Some international LGBTQ+ travelers pull back on U.S. trips: 'Why would I go there?'

CNBC

2 days ago

Canadian citizen Robert Sharp was planning to visit Provincetown, Massachusetts — one of the most 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 in the U.S., he said his plans changed.
"Do we want to have that stress before going on vacation? Or do we want to support our own country?" Sharp said.
The group he was planning to travel with decided to cancel the trip and will instead visit Montreal, he said.
Sharp and his partner were also planning to visit Chicago or Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for a separate trip this year, but they shifted their plans to a Canadian road trip between Calgary and Vancouver.
"We've been hit hard in Canada with tariffs and there's been a real 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 within Canada to help our economy," Sharp said.
Sharp's change in plans reflects a larger trend of international travelers rethinking where they are spending their travel budgets and pulling back on visits to the U.S.
The number of foreign visitors to the U.S. by air dropped 10% in March from a year prior, according to the International Trade Administration, part of the Commerce Department. Including land border crossings, inbound visitors to the U.S. fell 14% in March from the same period last year, according to the industry group.
Oxford Economics estimates spending among international visitors to the U.S. will fall $8.5 billion this year, as negative perceptions of the U.S. tied to trade and immigration policy lead travelers to other destinations.
Among the LGBTQ+ population, bookings for queer-friendly housing accommodations in the U.S. on the LGBTQ+ travel platform misterb&b saw a 66% decline among Canadian users and a 32% decline among European users from February to April, compared with the same period last year.
The company said it had a 22% increase in bookings in blue states and a 9% decline in red states during that time period. It also saw declines in cities within red states including Salt Lake City, Phoenix, and Austin, Texas.
Misterb&b CEO Matthieu Jost said overall bookings on the platform are not down globally but are increasing. Jost said LGBTQ+ individuals appear to be continuing to spend on vacations, but they're changing their destinations.
The company said the majority of misterb&b users it surveyed this year said they use their travel budget as a form of activism — supporting inclusive destinations and economies.
Sharp, who owns LGBTQ-friendly travel company Out Adventures, is not alone in changing his travel plans.
In February, the LGBTQ+ advocacy group Egale Canada issued a statement saying its members would not participate in person at conferences or events happening in the U.S. this year, including WorldPride, which took place at the beginning of June in Washington, D.C.
The decision was made primarily to protect individuals' safety, said Helen Kennedy, executive director of Egale Canada.
In his second term, Trump has signed several executive orders targeting transgender people, including preventing them from serving openly in the military and trying to keep transgender athletes out of girls' and women's sports.
Another executive order, which says the federal government recognizes only two sexes, male and female, 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 people with an "X" gender listed on their passports.
Kennedy said another reason for the decision not to travel to the U.S. was to push back on what she views as "economic warfare" from the U.S. toward Canada.
"People talk about Canada and the U.S. having a long history of being incredible neighbors. And yes, we do, but that's based on economic interests a lot of the time," Kennedy said. "When you put that human element with the economic element, then you think, well, OK, why would I go there?"
Kennedy said members of Egale Canada who are involved in nongovernmental organizations would normally spend anywhere from $3,000 to $5,000 per person during a trip to attend a conference or event. Corporate travelers usually spend at least $5,000, she estimated.
"We do spend a fair chunk of change in hotels," she said. "We do excursions, we rent bikes, we do all of the things that everybody else does."
The LGBTQ+ travel market is significant. The purchasing power of LGBTQ+ consumers overall is estimated to be $1.4 trillion, according to a 2022 study by the market research firm Pride Co-Op.
In 2023, the global LGBTQ+ tourism market size was $296.8 billion, and it's expected to more than double in 10 years, reaching $634.9 billion in 2033, according to Market.US.
Research from Arival Travel shows that LGBTQ+ travelers are more likely 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 don't feel welcome here, so why come and spend their money here?" Tanzella said.
"On the surface, it affects airlines and hotels. But if you dig a little deeper it does affect other businesses, whether it's barber shops or restaurants, bars, spas. A lot of communities rely on tourists to come in and spend their money," he added.
Despite concerns of waning visits from international LGBTQ+ travelers, as well as some pullbacks in corporate sponsorships for Pride celebrations, Pride organizations across the U.S. said attendance was strong at Pride Month events, many of which take place on the last weekend of June.
But many organizations said it's still too soon to get official attendance numbers or difficult to estimate, given that many Pride celebrations are non-ticketed and open to the public.
Matt Şenız-Cheng, associate director of partnerships for NYC Pride, said attendance for its Pride events last weekend is expected to total 2.5 million — in line with its typical numbers.
He said NYC Pride lost approximately 25% of its corporate sponsorships initially this year, due to the economy, tariffs and pullback surrounding diversity, equity and inclusion. But he estimated the number of people and contingents participating in the Pride march this year will be bigger than in previous years.
Ryan Bos, executive director for the Capital Pride Alliance, which ran WorldPride this year, said organizers were "pleasantly surprised" that people still showed up amid concerns about the Trump administration's policies.
Bos said he had heard calls to cancel the event this year due to political tensions in Washington, he said.
"If we were to retreat, what message would that have sent to all the other Prides who are also experiencing similar challenges?" Bos said.
While WorldPride doesn't have official attendance numbers yet, Bos said he believes attendance was strong. However, Tanzella, of the International LGBTQ+ Travel Association, said he heard numbers for WorldPride were down this year.
Cities in red states have also continued on with their pride celebrations.
Attendance rose from about 28,000 last year to 33,000 this year at Phoenix Pride's annual Rainbows Festival in April, Executive Director Michael Fornelli told CNBC in a statement. Its pride parade will be celebrated in October due to the summer heat.
In Salt Lake City, SLC Pride estimated its celebration last weekend brought in 17,000 attendees, more than the 10,000 it saw last year, according to Bonnie O'Brien, festival director.
"We are in a little bit of a blue bubble here in Salt Lake," O'Brien said. "We're not expecting people to come 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's not about travel. It's not about red or blue," she said. "It's about the closest place that they can find community. And that they know that they're safe, if just for a weekend."