"The law hasn't changed, but the temperature has," said Evan Oshan, a civil rights lawyer and managing partner at Oshan & Associates. "When federal officers feel empowered to push every boundary of their existing authority, that is a policy change – it just doesn't require an act of Congress."

A combination of anti-American sentiment caused by some of President Trump's policies, along with long waits that some travellers are still experiencing at many US airports, has caused some travellers to weigh whether now is the time to visit the US. Johan Konst, who runs a public relations firm in Amsterdam, typically flies to the US three or four times a year for conferences and meetings. He says he is still planning to go, but he is more selective about when.

"The current situation seems to treat Europe more as an opponent than an ally, whether it's the tariffs, the NATO rhetoric or the broader tone towards European countries," he said. "That shift in dynamic is what makes you feel less welcome, even if no individual American has ever made me feel that way in person."

Konst said the feeling alone has been enough to change his habits. "I now find myself weighing which trips are truly necessary and which aren't," he said. "I'm more selective than before, since I can also work remote." He added that flights from Amsterdam to the US have been noticeably emptier in recent months. "I have had an empty row to myself multiple times in a row."

Anita Shreider, who lives in Germany and is the chief marketing officer at rental platform Bikes Booking, is also still planning a US trip this year, combining business meetings with sightseeing in Chicago and a trip to see the giant sequoias along the West Coast. Still, she said she understands why some travellers are pulling back.

"I have acquaintances who decided to call off their summer trips to the US because they disagree with the country's actions on the global stage," she said. For those who cancelled, "it wasn't really about specific policy changes, it was more a general unease. They just didn't feel comfortable travelling to the US right now."

Some US-based tour operators say that once international visitors arrive, they report being surprised at what they find. "People are arriving expecting friction, but instead of craziness, [they] find a system, while far from perfect, [that] is very navigable," said Paul Whitten, Founder and Historian at Nashville Adventures. "Do your paperwork early, and build a buffer time to travel. The difference between a stressful trip and a great one usually comes down to how prepared you are, not the policies itself."

Oshan agrees, and recommends international travellers carry documentation showing their purpose of travel, and that they know their rights before they board. "While CBP (US Customs and Border Patrol) has broad authority at the border, you retain constitutional protections once on US soil," he said. "Those rights are worth asserting and, when violated, worth litigating."

Erik Hansen, head of government relations for the US Travel Association (the lobby group for America's travel industry), said that the nation's travel industry recognises it needs to close the gap between what travellers fear and what they will actually experience on the ground. Yet, he also noted that many airports have rolled out expedited customs processes that have shortened queues for international arrivals, while some have implemented a shoes-on security process to keep lines moving quickly.

Whitten agrees. "Policies adjust, but they are often not indicators of massive cultural change, at least not sweeping changes that will affect the average traveller's experience day to day," he said. "Ultimately, at the end of the day, the US is still one of the most accessible and welcoming destinations in the world."

For now, the gap between official reassurance and traveller unease remains unresolved. TSA officials have warned that it takes four to six months to train new officers, meaning the World Cup could arrive before staffing fully recovers. The government shutdown has no resolution in sight, and the ongoing US-Israeli war with Iran that is fuelling anxieties and pushing up flight costs shows no sign of easing.

For Konst, the pull of the US remains strong, even as the signals around it grow more complicated. "I still love the US and the American people," he said. "It's just the [policies] that makes me reconsider flying there as much as I used to." (BBC)