USA 'no-entry' signs see travel
diverting to Southeast Asia

Tough US restrictions on travel and immigration have resulted in a massive diversion of tourists to Asian destinations.

AS the headstrong Year of Horse arrives, it seems 2026 is set to be a tumultuous time for travellers. The Great US Immigration Firewall has come up, visas are scarce, shooting incidents are rising (with viral amplification on social media) and tariff irritations are inciting national passions from Canada to China. In a very short span of time the American administration has inadvertently wrought one of the biggest redirects in travel the world has ever seen since Moses parted the Red Sea.

Chinese consumers, known for their en bloc hair-trigger responses whenever an irksome issue arises, are already getting off the transpacific highway, shunning America for affordable pastures closer home in Southeast Asia. This is true of quite a few countries that have seen their self-esteem and currencies battered in politically uncertain waters — ironically as the ‘safe haven’ dollar strengthens, further crimping US-bound travel.

Travellers make sharp u-turn to Asia

The main beneficiaries of this new travel surge have been Thailand, Malaysia, Japan (with an attractively weak yen), South Korea and Vietnam. Thailand has lost regional tourists with a rising baht and much bad press regarding sweat-shop labour tourist kidnappings and Cambodia border skirmishes but Chinese tourists promise to pack flights again as Spring 2026 bookings come in.

Vijay Verghese

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As the world puzzles over terms like ‘slow travel’ and ‘hushpitality’, rail travel — where you actually engage with people rather than fly over them — may be the next big thing

Tourists from USA too have picked up in Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore and Japan. Suddenly, looking east has become ever more attractive, especially for long-haul markets like Europe keen on budget-friendly destinations and long stays over the winter months.

India — with continuing infrastructure and safety issues — has not gained much from this tourism windfall but Indian travellers have turned to the Far East with a vengeance, nursing their weakening rupee and stretching value in regional destinations like Thailand, Malaysia, Bali and Vietnam. Singapore too has seen an uptick in Indian travellers who rank third on the island’s foreign arrivals chart after Indonesia and China. Indian domestic tourism has seen a sharp climb too with a more urgent exploration of the south and the northeast.

In much of Asia, international political uncertainty and travel barriers have translated into vibrant self-discovery. Domestic travel has soared in countries from China to Thailand and India, with fresh interest in tier-2 and tier-3 cities that offer better value and fewer crowds.

Savvy international travellers too are riding on the back of these currents to places like the historical city of Nanjing, and Chongqing (the astounding multi-level highway metropolis in the western mountains) in China. In India, think Jaisalmer in the Rajasthan desert, the astounding UNESCO World Heritage ruins of Hampi, spotless Shillong in the Himalayas, Ayodhya, and Bodhgaya (where Buddha is said to have attained enlightenment). And in Thailand, Kanchanaburi’s night market continues to enthral while the sedate northern old-world Lampang offers a counterpoint to frenetic tick-all-the-boxes travel.

Budget airlines boost Asia discovery

The rapid rise of Asian budget airlines like Vietjet, Air Asia, HK Express, IndiGo, Scoot and Cebu Pacific have brought remote romance within easier reach of city folk who have welcomed the chance to slurp street noodles and snap golden sunsets from Phuket and Palawan to Phu Quoc. This has been cautiously welcomed by several countries, notably Thailand and Indonesia that have eased visa regulations for several nationals including Indians who marvel at familiar cultural practices as seen through the SE Asian funny mirror, nowhere more pronounced than in isolated Bali with its idiosyncratic brand of Hinduism.

Hongkongers continue to favour Japan and Taiwan and many have taken advantage of the direct highspeed rail connections into the heart of China. Travel is turning regional. International business travel is changing direction too. Rising US tariffs and other concerns have forced businesses to seek risk-mitigation opportunities in Asian markets with more stable regimes that could help resolve supply-chain gaps.

Survey: US loses lustre as destination

A mid-2025 poll by CNBC found, almost 80% of the 6,000 Southeast Asian travellers felt the US was “losing its appeal as a travel destination.” Respondents were concerned about discrimination (60%), gun violence (53%), border detentions (37%), and the “Trump administration”. Many other nationalities had a similar disposition. Despite the general unease, the Philippines and Vietnam both registered an increase in travel interest to the United States.

Unsurprisingly, the World Travel and Tourism Council estimates the US is “set to lose US$12.5bn” in tourism over 2025. The council tellingly concluded: “The US, the largest Travel & Tourism sector in the world, is the only country among 184 economies analysed by WTTC and Oxford Economics, forecast to see international visitor spending decline in 2025.”

But then, one man’s poison is another man’s meat. As the world puzzles over new terms like ‘slow travel’ (exactly as it sounds), ‘hushpitality’ (quiet escapes), and ‘flashpacking’ (high end backpacking in designer hostels); rail travel — where you actually engage with the passing landscape and people rather than fly over it — may be the next big thing. The late Tiziano Terzani wrote eloquently about this in his 1997 book, “A fortune teller told me”.

As he wrote of his earthbound travels over a year (to avoid a monk’s dark prophecy): “What looked like a curse proved to be a blessing. Moving between Asia and Europe by train, by ship, by car and sometimes even on foot, the rhythm of my days changed completely. Distances became real again, and I reacquired the taste of discovery and adventure.”

Vijay Verghese started out as a reporter for the Times of India, a national daily, in 1979. He moved to Bangkok and thence to Hong Kong in 1984 as editor and publisher of a range of news, business, travel and lifestyle publications including Business Traveller, HOLIDAY Asia, and Asian Business. He launched Dancing Wolf Media in 2002 and runs the online magazines SmartTravelAsia.com and AsianConversations.com when not dabbling in avatars, music and virtual guff.

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