Medical Tourism a Bright Spot as International Visitor Spending in U.S. Was Up Slightly in First Half of 2015
Photo Credit: International traveler spending on medical tourism in the U.S. is growing faster than other spending categories. Pictured are international tourists at the new 1 World Trade Center Observatory in New York City. Skift / Dan Peltier
Skift Take
Typically it's places like Thailand that generate the most buzz for wellness tourism. So it's interesting to see the U.S. gaining such traction in this area.
Visiting a hospital or doctor's office is increasingly important for international travelers touring U.S. destinations in addition to riding hop-on-hop-off buses and splurging at designer boutiques.
International travelers spent $112.2 billion on travel expenses to and within the U.S. between January and June, a 1% increase over the same period last year.
"That's a sound increase when you take into consideration the strength of the dollar," said Carroll Rheem, a spokesperson for Brand USA. "Overall, any growth thus far this year compared to last year is a very solid result given the dollar's strength. If measured in local currencies (from the perspective of a consumer) from many of our top
