First it was the troops on the streets; now, it’s the government shutdown that’s battering tourism in the nation’s capital.
Washington, D.C., enjoyed record-breaking visitation in 2024, with a record 27.2 million people visiting the nation’s capital, spending $11.4 billion and resulting in $2.3 billion in tax revenue, according to MMGY Travel Intelligence, S&P Global Market Intelligence, the National Travel and Tourism Office and the U.S. Department of Commerce.
But 2025 has been a very different story for the District of Columbia. A forecast from Tourism Economics, released in August, forecast a 5.1 percent decrease in international visitation to D.C. in 2025, and attendance at the much-anticipated WorldPride event was down 5 percent amid the Trump administration’s deployment of National Guard units to aid local law enforcement.
In response to negative publicity surrounding the military deployment, Destination D.C. in August launched a campaign called “There’s Only One D.C.” to “counter the narrative and separate rhetoric from reality.”
However, the government shutdown, now entering its third week, has kicked D.C. when it was already down, shuttering many of the attractions that draw visitors to the city. All Smithsonian museums, including the National Museum of Natural History, the National Air and Space Museum and the National Museum of African American History and Cultures, are closed, as are the National Zoo; the National Gallery of Art; the Library of Congress; the National Archives; the U.S. Botanical Garden; and the U.S. National Arboretum.
“I just got here last night for a conference, so I’m just arriving and realizing I’m not going to be able to see anything,” Sheila Soule, a visitor from Vermont, told Newsweek. “It’s disappointing.”
That said, in a recent media release, Elliott L. Ferguson, II, President and CEO of Destination D.C., noted, “We understand that when the federal government shuts down, some visitors may assume D.C. does too, but that’s far from the truth. While some federally funded attractions are impacted, more than 50 privately funded museums are unaffected. Our city’s incredible restaurants, hotels, theaters, sports venues, tours, parks and attractions are open and ready to welcome guests. There’s so much to see and do this fall and visitors can still experience everything that makes DC a world-class destination.”
The U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum remains open until at least Oct. 17, and a number of other attractions are still accessible to visitors, including the National Aquarium, the International Spy Museum and a variety of national monuments and cemeteries. (Destination D.C. maintains a list of open attractions here.)
And when it comes to meetings, this month, the Walter E. Washington Convention Center hosts three citywide conventions. ASAE 2025, the annual event for the Association of the United States Army, draws approximately 44,000 attendees with an estimated $36 million economic impact through Oct. 15. The International Monetary Fund and World Bank Annual Meetings (Oct. 13-18) bring over 10,000 global delegates to Foggy Bottom. The American Dental Association’s SmileCon will take place Oct. 23-25, with more than 8,000 attendees and an estimated $10.4 million in delegate spending.
A report due out next week from Destination D.C. is expected to shed more light on the economic impact of the shutdown on the city’s $11-billion tourist industry.
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