The World Travel & Tourism Council has unveiled new insights into the strong expansion of the US Travel & Tourism sector, which measured by economic contribution and spending by international and domestic visitors, boasted the world’s largest Travel & Tourism sector in 2022.

According to WTTC’s Travel & Tourism Economic Impact 2023 Global Trends Report, produced together with WTTC members ForwardKeys and Mabrian Technologies, the GDP contribution of the US Travel & Tourism sector grew by 16.9% in 2022, to reach $2 trillion. Additionally, the sector also created 2.7 million more jobs compared to 2021.

The impressive growth was fuelled by a strong resurgence in demand from international visitors, whose spending increased by more than 150% year-on-year, to reach $115.7 billion in 2022.

The report also shows that domestic visitor spend has nearly regained its pre-pandemic levels.

Outbound travel trends

The top international destinations for US visitors are Mexico, Canada, and the UK, together making up 52% of all outbound departures in the US in 2022.

Data from ForwardKeys reveals a 13% increase in forward-looking US outbound travel, with prime growth destinations such as Greece, the Dominican Republic, Italy, Jamaica, and Mexico seeing increases ranging from 30% to 63%. Families are leading the travel recovery, with family-sized groups witnessing a 21% growth over 2019.

Airports

The resurgence in travel is also reflected in US airport statistics.

Statistics from Mabrian Technologies reveal that the US continues to host some of the world’s busiest airports. Denver International has witnessed the highest inbound passenger growth of any US airport with almost 2.2 million more passengers between 2019 and 2023.

Orlando International also experienced a rise in inbound traffic, accommodating 1.8 million more travellers in 2022 compared to 2019. The recently rebranded Harry Reid International Airport in Nevada ranks third, with 1.7 million more travellers passing through its gates in 2023 as opposed to 2019.

Other major US airports, such as Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International, Dallas Fort Worth International and O’Hare International, are also all forecast to be amongst the top ten busiest airports in the in 2023 in terms of total inbound passenger numbers.

Together, these figures underscore that airports across the US welcomed a combined 9.6 million more passengers last year in comparison to the period just before the pandemic hit.

“The US’s performance is more than just numbers; it shows the resilience and enduring demand for Travel & Tourism,” WTTC President & CEO Juila Simpson.