The 30-day travel ban that President Trump placed on the European Union will cost the United States approximately $3.4 billion in lost tourism, according to the U.S. Travel Association, a nonprofit organization that represents all components of the travel industry.
The travel ban will be initiated at midnight on Friday because the EU failed to take the necessary steps in preventing the spread of the coronavirus, Trump said Wednesday night in a speech to the nation about the virus.
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“European Union failed to take the same precautions and restrict travel from China and other hotspots,” he said.
The loss is expected to weigh heavily on the travel industry, which was already hurting because of the virus.
“Temporarily shutting off travel from Europe is going to exacerbate the already-heavy impact of coronavirus on the travel industry and the 15.7 million Americans whose jobs depend on travel,” said U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow.
The estimated loss is based upon visitors flying from Europe, excluding the United Kingdom, to the U.S. in March 2019, which totaled 850,000 international visitors and accounted for roughly 29% of total overseas arrivals to the U.S., according to the travel organization.
