Opinion: Tourists most welcome

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Steven Wilhoit, a retired executive living in Anacortes, Wash., responds to an article published in The Times. If you would like to respond to a recent Times article, editorial or Op-Ed in our Blowback forum, here are our FAQs and submission policy.

I would hope that Eric Lucas’ professional contributions to the Michelin Guides and Westways magazine are worthier than this article. He proclaims: ‘The United States is a crass, greedy and rude host ... we treat foreigners as criminals until proved otherwise.’ These assertions, presented without substantiation or context, are just the nonsensical ramblings of someone who happens to have access to the Opinion pages.

Lucas asserts that travel is ‘booming worldwide -- except in the United States.’ Travel is actually booming everywhere including the United States. It is growing incrementally faster in other areas of the world, but there are a variety of reasons for that. Lucas further asserts that overseas arrivals to the U.S. have declined 11% this decade, conveniently selecting just the overseas component of tourism and a period that includes 9/11 (which he ignores).

U.S. overseas arrivals (xls) have virtually recovered to 2001 levels and are up 20% from the low point in 2003. But total tourism, including regional visits, has nearly reached the record levels of 2000 (51 million in 2006 compared to 51.2 million then). According to the 2007 United Nations World Tourism Organization report (pdf), the United States has the third-highest total arrivals and dramatically higher dollar receipts for tourism than any other country.

Lucas then proceeds to compare visa requirements of the United States, Canada and the European Union without context and directs an egregious accusation of racism at the U.S. He notes that the U.S. has 29 visa waiver countries. But then he declares it ‘a near lily-white list’ and that the remaining ‘5 multicolored billion’ people are ‘suspect,’ reflecting his earlier assertion that we treat foreigners as criminals.

An unfortunate reality is that most of the world’s people are too poor to travel and therefore any suggestion that we are addressing a tourism potential of 5 billion to 6 billion souls is ludicrous. Second, the EU and Canada, as well as the U.S., demand visas from nearly all African and Asian countries and some of South America -- areas where most of the world’s ‘multicolored’ people live. If the U.S. visa policy is racist then that same label belongs to Canada and the EU -- I would suggest that the label is completely wrong in any case. Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own data.

Furthermore, the U.S. is an independent country, not part of a union or commonwealth. Canada is an element of the British Commonwealth and many of the additional countries for which Canada waives visas are part of it as well. The EU has eased restrictions for potential members, like the Balkan states, and has visa waivers for its member states, not all of which are on the U.S. list. Although Europe is the largest tourism market, much of that tourism is regional travel between the various European countries, since apparently every time one crosses a border and spends a day you have created an ‘arrival.’ By comparison, only about 57% of U.S. arrivals are regional from Mexico and Canada.

I agree with Lucas that we could do more to provide multilingual offerings for overseas visitors and use more international signage on our ports of entry and transportation network. But as to his inferred charge of English-only arrogance, there is simply more to the story. The United States has a situation with language that both aids and handicaps our citizens. We speak English as our mother tongue and there is little forcing us to speak anything else in our daily lives. For comparison, the EU has 23 official languages. Also, the world has adopted English as the standard language. Lucas may interpret our English-centric attitude as arrogance, but I suggest it is just a matter of expediency.

I can only think that there must be something in the Evian or Perrier that Seattle travel writers drink that sours their attitudes and causes them to have such a low opinion of their own country and fellow citizens.