Will Route 66 see a downturn of foreign travelers?

Less than two weeks ago, Dutch Route 66 enthusiast Dries Bessels announced on Facebook he would forego travel to the United States because of the policies of President Donald Trump’s administration.

Bessels is not a Johnny-come-lately. He’s made 15 full-length trips on Route 66 since 2009, and he wrote a Dutch-language guidebook to the Mother Road and co-wrote another about the highway’s history. He’s a founder of the Dutch Route 66 Association and was inducted into the Route 66 Walk of Fame in Kingman, Arizona.

“During all these I must have been to the US at least 50 times and never once did I feel uncomfortable or unsafe,” Bessels wrote. “That is, until now. I was supposed to go to New Mexico in March for a conference on Route 66 but I cancelled.

“With all the weird actions The Orange One with his cronies are taking it simply feels too uncomfortable! The country that felt like a second home has become an alien place.

“I mostly feel sorry for all the people that do not agree with his ideas and I just hope it will be possible to undo the damage once he has gone!”

Bessels isn’t the only one canceling holidays in the USA. Media outlets — such as Stuff in New Zealand, The Independent in Great Britain, the Washington Post and New York Times domestically and dozens of others — are reporting about international travelers taking a raincheck on trips to America.

Residents of America’s closest ally, Canada, also are canceling trips to the USA, citing Trump’s tariffs and his persistent talk of annexing their country.

On top of that, at least six counties are issuing travel advisories to those considering travel to the United States.

In comment threads, I’ve seen other European and Australian Route 66 travelers who still plan to come to the USA in 2025 and 2026.

That doesn’t mean they’re not concerned.

Trond Moberg, a Norwegian Route 66 enthusiast who regularly guides motorcycle groups down the highway, wrote on Facebook Messenger: “My biggest concern … are all the horror stories you hear about tourists being detained for no reason at the port of entry. I will be watching that situation closely for the next months. Hope to be back on Route 66 next year.”

Route 66 advocate Jim Hinckley has sounded the alarm about these developments, especially with the highway’s centennial less than a year away.

“As I look ahead to 2025, and into 2026, my prediction is that the U.S. tourism industry is facing turbulent times that have the potential to be more disruptive than the COVID pandemic of 2020,” Hinckley wrote. “Economic contraction, tariffs, perceptions of political instability, currency exchange rate fluctuations, and even boycotts are all factors that could combine to create a perfect storm for international and domestic tourism.”

The research firm of Tourism Economics in February revised its forecast of foreign travel to the USA from a 9% gain to a drop of 5.1% this year — equivalent to an $18 billion drop in spending.

The prospect of Route 66 losing international travelers isn’t a small thing. Route 66 businesses consistently report that 30% to 40% of their revenue comes from international tourists. Even a dip in that proportion would impact the bottom line.

Hinckley suggested that Route 66 communities should be “thinking outside the box” in how to weather these possible developments.

The situation recalls the days of the COVID-19 pandemic, when international travel essentially ground to a halt. That’s when many Route 66 businesses tried to boost domestic travel to counter those losses.

Perhaps the forthcoming Route 66 centennial will be such a boom to communities along the Mother Road that these concerns about international travelers eventually will be considered quaint.

But Route 66 businesses had better be aware of this situation. Better safe than sorry.

(Image of Route 66 shields on the roadway by Thomas Hawk via Flickr)