Los Angeles’s iconic Hollywood district has seen tourism numbers fall off a cliff, sparking fears for the future of the beleaguered City of Angels. 

Visit California revealed tourist numbers slumped by 10 percent this summer, compared to the same period of 2024.

Businesses on Hollywood Boulevard reported that customer numbers had decreased by as much as 50 percent, sparking concerns that the area synonymous with movies and entertainment could face a significant downturn.

Multiple problems have been blamed for the downturn, according to the Los Angeles Times. 

Vast swathes of LA were decimated by wildfires in January. 

While Hollywood survived unscathed, the city has struggled to shake-off the perception that it is still filled with smoking ruins.

Riots against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in June saw dystopian images of left-wing agitators torching self-driving cars beamed across the world.

Those riots were confined to Downtown LA, a few miles from Hollywood. But the damage to the entire city’s reputation was severe. 

President Trump’s tariffs and threats to make Canada the 51st US state have also had a huge impact, with Canuck visitors particularly important to the local economy. 

Salim Osman, who works for exotic car rental company Ride Like A Star, said last year business was booming, but 2025 is a different story.

‘It used to be shoulder to shoulder out here,’ he said. ‘It’s a lot harder for people to come here, or they’re afraid of what’s going on here, so they just don’t come.’

Souvenir shop owners said they were forced to raise prices because of tariffs and a decline in sales.

‘Los Angeles is California’s primary international gateway; the impacts are felt statewide,’ Adam Burke, president of Los Angeles Tourism, told the newspaper.

Hollywood Boulevard is pictured in 2016. But there are now fears for the iconic district’s future after a sharp drop in visitor numbers  

A vagrant sleeps on the streets of Hollywood in January 2023 as a construction worker walks by. Los Angeles has suffered a series of reputational hits in recent months  

‘Looking ahead, long-term recovery will depend on global economic conditions and how the US is perceived abroad.’

In particular, Trump’s attacks on Canada ‘s economy and threats to make it the 51st state have infuriated Canadians, causing huge swaths of them to cancel their US vacations.

Visitors from Canada to Los Angles fell around 30 percent in June and July, according to the report.

‘We’ve hurt our Canadian Friends with actions that the administration has taken. It’s understandable,’ Palm Springs Mayor Ron deHarte said.

‘We don’t know how long they won’t want to travel to the States, but we’re hopeful that it is short-term.’ 

Cynthia Guidry, the director of the Long Beach Airport,  told the newspaper that reduced airline schedules and rising costs have impacted traffic and she is trying to find ways to improve business before the Olympics.

‘We’re focused on attracting new service, growing non-aeronautical revenue and managing expenses to stay resilient,’ she said.

Elsewhere in California, things are similarly grim. Yosemite National Park reported a decrease of 50 percent in bookings ahead of Memorial Day weekend.

Los Angeles’s Altadena neighborhood is pictured in February after it was destroyed by wildfires. While Hollywood survived unscathed, the blazes put tourists off visiting LA

A self-driving car is torched during anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) riots in June. These happened in Downtown LA, but gave a grim impression to prospective tourists considering visiting the city 

Homeless Angelinos sprawl across the iconic Hollywood Walk of Fame. Visitor numbers have slumped by 10 percent this summer, with no signs of a recovery 

Dennis Speigel, president of consulting firm International Theme Park Services, said this year has been difficult due to fewer international visitors and more people looking to save money.

‘People in the locales where the parks are stayed in their areas,’ he told the LA Times, adding more people are spending less on travel because ‘the general economy, the media, the tariffs, the confusion and the uncertainty that came with that.’

The latest tourism industry numbers from Los Angeles show it could be on the same collision course as dying Las Vegas.

Sin City has struggled throughout 2025 amid skyrocketing prices, falling rates of hotel stays and a lack of tourists to the Nevada party hub.

August recorded 4.56million passengers – an almost 6 percent drop compared to the same month last year, figures from Harry Reid International Airport shows.