Is it secure to go to the USA? How guns and Trump influence interest in traveling

More than 90% of travelers from Southeast Asia say the proliferation of guns within the United States influences whether they’ll visit the United States, in keeping with a brand new survey.

The study, which surveyed 6,000 international travelers from the six countries, found that respondents viewed Hawaii because the safest state when it comes to gun violence, while Texas was considered the least secure state, out of an inventory of eight options, which include New York, California, Florida, Nevada, Arizona and Washington DC

Still, 56% of respondents to the survey commissioned by CNBC Travel and conducted by market research firm Milieu Insight said they’re more likely to visit the United States in the subsequent few years.

That number rose to 59% of those that had visited the United States not less than once, although 74% of that group said they found gun violence to be an even bigger problem within the United States today than up to now.

“This suggests that while first-hand experiences raise awareness of issues, they do not necessarily deter future visits,” said Antarika Sen, deputy director of research at Milieu Insight.

However, nearly 80% said the likelihood that they’d attend a mass gathering – akin to a concert or music festival – can be strongly or moderately influenced by the variety of firearms within the United States.

The survey was conducted from September 9 to 18 in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, the Philippines and Thailand, following the primary assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump in July and coinciding with the second attempt on his life on September 15 .

Southeast Asians, who expressed the best concern about gun violence within the United States, also expressed the best interest in visiting the country.

Respondents from Vietnam (79%), Indonesia (76%) and the Philippines (76%) said their travel was strongly or moderately influenced by the proliferation of weapons within the United States. However, 73% got here from Vietnam, 70% from Indonesia, and 69% from Vietnam. % of individuals from the Philippines said they’re more likely to visit in the subsequent few years.

However, only 24% of Singapore residents said they were more likely to set foot within the US soon.

Overall, two-thirds of all respondents said they disagreed with gun ownership within the United States. However, in Singapore this figure rose to 91%.

Singaporeans, accustomed to low crime within the city-state, were also the least more likely to say gun violence is less of an issue within the U.S. than it has been up to now (3%).

Half of those surveyed said they’d been to the United States. But a previous visit did not allay Singaporeans' concerns about gun violence to the identical extent as those of other nationalities. About 25% of all respondents said a previous visit had helped address their concerns, but only 4% in Singapore said they were “much more likely to visit again as my concerns about gun violence have lessened.”

More than 1 / 4 of respondents said the end result of the U.S. presidential election would affect their intentions to go to the country, while 49% said it could.

About 23% said they’d be less more likely to visit if Donald Trump wins; 9% said the identical if Kamala Harris were elected.

Another 5% said they’d reject a visit entirely if Trump wins, and a pair of% said the identical a few Harris win.

CNBC Travel has reached out to each campaigns for comment but has not yet heard back from either candidate.

More than two-thirds of respondents said they’d heard of “migrant crime,” a term coined by Trump and praised as a part of his anti-immigrant stance. However, data from major city police departments show no evidence of a wave of crime by migrants within the country.

However, about 27% of Southeast Asians said it was a “major issue that significantly affects my decision to visit the United States.”

Southeast Asians also expressed significant concerns about being victims of physical violence within the United States due to their race.

Nearly three in 4 travelers said they were “very” or “somewhat” frightened about experiencing racist violence, with Filipino respondents (81%) feeling probably the most concern. Only 4% of Southeast Asians said within the survey that they were under no circumstances frightened about physical violence within the country.

Respondents showed similar levels of concern about being the victim of racial verbal abuse.

Many Southeast Asians said the specter of physical and verbal abuse had increased because the Covid-19 pandemic, with two-thirds agreeing it was a “much bigger problem” or “slightly bigger problem than before.”

Overall, only 11% said these problems had decreased because the pandemic.

Southeast Asians said social media (61%) was their top source of data about safety and crime within the United States, followed by international news (55%).

“Countries that rely more heavily on these sources often show greater concern,” the senator told Milieu Insight. “The Philippines, where 66% rely on social media, shows the greatest concern about racial violence.”