Anxiety About International Travel Has Companies Rethinking Incentive Trips

There’s a growing sentiment that Americans traveling abroad will be perceived negatively, especially since Canada and several European countries — Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom — announced advisories for the U.S. “Travelers are expecting a shift in how they are received abroad,” said Dan Richards, CEO of The Global Rescue Companies and a U.S. Travel and Tourism advisory board member at the U.S. Department of Commerce. 

How does this translate to incentive qualifiers? It depends on the group, said one planner from a U.S.-based building materials company. “Incentive winners from some industries are used to long-haul trips to less-traveled destinations, while those from other industries might not regularly travel beyond Mexico and the Caribbean. You also need to consider the stress level of their spouses and partners, when the purpose of the trip is supposed to be to motivate.”  

There’s also concern about the process of attendees returning home to the U.S. One viral TikTok video showed legal permanent residents being interrogated at U.S. airport checkpoints and pressured to sign forms renouncing their status. However, confirmed detentions appear limited to a handful of highly publicized incidents, according to the Washington Post.

However, one planner is advising naturalized citizens and ‘anyone with a green card’ not to attend her event in Canada this summer. “I can’t believe this is the reality at the moment,” she said in a Facebook group chat.

Mixed Reports from Planners

“Our Canadian programs are still moving forward without hesitation,” said Rhonda Brewer, VP sales, Motivation Excellence. Stephanie Grey, partner and SVP, sales and strategies at Unbridled, also reported no changes so far. "Although it is increasingly challenging to sift through the noise, we are not currently experiencing an immediate impact."

In part, planners said, decisions to continue trips to Canada were based on a combination of the increasingly favorable exchange rates and companies wanting to support their U.S. neighbor.

Jenn Glynn, managing partner of Meeting Encore, said some of her clients “feel like they’re in a state of paralysis” trying to decide what to do. “One financial services company is taking its 2026 global incentive trip and splitting it up into three trips, with the Americans staying in America, the Canadians and Europeans meeting in Canada, and the Asians staying in Asia. So one program became three programs, which for the staff is three times the work.”

Leisure group travel could be an indication of what’s next for incentive groups, with some tour operators reporting cancellations. Jack Ezon, founder of the luxury travel company Embark Beyond, told The New York Times that he had a client cancel a birthday party trip to Mexico, where they had bought out an entire hotel. “Their security team said, ‘Don’t go, there’s anti-American sentiment. It’s going to be dangerous.’”

For companies that are moving forward with their international incentives, it’s important for planners to brief attendees on how to act in this new landscape. Harding Bush, a former Navy SEAL and associate director of security operations for Global Rescue, advised that participants should be made aware that there could be an increase in political demonstrations, and that locals may have strong opinions about international policies.

“They know it's not you that is making the decisions and policies. Be a gracious guest and don't discuss politics,” he said.