U.S. travelers are cutting back on summer Europe trips — but Chinese tourists are making up for it

U.S. tourists look to beryllium cutting backmost connected summertime trips to Europe — but Chinese travelers are much than making up for it, a survey found.

Data from the European Travel Commission (ETC) published Tuesday showed that conscionable 33% of U.S. survey respondents were readying to sojourn Europe this summer, immoderate 7% beneath the levels of past year.

The diminution appears to mostly subordinate to funding, with 54% of those polled citing precocious question costs arsenic a barrier.

But governmental concerns, including those astir the cognition of the U.S. abroad, besides look to beryllium weighing connected plans, the ETC said.

"Travel sentiment is strongest among Americans from the Northeast (43% vs. 33% successful the full sample), a portion that typically leans Democratic and diverges politically from Trump," the enactment noted.

Popular European tourer destinations usually invited millions of visitors from the U.S. each year. U.S. tourists successful the U.K. successful 2023 for illustration totaled a grounds 5.1 million, portion U.S. visitors were among the apical 5 countries bringing the astir currency into the French system past year.

The diminution successful involvement successful a European summertime isn't constricted to U.S. travelers. Around 39% of full respondents to the ETC's survey said they were readying specified a vacation successful 2025, compared to 41% successful 2024. Sentiment astir European question has besides pulled backmost among travelers from Brazil, Canada and Japan.

But involvement successful European summertime trips changeable up among Chinese travelers, with 72% of survey respondents from the state saying they were readying specified a vacation — up 10% from the erstwhile year.

"The beardown sentiment is supported by increasing disposable incomes, favourable question policies, and a user displacement toward prioritising idiosyncratic fulfilment and manner experiences specified arsenic tourism," the ETC said.

The National Bureau of Statistics of China earlier this twelvemonth said that the nationwide per capita disposable income grew by much than 5% implicit the erstwhile twelvemonth successful the archetypal 4th of 2025. Domestically, concerns person nevertheless mounted implicit the resilience of the Chinese consumer: weak user request drove prices lower recently, portion retail income maturation slowed successful April.

Europe has agelong been a cardinal destination for Chinese tourists, with galore looking to bargain luxury goods whilst away. This inclination came to a screeching halt during the Covid-19 pandemic, but could beryllium picking backmost up now.

Over fractional of Chinese travelers present accidental that buying is portion of their European question plans, according to the ETC data. Yet, the figures besides suggest that travelers mightiness beryllium shifting their spending patterns, with Chinese tourists present particularly likelier to tighten the belt. Just 29% of them are expecting to walk much than 200 euros ($229) a day, a 44% driblet compared to past year. Instead, the bulk of Chinese visitors is present looking to walk betwixt 100 and 200 euros per day.