A fair number of readers of our sister publication, Inbound Report, responded to our request, asking for a brief description of what might be the impact of the election of Donald Trump as USA as a destination — and on the global tour and travel industry as a whole. Following is a sampler of the responses we received, some of which were edited for brevity, as many respondents had much, much more to say.

Arjan Helle, president/owner, Target Travel, The Netherlands: “The expectation is that the desire to travel to the U.S. next year will slightly decline as it is ‘not done’ in the eyes of higher educated people in The Netherlands and Belgium to travel to a country where a racist is president. At least those were the first reactions under potential travelers. In my opinion and depending on how Trump will dictate new rules Europeans might reconsider and keep traveling to the U.S. It for sure doesn’t help!”

Fabio Negro, group head of North America, FTI Touristik, Germany: “As one of the largest tour operators for travel to the U.S. out of continental Europe, we are concerned about the USD exchange rate and immigration process/limitations. We have dedicated U.S. programs for the GAS and FR markets. Currently, we don’t see any negative changes but the market was very hesitant and below last year’s demand for the past couple of months. In the end we are positive and continue to communicate the beauty of the country!”

Ray Heckman, president & general manager, Festival Tours, Orlando, FL: “I expect all of the United States is glad it is over and we can get back to business. However, the past three days of violent demonstrations does not bode well for the future. We can be assured that more of this will take place in and around January 20, 2017. In terms of a Donald Trump presidency, I don’t expect much of a change in international visitor-ship. The man, once in office, has a huge responsibility to provide calm, focused leadership, and I believe he will do so.”

Natasha Melesse, senior sales leisure manage, Novotel New York in Times Square, NYC: “The dust will settle. However, it is the timing of these elections that plays a critical role…the bulk of the business is booked within the next few months so, the results of this election will still be “very fresh” in everyone’s mind with a second jolt of reality to be delivered when the inauguration takes place in January – all in the midst of our source markets planning their next trip. As for the future of USA tourism, we will have a better picture of what this will look like once we know more about our new president’s policies.”

Bob Gilbert, executive vice president, China Ready Partners, Las Vegas, NV: “I was actually in China at Ctrip headquarters and then with Ali Trip and with CTS leadership as the election news was breaking. These three Chinese volume travel producers didn’t see a Trump presidency as a negative to their plans in place for USA business. I asked them the question, and they all predict record numbers to the USA with no slow down forecast.”

Mike Gallagher, co-founder and co-chairman, CityPASS, USA: “We need to embrace and support President-elect Donald Trump.  How can we help him be successful?  In his acceptance speech he mentioned that we must rebuild America’s infrastructure.  This includes the airports, roads and bridges.  We are the Tourism Party and this should be our top priority. It’s time for us to move forward and help lead this effort.”

Mark White, director, The Greg Evans Consultancy Limited, UK: “There is no doubt that the rhetoric surrounding this campaign has been extremely negative from both the political establishment and the wider US community. From a UK perspective, whilst this will be unnerving for some, the US is still a very mature destination from the UK and we would expect to see it remain as a key component of the long haul travel market over the coming 12 months, especially once the media furore and analysis dies down.”

Name Withheld, receptive tour operator based in USA: “Devastated. I believe America went 1,000 steps back in all aspects.”

David Becker, CEO, Attract China, New York and Beijing: “Chinese media has been supportive of the Trump campaign throughout the election cycle. With the introduction of the 10-year visa two years ago, travel to the U.S. will continue to be encouraged. As a U.S.-based company with an office and staff in China, we view travel as an important tool to break down barriers and unify the world. That said, U.S. hospitality businesses still have a great deal to learn on how best to cater to Chinese travelers, which goes well beyond putting a pair of slippers in a hotel room.”

Eric Hoogstins, president, Fly2America LLC, Pompano Beach, FL: “I believe the Trump administration will have a positive influence on both inbound USA and global travel. Financial markets will stabilize over a short period and although the U.S. dollar will get stronger, the inbound markets will adjust and get over the “sticker shock” within one year. The USA will also become a safer destination and while our economy rebounds and infrastructure improves, we will not only maintain but grow our position as a world class destination.”

Jimmy Thomas, FIT Consulting, Atlanta, GA: “I’m thinking that having a pro-business person and a global hotelier as president can’t be bad for our industry. The two impediments to global travel are declining economies and security/terrorism. I have to believe a DJT administration would be strong in both areas compared to current POTUS who didn’t have a lot of strength in these areas.”

Name Withheld, receptive tour operator based in USA: “The bulk of our international business comes from the UK. My first worry was the strong dollar, and now my biggest worry is a president who terrifies me when he comes face to face with the rest of the world. He is in the hotel biz…but, my sympathies go out to the sales office. At this point the international advance bookings for 2017 look good, but for how long? I pray that, when the time comes, for Trump to meet the Queen I suggest that someone washes his mouth out with soap before they chat.”

The Final Word…

Jake Steinman, founder and CEO, NAJ Group, Sausalito, CA: “The situation depends so much on the new president’s tone and a softening of his public persona. We Americans also need to educate the world about our political system of governing; the fact that it has checks and balances brought about the executive, legislative and judicial branches. Add to that another check — the viability of Trump’s brand and the supposition that any strident pronouncements may result in a further deterioration of his licensing sales — as his base of ardent followers are not the ones who can afford his hotels, condos and steaks.”