10 U.S. Cities That Are Hot Travel Destinations

10 U.S. Cities That Are Hot Travel Destinations — And 5 Cities That Are on the Decline

The U.S. travel industry has seen mixed results so far in 2025, with slight gains in spending and air travel offset by problems tied to federal budget cutbacks and the 43-day government shutdown.

Total U.S. travel spending is projected to grow 1.1% in 2025 to $1.35 trillion, according to a recent report from the U.S. Travel Association. Meanwhile, data from the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) shows that revenue passenger miles on airlines increased less than 1% during a 12-month period ended in August 2025.

Despite the sluggish overall growth, some U.S. cities and airports have experienced a rapid increase in air travel.

For example, “secondary” airports such as Washington Dulles International and Orlando Sanford International are seeing double-digit passenger growth due to a rise in budget travel, according to a new report from Locals Insider.

Locals Insider used BTS data and a nationwide survey to determine the most (and least) popular destinations for American and international travelers. Here’s a look at 10 emerging U.S. travel hot spots, based on growth in air travel passengers between January and July 2025.

Knoxville, Tennessee

Airport: McGhee Tyson
2025 rise in the number of passengers: 120,131
Percentage change YOY: +13.5%

Washington, D.C.

Airport: Washington Dulles International
2025 rise in the number of passengers: 628,250
Percentage change YOY: +10.9%

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Providence, Rhode Island

Airport: Rhode Island TF Green International
2025 rise in the number of passengers: 116,837
Percentage change YOY: +10.6%

Sanford, Florida

Airport: Orlando Sanford International
2025 rise in the number of passengers: 91,011
Percentage change YOY: +10.3%

St. Petersburg, Florida

Airport: St Pete Clearwater International
2025 rise in the number of passengers: 77,049
Percentage change YOY: +9.6%

San Francisco, California

Airport: San Francisco International
2025 rise in the number of passengers: 1,017,469
Percentage change YOY: +8.7%

Greer, South Carolina

Airport: Greenville-Spartanburg International
2025 rise in the number of passengers: 58,851
Percentage change YOY: +7.5%

Albany, New York

Airport: Albany International
2025 rise in the number of passengers: 57,796
Percentage change YOY: +6.8%

Portland, Oregon

Airport: Portland International
2025 rise in the number of passengers: 294,596
Percentage change YOY: +6.3%

Boise, Idaho

Airport: Boise Air Terminal
2025 rise in the number of passengers: 84,004
Percentage change YOY: +6.0%

On the other end of the spectrum, these five cities have seen major declines in air passenger traffic. The list below does not include metro areas with more than one major airport (e.g. Chicago and Oakland/San Francisco), because in some cases one airport has seen a rise in traffic while the other has seen a drop.