California tourism leaders warn of international decline, urge statewide coordination ahead of mega events

Assembly Committee on Arts, Entertainment, Sports and Tourism Chairman Ward convened an informational hearing Aug. 20 to review the state of California’s travel industry as Visit California and local destination marketing organizations reported a downturn in international visitors and spending in 2025.

Caroline Beteta, chief executive officer of Visit California, told the committee, “This is a very important topic given some of the times that we’re in right now,” and outlined Visit California’s current strategy and forecast. She said domestic visitation was essentially flat while international arrivals were projected to drop 9.2% for 2025 in the organization’s May forecast, tipping the overall outlook into negative territory.

The decline is being driven by several factors, speakers said: economic pressure and travel cost; a strong U.S. dollar; longer visa wait times and proposed new federal fees; and a negative press and political rhetoric that, panelists said, has lowered international travel sentiment. Beteta also emphasized the stakes around upcoming mega events, saying California needs clarity for businesses as cities prepare for the FIFA World Cup and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

Why it matters

Visit California provided statewide figures for 2024 to show the scale of the industry: $157 billion in visitor spending, $12.6 billion in state and local tax revenue and support for roughly 1.2 million jobs. Beteta said Visit California will execute a $55 million global media plan in the current fiscal year and that international travelers account for a minority of trips but a disproportionate share of spending.

Local leaders who testified described how those statewide trends are affecting communities differently. Mike Testa, president and CEO of Visit Sacramento, said Sacramento has diversified away from convention dependence with major festivals and sports events that generated multimillion-dollar economic impact, but promoters face high production costs and sometimes move festivals to other states if incentives are better. “When you live and die by conventions, you live and die by conventions,” Testa said.

Lauren Salisbury, vice president of communications for Santa Monica Travel & Tourism, told the committee that Santa Monica’s occupancy and international volume have weakened this year. She said strong media coverage of January wildfires created persistent visitor cancellations despite limited physical damage to most tourism infrastructure in Los Angeles County. “The media narrative about the wildfires was catastrophic,” Salisbury said.

Rhonda Salisbury, CEO of Visit Yosemite / Madera County, described similar effects in gateway communities to Yosemite National Park. She said international visitation tracked at visitor centers is down sharply — Canada, France, Mexico and Germany showing declines — and said gateways and the National Park Service now have a recurring quarter‑by‑quarter consultation requirement following a Department of the Interior directive that panelists described as a recent positive development for coordination.

Carrie Verbeck, chief operating officer of the San Diego Tourism Authority, summarized regional impacts, saying tourism is San Diego’s second-largest economic sector and that while 2024 reached pre-pandemic spending levels, 2025 has shown weakening spending even where visitation held flat. “It is 1 in 8 jobs in San Diego,” Verbeck said of tourism employment.

Panelists and members suggested policy and budget measures

Speakers urged continued and increased investment in coordinated marketing, support for Brand USA (the public–private national marketing organization), and state-level incentives to retain major festivals and sporting events that otherwise might relocate to lower-cost states.

Several testifiers urged a dedicated state events fund or tax-sharing model to help destinations compete for large events. John Lambeth of Civitas and industry speakers noted that 22 other states now run event‑support programs that return a portion of generated tax revenues to underwrite bids and hosting fees.

Infrastructure and operational costs were recurring themes. Members and industry representatives urged investments to reduce transportation bottlenecks (including cross-border processing), repair and maintain key roadways such as Highway 1 on the Central Coast, and address cross-border sewage flows that cause repeated beach closures in San Diego County. Industry witnesses also warned that state and local policy costs — from fees to local taxes and some lingering pandemic-era regulations — have raised operating expenses for hotels and attractions and can reduce reinvestment and transactions in the hotel market.

Panelists emphasized the role of live events and mega-events in state strategy. Visit California framed three concurrent campaign themes — family travel, broad brand marketing and road-trip promotion — and noted that mega-events including World Cup and the 2028 Olympics create both opportunity and displacement risk for some local markets.

Public comment and industry testimony

Trade groups and local operators in the public comment portion reinforced panel testimony. The California Attractions and Parks Association highlighted attractions’ contribution to statewide visitation and tax revenue and said investment and supportive policy are needed to keep parks and workplaces viable. The California Hotel & Lodging Association said occupancy statewide remains below pre-pandemic levels and that higher room rates have been used to offset lower volume; the association urged review of policy costs that affect reinvestment and operations.

What the committee record shows

The hearing was informational; no committee votes or formal policy actions were taken. Panelists and committee members asked the Legislature to consider encouraging and funding statewide coordination with Visit California and Brand USA, exploring an events fund or tax‑sharing incentive for event retention, improving transportation and cross‑border infrastructure, and continuing collaboration between national parks and gateway communities.

Looking ahead

Panelists repeatedly framed their recommendations as business decisions for public and private leaders: preserve the “welcome” message for international travelers, maintain cooperative marketing led by Visit California and its partners, and explore targeted, time‑limited financial tools to keep high‑impact festivals and events in California. Several speakers warned that some negative effects could last into 2026 and beyond if current international sentiment and policy uncertainties persist.

The hearing record and supporting materials will be posted on the Assembly committee’s website.