Trump tourism toll: My friends won’t be back

Recently I traveled from Madison, Wis., to our sister city of Freiburg, Germany, and spent several weeks there. The welcome was so warm I can’t wait to go back. As I said goodbye, I thanked a couple of newfound friends and invited them to visit me. Their response broke my heart. They said they no longer felt welcome in America.

Why? Longtime world travelers, they have enjoyed many trips to America. But entering New York City through customs in February, they were delayed for several hours, questioned twice and fingerprinted twice — a new and unpleasant experience. They shrugged and told me there are many other nice places in the world to visit, and they don’t plan to be back anytime soon.

President Trump has made diplomacy difficult. I found myself apologizing constantly for his new America, for his travel ban proposals and suspicious scrutiny of travelers and their private data, as well as his rude treatment of NATO and aggressive crackdown on immigrants. Our friends abroad are taking note of how we treat our fellow citizens, especially people of color. Some are understandably hesitant to be our guests.

There is concern in the travel industry about what has been called a Trump slump. Summer bookings for travel to the USA are down 3.5% over last year — while bookings are up for all other major destinations, according to Forwardkeys, a travel data firm. Loews Hotels is seeing declines this summer in travelers from many international destinations and cancellations by groups that have international attendees.

“A perceived ‘ anti- welcome’ sentiment appears to be taking a toll in key international markets,” Ernest Wooden, president of the Los Angeles Tourism and Convention Board, told MarketWatch. A recent forecast found that his own county could potentially lose 800,000 international visitors over three years, totaling $ 736 million in direct tourism spending.

Last year, business and leisure travel generated $ 2.3 trillion for the U. S. economy, supporting 15.3 million American jobs. Payment for goods and services purchased by foreigners created an $ 87 billion trade surplus, larger than any other sector of the U. S. economy.

Yet the Trump obsession with our overall trade deficit is laser focused on manufacturing, rather than services such as tourism and travel. His blind spot is astonishing given his business interests in hotels, casinos and resorts. He must know that his own bottom line will suffer from a decline in international travel both to and from the USA.

It’s difficult to undo the damage to a brand’s reputation, but it’s mandatory if you want to stay in business. Ask yourself this: If you could avoid a big hassle by skipping a visit to one country and choosing another, wouldn’t you change your plans? If enough foreigners agree that a visit to America isn’t worth the trouble, our economy will suffer and so will our reputation. The way we treat strangers tells the world who we are. I want to be known for extending a hand of welcome.

Carrie Scherpelz is a marketing professional with a business based in Madison, Wis.