The so-called “Trump Effect”, calculated by travel search engine KAYAK.co.uk, reported that the number of searches for flights to the US has plummeted 30 per cent.
In the UK, where the US is one of the most-searched for destinations, demand was down by 9 per cent since Trump was officially announced president-elect, reports CityAM.
Suzanne Perry, travel expert at KAYAK, said, “It’s always interesting when our travel data can demonstrate a wider trend and this is very much the case here. With 1.5 billion searches conducted on KAYAK websites every year, the impact of US elections on the USA as a destination is very significant – we’re talking big numbers here.”
Additionally, demand for Trump’s hotels has been in flux. After the first debate on 26 September, the business recorded one of the most significant decreases in demand for the whole year, with 24 per cent fewer searches compared to the yearly average. Demand jumped up 10 per cent after both the second and third debates when compared to the week of the first debate, however.
