Trump travel ban shifting Mideast, Muslim travellers away from U.S. to Asia, Africa, Eastern Europe – Irhal.com

Photo: A protester outside the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals courthouse, while the court hears arguments regarding President Donald Trump’s temporary travel ban, in San Francisco, California, USA, February 7th, 2017.  Vinzow / Shutterstock, Inc.

For the first time in five years no U.S. city is among the top 25 on travellers’ wish list, according to Irhal.com, a Middle East and Muslim traveller-focused online site offering destination guides in English and Arabic.

Irhal attributes this shift to the attempts by President Donald Trump to restrict entry into the U.S. of citizens from a handful of Muslim-majority countries, citing security concerns. Trump's first executive order in January following his presidential inauguration was blocked by U.S. courts. He signed a revised version in March that will face a new round of challenges from some U.S. states, including Hawaii, next month. 

In February, Irhal CEO Irfan Ahmad told Salaam Gateway that the behaviour of about 18,000 site users from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region in the five days following the announcement of Trump's travel restrictions did not show any immediate impact on future travel plans. 

However, the site's analysis of user search from January to April 15 has revealed what it considers an impact, of Trump's travel restrictions, on Middle East travellers. 

Irhal’s analysis of 150,000 visitors to its site during this three and a half-month period reveal that short-haul destinations were most popular for Middle East users, with Amman, Beirut, Bahrain, Doha, and Dubai making up the top 5 cities or countries of interest.

The site also reported that Asian destinations are growing in popularity, led by Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, South Korea, Thailand, Philippines, and Japan.

The site’s users are also increasingly looking at African destinations Nairobi, Dar es Salaam, Casablanca and Tunis.

European cities continue to figure in Irhal’s top 25 searched cities and new favourites are attracting Irhal users – Prague, Vienna, Budapest, Dubrovnik, Tblisi, and Zell am See.

Irhal receives up to 1.5 million monthly visitors, according to CEO Irfan Ahmad.

The site's Top 25 cities by user interest January 1 – April 15, 2017 comprise 14 in the Middle East, 8 in Europe (includes Turkey), 2 in Asia, and 1 in Sub-Saharan Africa.

1. Amman
2. Beirut
3. Bahrain
4. Doha
5. Dubai
6. Kuwait
7. Casablanca
8. Mecca
9. Athens
10. Medina
11. Paris
12. Sharjah
13. Tehran
14. New Delhi
15. Barcelona
16. Rome
17. Nairobi
18. Muscat
19. Prague
20. Tunis
21. Cairo
22. Madrid
23. Maldives
24. Istanbul
25. Amsterdam

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