Survey: U.S. Policies Are Reshaping Where Americans Are Travelling in 2025

While we at Travel Market Report Canada tend to focus on how the polarizing policies of the current U.S. administration are impacting the travel plans of Canadians, new research is adding to a body of evidence that Americans are shifting their intentions too.

In the ‘Spring 2025 Traveler Sentiment and Safety Survey’ conducted by medical, security, evacuation and travel risk management services provider Global Rescue, a surveyed group of more than 1,100 travellers indicated they are “bracing for rising costs and rethinking their plans in response to recent U.S. policy developments and economic uncertainties.”

“Traveller enthusiasm for 2025 is strong, but it’s being tempered by the real-world impact of US policy abroad,” said Dan Richards, CEO of The Global Rescue Companies and a member of the US Travel and Tourism Advisory Board at the US Department of Commerce. 

“We’re seeing people express a clear desire to travel more, yet also signalling hesitations tied to policy developments that affect international mobility and destination choice.” 

When asked whether US international policy initiatives make them more or less likely to travel, more than a third of respondents (34%) indicated they are generally less likely to travel.  Specifically, 6% reported being “much less likely,” 18% “somewhat less likely,” and 10% “less likely” to travel. Most respondents (55%) stated that the policies would not affect their traveller decisions either way. 

Richards noted, “It’s telling that more than a third of travellers feel less likely to travel due to US international initiatives. The data reveals an undercurrent of hesitancy tied to how policy impacts the perceived ease, cost, or safety of international travel.” 

Among those surveyed: 

• 18% say their travel plans have already changed due to US international policies. 
• 22% are still considering whether to change their plans. 

For those whose plans have shifted: 

• More than half (55%) are changing which countries they’ll visit. 
• 34% are postponing international travel altogether. 
• A quarter (24%) say they are no longer travelling internationally in 2025. 

“Policies don’t operate in a vacuum — they influence real travel decisions,” Richards emphasized. “When travellers start revising their destinations or shelving international travel plans altogether, that’s a signal to policymakers that the ripple effects of their decisions are being felt on the ground.”