brazil (50 percent), and Argentina (48 percent). Four countries are expected to account for 59 percent of the projected growth from 2013 through 2018. These volume growth leaders are Canada (23 percent of expected total growth), China (18 percent), Mexico (11 percent), and Brazil (7 percent).

The Department of Commerce released data today showing that 69.8 million international visitors traveled to the United States in 2013, generating a record $181 billion in receipts and a $57 billion trade surplus. In 2013, international visitor tourism spending increased 9.1 percent from 2012, supporting 1.3 million jobs. According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, a total of 8 million jobs are supported, directly and indirectly, by U.S. travel and tourism.

To learn more about the Spring 2014 Forecast for International Travel, visit http://travel.trade.gov/view/f-2000-99-001/index.html.