Travel and tourism made record contribution to US economy in 2023

A new report from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) shows that travel and tourism contributed an all-time high $2.36 trillion to the US economy in 2023, up 7% vs. 2022, and $100B more than in the previous top year 2019.

Sector jobs grew by 656,000 to 18.0M, breaking previous record of 17.4M.

Although domestic spend was up 9% from 2019, spend by international visitors still lagged 2019 level by more than 25%.

WTTC President & CEO Julia Simpson said:

"The U.S. government has supported Travel & Tourism, but international visitor spend is still below 2019 numbers. A focus on visa processing, queues at borders, and staffing would give the sector a vital lift in advance of the FIFA World Cup and the Olympics.”

For 2024, WTTC predicts a sector contribution to the US economy of more than $2.5 trillion - 9% of total - but with international visitor spend continuing to lag 2019 level by more than $20 billion.

Comment: For more on why US international visitation and spend are lagging, see recent articles in the Asia-Pacific/China category .