While California’s tourism rallied, L.A. faced its worst year since the pandemic
Tourist spending in Los Angeles fell for the first time since last year’s pandemic as wildfires, ICE raids and trade tensions deterred people from visiting.
Direct travel spending in Los Angeles County in 2025 was slightly below the previous year, according to Visit California’s economic impact report this week. That’s an average annual growth of nearly 3% over the past 10 years and a step down from the 2.7% average growth for the entire state last year.
Los Angeles, the center of local crises, has kept tourists away, while President Trump’s controversial trade policies have also damaged the country’s reputation.
Earlier in the year, weeks of wildfires dominated national news cycles, essentially shutting down tourism in the region at the time. Over the summer, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents descended on the city, forcing people to stay home out of fear.
“Los Angeles faced a situation unlike any other major American city with wildfires,” said Visit California Chief Executive Caroline Beteta.
Despite the turmoil, California remained the most popular U.S. destination for tourism, and most counties in the state saw growth in travel.
Travel demand has fallen nationwide but increased in 55 of 58 California counties last year, according to Visit California. Travel spending in the San Francisco Bay Area increased 2%.
In Southern California, from Hollywood Boulevard to Palm Springs, foot traffic took a hit last summer. Tour buses were carrying fewer people and souvenir shops were selling fewer items.
“Los Angeles is California’s primary global gateway,” Beteta said. “No other region is as reliant on international visitation, so when global travel softens, Los Angeles feels it first and most acutely.”
International airborne Ridership to Los Angeles County dropped more than 30% from August to November of 2025. Current international arrivals to Los Angeles are lower than in previous months, although the state saw a 3% increase overall last year.
People ride the West Coaster during National Roller Coaster Day at Pacific Park at the Santa Monica Pier on August 16, 2025.
(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
Far fewer travelers from Canada and the Middle East visited California in 2025; The number of arrivals from these regions decreased by 18% and 30% respectively.
“Fewer people are going to America, including the West Coast,” said Mike Duignan, a hospitality expert and professor at Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne University. “People don’t like Trump, and people don’t travel because of a lot of other geopolitical and political factors.”
Overall travel spending, which typically rises more than 2.5% annually, is down 0.1% in Los Angeles in 2025, according to this week’s data. The decline would have been sharper had it not been for inflation, which increased the prices of accommodation, food and goods.
An 8% drop in visitor air spending (about $188 million) contributed to the overall decline in the county. The number of tourism jobs also decreased by around 1,000 last year.
Visit California says the upcoming events will change the narrative about Los Angeles tourism. Some travel areas are already on the rise; In the first quarter of 2026, hotel room revenues in the county increased 4% year-over-year.
“The next three years will completely change the equation,” said Beteta of Visit California. With the FIFA World Cup and the 2028 Olympics coming up this summer, he said: “LA is entering a period of sustained global attention.”
But this year starts with a lot of uncertainty as the conflict in Iran drives up fuel and airfare prices. As a major summer travel season approaches, global jet fuel shortages are making flying more difficult and expensive.
Flights to and from smaller California hubs such as Sacramento and Burbank have been canceled, while Air Canada and German carrier Lufthansa cut routes from their summer schedules earlier this month.
Rising fares and decreasing flights may deter some travelers from coming to the World Cup or for other reasons during the summer travel season.
“Travel is a luxury product,” Duignan said. “A significant portion of the market basically chooses not to step in when there are price increases and there is uncertainty in the market.”
