France, Germany, Spain, Brazil, Poland, Netherlands, China, and Other Major Markets See Declining Tourism to U.S. in September 2025: What You Need to Know

Published on November 23, 2025

In September 2025, the U.S. saw a notable decline in arrivals from key overseas markets, including France, Germany, Spain, Brazil, Poland, Netherlands, and China, primarily driven by the global economic slowdown. Currency fluctuations, higher travel costs, and ongoing geopolitical uncertainties further dampened demand from these major source countries. While certain regions experienced growth, the broader trend indicated a weakening in international travel to the U.S. amid these persistent global challenges.

Overall, overseas tourism to the United States slowed in September 2025, with long-haul arrivals from the top twenty markets falling six percent year-on-year. Preliminary data, excluding Canada and Mexico land crossings, revealed that the U.S. welcomed 2.1 million visitors for the month. The data was delayed due to a temporary federal shutdown, but it clearly shows a softening of demand, with key markets diverging significantly in their performance.

The United Kingdom held onto its position as the largest overseas market, sending 373,675 travelers despite a 3.2 percent dip. Japan moved into second place for the month after posting a 7.8 percent increase, with nearly 200,000 arrivals—demonstrating that outbound demand remained resilient even in the face of currency pressures. Germany, usually a strong performer in autumn, slid to third with a steep twenty-percent decline, marking one of the month’s sharpest drops among major economies.

Several major emerging markets also cooled. Arrivals from India fell 11.3 percent, while China was down 10.9 percent. South Korea registered a 13.5 percent monthly decline, and France slipped 11.9 percent compared to the previous year.

Despite the widespread declines, a few markets bucked the trend. Taiwan increased by 10.2 percent, Argentina rose 3.4 percent, and one of the strongest surges came from Israel, which recorded a 35.2 percent jump in September travel to the U.S. These increases highlight that while global demand softened, select markets continued to respond positively to U.S. travel conditions and economic ties.

Year-to-date arrivals remain modestly positive

The broader picture for 2025 remains slightly encouraging. From January through September, the top twenty long-haul markets collectively grew 1.2 percent, reaching 18.6 million visitors. The U.K. leads the year-to-date ranking with just over three million arrivals, a 1.4 percent uptick, maintaining its long-held role as the United States’ most reliable overseas market.

India, despite experiencing a five-percent decline this year, remains the second-largest source of visitors, followed by Japan in third place, which posted a 6.1 percent increase across the first nine months. Brazil continued to strengthen with a 2.1 percent rise, and South Korea delivered one of the most notable rebounds of the year, climbing 8.7 percent year-to-date.

However, several large European economies weighed down overall performance. Germany dropped 11.3 percent, France declined 6.3 percent, and the Netherlands fell 7.3 percent. These declines point to a broader cooling across parts of Europe, influenced by economic uncertainty, shifting currency values, and changing travel priorities.

Argentina delivered one of the year’s most striking gains, jumping 17.3 percent to more than 613,000 visitors. Italy and Taiwan also performed well, rising 6.5 percent and 6.1 percent, respectively.

A steady year showing signs of wear

While 2025 has generally trended upward, September’s drop signals a gradual loss of momentum. Growth remains positive overall, but each month appears slightly weaker than the last, suggesting that global economic pressures, fluctuating airfare prices, and regional uncertainties may be starting to affect long-haul travel plans.

Here is the year-to-date ranking of the top overseas markets for U.S. inbound tourism through September 2025:

Rank – Country – Arrivals – % Change from 2024

1. United Kingdom – 3,018,273 – +1.4%
2. India – 1,647,662 – –5.0%
3. Japan – 1,466,665 – +6.1%
4. Brazil – 1,378,994 – +2.1%
5. Germany – 1,326,373 – –11.3%
6. China – 1,245,924 – –3.1%
7. France – 1,196,020 – –6.3%
8. South Korea – 1,187,959 – +8.7%
9. Italy – 895,288 – +6.5%
10. Colombia – 746,098 – –0.1%
11. Australia – 731,362 – –4.9%
12. Spain – 683,600 – +1.6%
13. Argentina – 613,920 – +17.3%
14. Netherlands – 438,468 – –7.3%
15. Dominican Republic – 385,916 – +0.5%
16. Ireland – 354,148 – –1.0%
17. Israel – 353,185 – +13.3%
18. Ecuador – 332,893 – –10.6%
19. Taiwan – 330,450 – +6.1%
20. Poland – 299,495 – +4.9%

Overall, the U.S. travel landscape in 2025 remains stable but increasingly uneven. Strong recoveries in markets such as Japan, South Korea and Argentina offer bright spots, but declines across Europe and parts of Asia are beginning to weigh more heavily as the year progresses.

In September 2025, countries like France, Germany, Spain, Brazil, Poland, Netherlands, and China saw declining arrivals to the U.S. due to the global economic slowdown, rising travel costs, and geopolitical uncertainties impacting travel demand.

In conclusion, September 2025 marked a challenging period for U.S. overseas tourism, with key markets such as France, Germany, Spain, and China experiencing declines in arrivals due to global economic pressures and rising travel costs. Despite some growth from select regions, the overall trend suggests that international demand for U.S. travel is weakening, influenced by a combination of economic uncertainty and geopolitical factors. As these challenges persist, the outlook for U.S. tourism remains cautious, with a need for strategic adjustments to attract and retain visitors from key overseas markets in the coming months.