Travelling to the United States: From Tourist Destination to Interrogation Room

Every day, around a million people cross the United States border. Some do so for the first time, while others cross regularly for work purposes. All enter through one of the 380 checkpoints the country has at roads, ports, and airports. A significant portion of this flow consists of American citizens returning home, but an increasing percentage is made up of foreigners arriving with a passport in one hand, a visa in the other, facing scrutiny from immigration officers: "How long will you stay?", "What is the purpose of your visit?", "Do you know anyone in the United States?"

These are some of the frequent questions visitors face when entering the country. "Service officers have the authority to question travellers," notes the Customs and Border Protection (CBP). This authority includes the power to admit or reject any foreigner, even if they have a valid visa. "No visa guarantees entry to the United States," authorities remind. There have been no legal changes in the regulations, but there have been shifts in political guidelines, and this is noticeable at airports.

"From the perspective of travel agencies, it is too early to draw conclusions," stated Jordi Hereu, Spain's Minister of Industry and Tourism, this Tuesday. The Easter holiday —which last year fell in March— may have influenced the figures, but does not fully explain them. Entries by land from Canada have also decreased: 8% less compared to the first months of 2024. Something is changing, and social media is quick to document it.

In recent weeks, an increasing number of international visitors have been denied entry at border checkpoints, leading to immediate deportations or detentions lasting several days, or even weeks.

The decline in arrivals extends to all regions of the world, except the Middle East and Eastern Europe. Statistics show a 12% decrease in visitors from Africa, a 10% drop in South America, and up to a 24% decline in Central America. The United States Travel Association describes these figures as "worrying trends."

In recent weeks, a large number of international visitors attempting to enter the United States have been denied entry at border checkpoints, resulting in deportations to their home countries or detentions lasting days, even weeks.

The global balance reflects a 12% drop in international visitor arrivals, the sharpest since March 2021, just as tourism was beginning to recover after the pandemic. The sector is starting to attribute this setback to the message the United States is sending abroad. "All illegal entry will be stopped immediately, and we will begin the process of returning millions and millions of criminal aliens to the places from which they came," declared Donald Trump in his inaugural speech upon his return to the White House.

Although these statements primarily targeted the southern border, their impact extends to all entry points. A few weeks ago, The New York Times revealed the case of a 28-year-old British woman who spent three weeks in an immigration detention centre in Washington state. She attempted to cross from Canada, but authorities questioned the validity of her visa. "The most important thing is to demonstrate that the purpose of the trip matches the visa presented," insists the Department of Homeland Security.

A similar situation was experienced by German national Celine Flad. She was detained for 24 hours despite showing hotel reservations in New York, Miami, and a subsequent trip to Cancun. She was repeatedly asked why she wanted to enter the United States, her mobile phone was confiscated, and her photographs were reviewed. "Federal law grants officials the right to search belongings, including phones and computers. It is not necessary to be suspected of any crime," states US regulations. Not even allied countries escape these exhaustive checks.

Although many of these countries are part of the visa waiver programme, complications have not disappeared. Negative experiences have led several European governments —such as Germany, the United Kingdom, Denmark, or Finland— to warn their citizens: "Any error in completing customs procedures can result in the visitor's detention." Spain, for the moment, has not changed its advisory policy, although the number of Spaniards travelling to the United States has fallen by 25% compared to March 2024.

"A decline is observed, but it is too early to draw conclusions," pointed out Minister Hereu. "This does not happen in reverse: the number of North American visitors to Spain has increased," he added.

The tightening of immigration control is not limited to Europe. Donald Trump has once again focused on Latin America: Mexico, Venezuela, Brazil, Panama... all under his scrutiny. Only Argentina, with Javier Milei as an ally, seems off the radar. Even so, the controls are the same for everyone.

The case of Mexico is particularly significant: the drop in visitors coincides with the advance of Trump's re-election campaign, whose immigration rhetoric is once again straining bilateral relations. In Nicaragua, the decline has been steady since mid-2024; in Argentina and Uruguay, the figures fluctuate without a clear trend. Cuba, on the other hand, marked an increase in entries for much of the year, before a recent decline.

This scenario shows that the tightening of US immigration policies already has concrete effects on regional flows.

However, as often happens in foreign policy, every rule has its exception. If only a few countries were spared from reciprocal tariffs, the decline in visitors is no different. In both cases, the question mark is Russia.

With Trump's return to the Oval Office, tensions with Moscow have eased, and visits by Russian citizens to the United States have rebounded after months of decline.

The new border policy is also beginning to be felt in the economy. Flight and hotel bookings are falling, and fears that the trend will worsen are growing in the tourism sector.

The analysis firm Tourism Economics, which had projected a 9% increase in international tourist arrivals compared to 2024, recently revised its forecast to a 9.4% decline, following the Trump Administration's tariff and immigration shift.

Last year, foreign visitors spent more than $253 billion on tourism-related goods and services, accounting for more than 19% of total travel spending within the country. From Goldman Sachs, the diagnosis is more cautious: "The impact on GDP would be moderate, a 0.1% drop, although if the trend persists, the effect could be greater."

In an increasingly interconnected world, the policy of open or closed doors not only defines physical borders but also the invisible limits of diplomacy, economy, and international trust. The United States, for decades a symbol of welcome, now faces a dilemma: how to protect its borders without eroding its image. Tourism, business, and personal ties are beginning to suffer. And the rest of the world is taking note.