Leisure travel to the U.S. is down, but business bookings are up

Leisure travel to the United States is down this year, but travel to the country remains stable, according to a report from SAP Concur.The United States was the top destination for global travelers in the first half of 2025, according to the report.Some 15% of all air travel bookings were to destinations in the U.S., it showed

That's twice the number of bookings to Germany (7.7%) and United Kingdom (7.6%), which ranked second and third, respectively, in the report. travel between Canada and the U.S. also held steady, with the U.S. accounting for nearly 80% of outbound trips made by Canadians, according to the data.Despite crumbling relations between the two countries, international booking volume rose slightly (0.18%) in Canada in the first half of 2025 from the same period last year, it showed.The report showed the top international destinations for travelers in the first half of 2025 were:1

ItalyThe report, combined with data from BCD Travel and American Express Global Travel, as reported by Skift Friday, show that the negative travel sentiment rippling through Canada, Western Europe and some parts of Asia isn't affecting those with corporate interests in the United States. " travel to the U.S. seems to be as usual," said Charlie Sultan, president of Concur Travel at SAP Concur. "In the first half of 2025, we saw a 1% increase in inbound travel volume to the U.S. compared to the first half of 2024." This slight increase is lower than the 2.6% year-on-year rise in global travel volume, which dropped from 4.5% in the first quarter to 0.6% in the second quarter, the report showed

However, the decline — which came as Trump's tariff policies continued to rile global economies — comports with normal seasonal travel patterns and is "not surprising," according to Concur's report."In 2024, we really started to see travel come back

Domestic trips were up 3%, and international trips grew nearly 6% globally," Sultan told CNBC Travel. "With that kind of momentum, we expected the trend to continue into 2025

And so far, that's what we're seeing."A drop in outbound U.S. travelHowever, while travel to the U.S. may show few signs of slowing down, the same cannot be said of outbound bookings by American travelers.International travel from the U.S. dropped 2.3% year on year in the first half of 2025, according to the report.The first quarter saw a modest year-on-year drop of 1%, ed by a larger 3.8% drop in the second quarter, it showed.But again, that "is consistent with seasonal trends," the report said.In January, the U.S

Travel Association jected travel would be "slower than other verticals" in 2025, with spending not expected to return to pre-pandemic levels until after 2028.Stabilizing airfaresInternational airfares for travelers held steady in the first half of 2025 despite rising demand, with tickets averaging around $1,682, according to SAP Concur.American travelers paid the most for international flights, with tickets averaging $2,675, compared with $1,950 in Japan and $719 in Italy, the data showed.Airfares between U.S. and Canada also returned to 2024 levels this summer, according to the report