The U.S. is the first major travel market to surpass 2019 size

The U.S. economy continues to exhibit resilience and robustness, albeit not without encountering notable hurdles. 

Though the failure of three regional U.S. banks in the first half of 2023 has had a modest economic impact, such events demonstrate that the economy is currently fragile, and that a financial disturbance could easily throw it into a recession. 

Even as the labor market has remained surprisingly strong overall, there have been massive layoffs at tech firms including Alphabet, Facebook, Salesforce and Amazon. The prevailing geopolitical conflict initiated by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, accompanied by a sluggish growth trajectory in Europe and China and challenges faced in supply-chain management, continue to pose obstacles for the economy. 

However, Americans' enduring passion for travel has prevailed, even amid considerable uncertainties. Remarkably, in 2022, they continued to assign greater value to travel when compared with other discretionary expenditures like home improvements, dining/nightlife and electronics. 

According to Phocuswright’s latest travel research report U.S. Travel Market Report 2022-2026, the U.S. travel market grew by 51% to $422 billion in 2022, becoming the first major travel market globally to surpass its 2019 size.

Good news continues with research showing that all segments registered double-digit revenue increases in 2022.