International inbound travel to the United States is projected to drop 6% over the next three months because the coronavirus outbreak continues to roil the global economy, according to research conducted by the U.S. Travel Association, a nonprofit organization that represents the travel industry. The decline would be the largest since the 2008 financial crisis.
The findings captured data from January when awareness of the coronavirus began to ramp up, and the focus was largely on its effects on China. Economists at the travel organization caution that February data is almost certain to show worsening economic damage.
“There is a lot of uncertainty around coronavirus, and it is pretty clear that it is having an effect on travel demand — not just from China, and not just internationally, but for domestic business and leisure travel as well,” said U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow.
Dow also noted that U.S. domestic travel has not been subject to restrictions.
“A big part of the coronavirus narrative is about whether it’s safe to travel, but it’s important to keep in mind that the restrictions and warnings are highly specific to countries where there have been pronounced outbreaks. Right now there is absolutely no official guidance that people need to be reconsidering travel in the U.S.,” Dow said
Findings from the travel organization come as Washington state reported its ninth death from the virus. New cases of the virus were reported Tuesday in New York state, North Carolina, Florida, Arizona, and Georgia, raising the total number of cases in the U.S. to over 100.
