Long Island sees decline in Canadian and other foreign tourism

Dede Gotthelf has spent the past weeks preparing her Southampton Inn for the crucial summer season, which began on Memorial Day. But this year, her familiar routine has been interrupted by telephone calls from Canadians canceling their hotel bookings.

"We had major, verbal cancellations from our Canadian tourists who come to Southampton year-in and year-out — with some vociferous explanations for the cancellations," she said, adding the calls started in April, with guests citing the current political climate as a reason for changing their plans.

"We don't have many Canadian reservations on the books," Gotthelf said, adding that she will miss her regular clients.

The 90-room Southampton Inn also has lost reservations from European travelers, who usually account for more than $100,000 in revenue per year at the inn, Gotthelf said. So, like the owners of other tourism-related companies on Long Island, she is working to attract more business travelers and tourists from other parts of the United States.

"As a community, we need to work very hard to determine how to encourage [international tourism] and how to pivot," Gotthelf said.

The number of international visitors to the metropolitan area, including Long Island, and nationwide has dropped this spring compared with a year earlier, according to data from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the National Travel and Tourism Office. The decline is largely from Canada and comes amid controversial statements by President Donald Trump about making Canada the 51st state and taking control of Greenland, as well as his crackdown on illegal immigration and higher tariffs on imported goods.

In addition, tourism industry experts said, some countries' economies have faltered making it more expensive for their citizens to vacation abroad. International visitors account for a large amount of tourism spending, so their absence is impactful, the experts said. 

Fewer international visitors would affect the U.S. and local economies because while their ranks are smaller than that of domestic tourists, they spend far more, said Dorothy Roberts, president of the Long Island Hospitality Association, which represents hotels, catering halls, restaurants and other hospitality businesses.

“Domestic travel is the majority of the travel that we get here [on the Island], but international travelers are important...Historically, they do spend more money and they stay longer,” she said. “International travelers usually come for 10 days to two weeks, while domestic travelers stay a couple of days to a week.”

Roberts added that, like Southampton Inn, local hotels "are seeing a decline [in international customers] this year, mainly groups coming in from Canada."

Fewer passengers at JFK

The tourism industry had bounced back from the pandemic until this year, with year-over-year increases in the number of international visitors and spending by all tourists in 2022, 2023 and 2024, according to national and local data.

More than 72.4 million international tourists visited the United States last year, an increase of 9% from 2023, based on data from the national travel office. They accounted for far less than 50% of all tourists, industry experts said.   

More recently, the number of international visitors has largely fallen, year over year. Overseas arrivals, excluding Canada and Mexico, were off 2% in February and 12% in March but rose 8% in April, according to the office's preliminary estimates.

The timing of this year's Easter holiday was primarily responsible for the April rise, according to a forecast released on Friday by the research firm Tourism Economics. The firm is still predicting a year-over-year decline in foreign visitors to the United States, though the magnitude has improved from a 9.4% drop to 8.7%.

The "factors contributing to [the decrease] include Trump administration posturing and policy announcements, such as ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs across long-standing trade partners, as well as media coverage focusing on border security incidents and national travel advisories," said Aran Ryan, industry studies director at Tourism Economics. "Shifting sentiment and perceptions of the U.S. are expected to continue to weigh heavily on travel demand."

Kennedy Airport is the primary entry point for foreign visitors to Long Island. Kennedy had 1.3% fewer international passengers in the March-April period, year over year, according to the most recent data from the Port Authority, which runs the airport.

The number of trans-Atlantic passengers was down 60,322 in the same period; Canada was down 24,304 and Mexico, down 15,064. Only the number of trans-Pacific passengers increased, up 43,834, the data shows.

Tourism is a key economic sector for Long Island, accounting for $7.5 billion in spending by domestic and international visitors in 2023 and adding 76,225 jobs in Nassau and Suffolk counties, based on the most recent available data from Tourism Economics.

Tourists spent $2.7 billion on food and beverages, or 36% of the total, followed by $1.5 billion for lodging, the data shows. 

Promoting the Island

But now a wide range of businesses that cater to tourists, from hotels and museums to restaurants and tour operators, are feeling the impact of fewer foreign visitors.

Since 2010, tour guide Bruce Michael has taken visitors to sites in the Hamptons and New York City. The clientele of his small business, Bruce Michael Guided Tours, had been a mix of domestic and international travelers until this year.

“I didn’t have any Canadian tours here,” said Michael, who splits his time between Southampton and Manhattan. “I did have a couple from Austria that came and had a wonderful time in April. [But] right now, I don’t have an international tour or a European tour scheduled."

Foreign visitors to Long Island often come here after spending time in New York City — and there will be fewer of them this year, based on projections from New York City Tourism + Conventions, the city’s tourism promotion agency.

Since January, the agency has twice cut its forecast for the number of international tourists. It’s now estimating 12.1 million compared with nearly 13 million last year, or a reduction of 6.1%.

Among the countries with the most visitors to the city, there will be 5.4% less from the United Kingdom this year compared with 2024, 20% less from Canada, 8% less from France and 5.1% less from Italy. However, the number of Brazilian visitors will increase 1.6%, based on the projections released in early May. 

Julie Coker, president and CEO of New York City Tourism, said, “Although international visitors make up 20% of total visitation, they account for approximately 50% of all visitor spending, making them essential to New York City’s economy.”

Coker said the agency in October launched an advertising campaign, “With Love + Liberty, New York City,” which features the Statue of Liberty “as a symbol of our enduring welcoming spirit and hospitality." The ads are being rolled out to 17 countries, she said.

New York State's "I Love NY" campaign began airing two new commercials on Wednesday that will be seen by Canadians and others. The ads include footage of Bethpage State Park and Fire Island. The state also is deploying digital billboards and streaming ads in the United Kingdom and Australia.

Gov. Kathy Hochul, calling tourism "vital" to New York's economy, said the industry "is facing challenging new political and economic headwinds. That's why supporting our tourism industry is more important than ever, and why we are getting out the message that no matter where you're from, you're always welcome in New York State," she said in announcing the new commercials.

Ross Levi, executive director of tourism at Empire State Development, the state's primary business-aid agency, said of international travelers: "The red carpet is out for their next getaway or extended vacation."

He and tourism officials for the state's regions, including Long Island, recently returned from a weeklong promotional trip to the United Kingdom, Ireland and Germany where they met with tour operators and travel writers.

Alfredo Gonzalez, an international sales specialist at the tourism promotion agency Discover Long Island in Hauppauge, participated in the trip. He said he touted East End wineries, South Shore beaches and Huntington-area mansions that reflect the 1920s lifestyle portrayed in the novel “The Great Gatsby,” which turns 100 this year.

Gonzalez said, “I told the people that Long Island and New York State are not what you see in the news. We are there to welcome you.”

He said he was encouraged after several conversations in Dublin. “They said, ‘I’m not 100% happy with what’s going on, but why should I cancel my vacation because of what happens at the White House?’ ” he recalled.

Gonzalez and others cited three factors they said could encourage international travelers to visit Long Island: the decline of the U.S. dollar’s value compared with other currencies, Gatsby’s 100th anniversary, and the Ryder Cup golf tournament at Bethpage State Park between the United States and Europe on Sept. 26-28.

Discover Long Island only promotes attractions in Suffolk. A representative of RRDA LI Inc., the Glen Head advertising agency that promotes Nassau attractions, did not respond to a request for comment.

The continued interest in visiting the United States that Gonzalez, the Discover Long Island official, found among the Irish was also evident among Canadians interviewed on Friday.

“I don’t appreciate your president’s comments about making my country the 51st state, but he’s not stopping me from seeing a Broadway show, shopping and doing other things that I love to do in New York City,” said Émile Ouellet, 52, an art dealer from Montreal, Quebec.

“All this controversy will blow over with time,” he said in comments translated by his son, Jean, at a rest area in Glens Falls, north of Albany. “I’m not afraid to come to the U.S.”

Juliette Roy, 20, a student at McGill University in Montreal, echoed Ouellet's sentiments about Trump but said, "I like your country." 

She said, "I try to get to New York City as often as I can. It’s a fun place. I go to the clubs, to museums, to boutiques.” 

Roy's parents moved to the United States about eight years ago for work. She said she was born in Quebec and decided to return there for college.

'Staying local this summer'

Not every tourist business is counting on international travelers to boost the bottom line.

Silver Sands Motel in Greenport caters to people in the tristate region with its 20 rooms and 10 beach bungalows.

“Many of our guests are New Yorkers or regional travelers seeking a coastal escape without the hassle of air travel,” owner Alexander Perros said. “So, while international travel trends are important, they haven’t historically played a significant role in our business.”

The same is true for the boutique hotels American Beech in Greenport and Aqua by American Beech in Aquebogue.

Brent Pelton, who owns both hotels. said, “We’ve seen many, many weekends booked already” by travelers primarily from the tristate region. American Beech has 13 rooms and Aqua has 18.

“Not only is there going to be less international travel to the East End, but our understanding is that foreign reservations are down, and people are choosing to stay local this summer,” he said.

Among international visitors, Discover Long Island has found that Riverhead is the top destination in Suffolk because of its myriad hotels, the aquarium and Tanger factory outlets. Visitors often take day trips to the Hamptons, Montauk and East End wineries.

Melissa Rockwell, president of Long Island Wine Country, which represents 57 producers, said, “Normally, we would see the majority of our international tourism between Memorial Day and Labor Day. We do have a very big bump from locals — Long Island and New York City — in the fall during the harvest time,” she said.

At Southampton Inn, Gotthelf, the owner, said U.S. corporate bookings are up but visitors from Canada and Europe will be missed.

“We’re sad to lose [international tourists],” she said, “because those are the guests who do the most shopping, exploring and participating in the local economy.”