TOURISM DEVELOPMENT
Industry Updates
Recent actions by the U.S. government are leaving uncertainties across the global travel trade community. Incidents at U.S. Border Inspection terminals have also led some countries, such as Germany and the United Kingdom, to sharpen their travel advice for the United States. Even before the most recent border incidents, forecast visits to the country this year had been revised downward from a projected 5% rise to a 9% decrease by Tourism Economics, an industry monitoring group, which cited “polarizing Trump Administration policies and rhetoric,” particularly around tariffs, as the reason.
Despite some negative headlines, many of our key overseas markets are showing positive momentum for the U.S., with bookings either matching or slightly surpassing last year's figures. Notably, the UK is experiencing a 4% increase in year-over-year bookings for travel to the U.S. in 2025. Thanks to VGPS's long-standing influence in global travel communities, we are well-positioned to benefit as more travelers seek the expertise and reassurance of professional travel advisors. Administrative dynamics like travel bans, trade policies, and changing passport requirements remain fluid, posing potential challenges for visitors as they plan their holidays.
Value is emerging as a key priority for travelers beyond political rhetoric. Travel costs remain elevated, particularly in Greater Palm Springs, which reported record average daily rates of $224.11 in January and $255.76 in February. According to U.S. Travel, some costs are stabilizing: Airfare has decreased by 4% month-over-month and is slightly below last year's levels. Meanwhile, U.S. hotel prices have held steady although travel prices dipped by 0.2% in January, they increased by 1.9% in February.
Based upon Tourism Economics’ February Travel Forecast, tourism spending in California is forecast to grow 6.2% in 2025 while the state’s visitor volume is projected to grow 2.9% and reach 279.0 million this year. Domestic travel spending is forecast to grow 4% but international visits to California have been pulled back slightly compared to the previous forecast.
Tourism Development’s Jan-Feb 2025 Programming
Tourism Development’s programming kicked off quickly in January and February as the team welcomed clients from two dozen international markets and key domestic markets. Our programming included hosting two important conferences: Go West Summit and Airport Roundtable. We coordinated destination trainings in Japan, Korea, and China, conducted sales calls with Los Angeles based receptive tour operators, attended IITA Summit, Aer Lingus Roadshow across four cities in Ireland, Routes America, Visit California’s reverse style trade mission for the Canadian travel trade and ASTA trade shows in Austin and Houston.
A total of 184 clients from 24 countries attended Go West Summit in Greater Palm Springs. SHOWN ABOVE: Part of the group during the destination site tour day.
ABOVE: More than 10,000 business appointments were conducted over three days during Go West Summit in Greater Palm Springs.
ABOVE: Tourism Development Manager Gerry Boyle conducting a destination training during the Air Lingus Roadshow across Ireland.
ABOVE: Tourism Development Manager Julie KawaguchI hosting China-based clients on a destination FAM.
Looking Ahead
The team’s scheduled programming for March through June includes the Travel & Adventure consumer show in Washington, D.C., Visit California’s European Sales Mission, sales missions to San Francisco & New York region, destination trainings in Mexico, China, and Japan, ASTA Global Conference, ITB China, Visit California reverse Mexico sales mission, California Cup, U.S. Travel’s IPW, GTM West and ASTA’s Northeast Summit.
