New information exhibits Aussie journey to US in decline regardless of World Cup hype

That’s in line with the most recent information launched by the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Friday.

The information, which data the international locations travelling Aussies are getting back from every month, confirmed journeys to the US have been down 9 per cent within the 2025-26 monetary yr in comparison with the 2024-25 monetary yr.

June alone was down 4.1 per cent in 2026 in comparison with 2025.

This is regardless of trade hopes that the US collectively internet hosting the World Cup from June 11 to July 19 would enhance tourism.

It was additionally hoped the US would profit from Aussies selecting the US as an alternate vacation spot to Europe this yr on account of journey disruption within the Middle East created by the Iran conflict.

Australian Travel Industry Association chief govt Dean Long instructed information.com.au the declining visitation was a “trend that was already well underway before the World Cup, so a single tournament was never going to shift the numbers on its own”.

“The things that matter to travellers right now, fares, the exchange rate, value for money, don’t turn around overnight,” he mentioned.

“Whether that changes in coming months is something we’ll only really know once we see the data.”

US nonetheless in style amongst Aussies

Despite the decline, the US stays probably the most in style locations to go to. It was the sixth hottest nation amongst Aussies in June.

“It’s just going through a tougher run right now,” Mr Long mentioned, including the nation was “still very much on people’s lists”.

Outbound journey to the UK was additionally down in June. Aussie journeys dropped 12.6 per cent in June 2026 in comparison with June 2025.

Popular locations that did see a considerable enhance in Aussies this June in comparison with final included Vietnam (up 17.8 per cent), China (up 11.1 per cent), Japan (up 9.1 per cent) and Indonesia (up 4.6 per cent).

The ABS additionally revealed Aussie journeys to Japan have doubled for the reason that Covid-19 pandemic.

Outbound journey to the Land of the Rising Sun had elevated by 105 per cent since 2018-19.

Trips to Vietnam elevated by 76 per cent.

Meanwhile journeys to the UK and the USA decreased 9 per cent and 37 per cent respectively.

Mr Long mentioned Australians haven’t gone off travelling, “they’re just spreading that appetite across more destinations”.

Particularly with Japan and Vietnam, he defined that airways are responding to the demand with further capability into each markets, “which tends to mean better fares and more choice”.

Promising indicators as vacationer numbers decline

There have been promising indicators issues might be wanting up for the US from June, however after the disappointing figures have been launched on Friday, the trade shall be ready eagerly for the July information launched in September.

information.com.au reported in early June that Expedia and Booking.com information confirmed a sudden surge in curiosity from Aussies amid the World Cup. Even Qantas had seen a 13 per cent soar on bookings to the US and Canada in June and July in comparison with the identical interval final yr.

Expedia’s Australian senior director Darren Karshagen defined that given the space Aussie followers need to journey, they have an inclination to show sporting occasions into prolonged, multi-stop holidays, benefiting the host nation past the places truly internet hosting the occasions.

It was hoped the momentum would proceed after the ultimate siren.

Melbourne-born world journey firm Intrepid Travel noticed a 156 per cent enhance in Aussies reserving journeys to the US in June in comparison with the identical month final yr. A whole lot of these bookings have been for September.

The firm’s Australian and New Zealand managing director Brett Mitchell mentioned bookings for home journey in Australia, Southeast Asia, South America and North America all jumped.

“I think a lot of that has to do with thinking ‘OK, this year I’m not going to travel to Europe or the Middle East, I’ll choose somewhere else’. And some destinations benefited hugely, and I think North America has been one of those,” he defined in early July.

Mr Mitchell suspected the US collectively internet hosting the World Cup had additionally influenced journey to the States past the match, with Aussies returning house probably creating buzz via word-of-mouth.

Australian journey firm Luxury Escapes had additionally mentioned in early July that web site searches for US locations together with Seattle, San Fransico and Los Angeles had seen a big uplift, “likely driven by the afterglow of the Soccer World Cup matches”.

Expedia information confirmed that lodging searches for stays between August and October this yr in World Cup host metropolis Philadelphia have been up 35 per cent on the identical interval final yr.

Cities close by match host cities had additionally seen elevated demand – Nashville (close to Atlanta) and Chicago (close to Kansas City) have been each up 30 per cent.

Brand USA, which promotes worldwide tourism to the US, had been thrilled to see the regained curiosity.

“We’re certainly encouraged by the strong interest we’re seeing from Australian travellers,” Brand USA chief communications officer Chris Heywood instructed information.com.au, explaining Australia is an “incredibly important” long-haul marketplace for the nation.

“We’re seeing a proliferation of positive social media content from international travellers sharing their experiences across the US such as regional cuisine, hidden gems and places that may not have been on their radar before,” he added.

“That authentic, first-hand storytelling is incredibly powerful because it’s inspiring others to see a different side of the US and adding new destinations to their travel wish lists.”

‘America wants you here’: The notion drawback

The US journey trade has been preventing to maintain Aussies coming again as numbers drop and there may be speak of proposed modifications to the ESTA utility, which may make it necessary for Australian vacationers to reveal 5 years of social media historical past.

US Travel Association president and chief govt Geoff Freeman instructed information.com.au in an unique interview in May that notion was the issue hurting US tourism, insisting to Australians that “America wants you here”.

“The policies most have heard about have not actually been implemented and data shows border incidents remain rare, yet high-profile stories can quickly shape what millions of potential travellers believe,” he mentioned.

Incidents spooking Aussies embrace travellers being denied entry (and at occasions, strip searched and thrown in jail).

The extra intense airport checks have concerned inspections of emails, textual content messages or social media accounts. The newest high-profile case in Australia was musician Keli Holiday being denied entry again into the US throughout his North American tour.

But in line with US authorities figures cited by Mr Freeman, 68 million worldwide guests travelled to the US final yr and 99.9 per cent of worldwide air travellers have been admitted.

“We understand why those stories are concerning, and we do not dismiss any traveller’s experience,” Mr Freeman mentioned.

“But the data shows these incidents remain exceptionally rare.”

He added: “The larger issue is the gap between perception and reality — and that gap matters because perception shapes travel decisions.”