New York is seeing a sharp decline in international tourism, with fewer visitors translating into lost revenue and weakening job growth across key industries, according to a new analysis from the state comptroller’s office.
The report found overseas travel to New York fell by 3% in 2025 — a loss of more than 176,000 visitors — marking one of the steepest declines in the country and trailing only California.
Officials say the downturn is being driven in part by federal policies, including tariffs and immigration restrictions, which have also contributed to a broader drop in international travel to the United States. The impact has been especially pronounced along the Canadian border, where travel into New York dropped by more than 21%, or nearly 3.6 million visitors.
That decline is rippling through the state’s tourism economy. International travelers spent nearly $17 billion in New York in 2024, but tourism-related economic output showed no growth through 2025, while hotel occupancy fell 1.2% statewide.
New York City has remained relatively stable, but regions outside the metro area are feeling the strain more acutely. Employment tied to tourism declined in parts of the state near the Canadian border, including a 2% drop in Western New York and a 2.6% decrease in the North Country.
The broader consequences extend beyond travel. The report also found exports to Canada — New York’s largest trading partner — fell by $3.8 billion, part of a wider trend of declining exports to nearly half of the state’s global partners.
Tourism-related visitation is also down across major attractions. National park attendance in New York dropped 18.2% in 2025, while state park visits fell by more than 2.3 million, including significant declines at high-profile destinations like Niagara Falls.
Despite modest overall job growth in travel-related industries, employment in accommodation and food services declined slightly, underscoring uneven recovery across the sector.
State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli warned the trends could worsen if current conditions persist, noting that fewer visitors and reduced spending are already straining businesses and workers tied to the tourism economy.
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