Creator Backlash Hits Travel: From the U.S. Open to Cruise Ships

Photo Credit: The National Anthem at Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, New York, Sunday, September 7, 2025, before the U.S. Open Men’s Championship. White House, Wikimedia Commons / Official White House Photo by Daniel Torok The U.S. Open was among the latest live tourism events to go all-in on content creators, nearly doubling credentials to nearly 100 for this year's tennis tournament. Some fans weren't happy. One TikTok with more than 750,000 views shows a woman posing in front of a ring light, the court and players acting as her backdrop. “Not an influencer light in the middle of a point,” text on the video reads. “You have to be joking.” Another group taking photos inside a hospitality suite was addressed by chair umpire Kader Nouni for disrupting a match: “Guys, please, in the suite behind me … please take your seat.” The event is a tourism draw for New York City: this year’s tournament drew more than one million attendees. The United States Tennis Association estimates that more than 40% of visitors are from outside the area with 8% from other countries, according to The New York Times. But some at the tournament and other touri