Latin America is positioning itself as the most dynamic region for U.S. inbound tourism. That was the message from Tyler Gosnell, Managing Director of International Inbound at the U.S. Travel Association, during a session at the organization's Summer Summit held last week in San Diego, where he presented data showing Latin America as the only region in the world posting sustained growth in visits to the United States in 2026.

The contrast with the global picture is stark. While worldwide international arrivals grew 4% in 2025, visits to the United States fell 5% over the same period. Against that backdrop, Latin American markets stood out with numbers running counter to the broader trend: Mexico posted a 13% year-over-year increase in visits through April, Colombia grew 17% through June, and South America as a whole reported 5.5% growth in 2026.

According to Gosnell, the trend isn't a one-off spike but reflects structural factors sustaining demand over the medium term: a growing middle class, strong air connectivity, deep family ties driving visiting-friends-and-relatives travel, and the ability to combine tourism, business, shopping and family visits into a single U.S. trip. Those elements, he said, explain why the region keeps growing despite the immigration hurdles several of its countries still face.

Among those hurdles, Chile remains the only Latin American country included in the U.S. Visa Waiver Program, while travelers from Mexico, Colombia, Argentina and Brazil still need a visa to enter the country. Gosnell noted that recent improvements in visa processing times have helped sustain demand from Mexico, Brazil and Argentina, though Colombia continues to face longer wait times for appointments and approvals.

The region's growing weight was also on display at IPW 2026, the international inbound travel trade show held in Greater Fort Lauderdale, Florida, from May 17 to 21, where the Latin American delegation of media and tour operators was the largest of any region in attendance. Organizers said that turnout reflects the market's increasing influence within the U.S. travel industry's outbound promotion strategy.

Looking ahead, the inbound travel industry will reconvene at IPW 2027, set for New Orleans, Louisiana, from May 2 to 6, 2027. For Gosnell, the takeaway from the San Diego summit was clear: Latin America is showing what the future of international travel to the United States could look like across other regions, with growth potential that, by his own assessment, remains far from fully captured.