Occasionally in your job as a journalist, you find yourself having to retrace your steps to something you wrote in the dim or recent past. The joy of the internet is that everything which emerges from your laptop can be hauled back into the daylight, and reappraised.

Eight months ago, I penned an opinion piece which looked at Donald Trump’s increasingly unstoppable progress towards the Republican party nomination, and asked whether his particularly coarse and unpleasant brand of politics (I think that’s the simplest way to describe it this morning) would deter people from taking a holiday in the USA.

It is a question that is surely worth asking again, now that the US election result is at the top of just about every conceivable news agenda – and now that the man who was once an implausible outside candidate for the most powerful job on the planet is going to become the 45th president of the United States. You can find the original article here.

The gist of my argument was that was that a travel destination should not be judged on the quality and suitability of its leader and government. That it should be considered on the beauty of its scenery, the vibrancy of its cities, the grandeur of its mountains, the softness of its beaches, the fineness and variety of its food, the friendliness of its people.

I must admit that, when I produced these words eight months ago, I didn't believe that Donald Trump would be heading for the White House on this damp November morning. Some may find this a reason to be cheerful. Many are finding it a reason to be terrified.

Already, the murmurs have started. Airline comparison website Cheapflights.co.uk has reported a steady decline in searches for America since the battle for the White House began in earnest – which may be a sign that the incoming commander-in-chief is not to a lot of British travellers’ tastes.

Has the Big Apple lost a little of its lustre? Credit: © Sean Pavone / Alamy Stock Photo/Sean Pavone / Alamy Stock Photo

Or it may be that would-be tourists are sick of the bickering that has defined a thoroughly nasty campaign – or simply that people are not considering a long weekend in New York when the weather there is so cold and blustery.

“It’s too early to say what the long term effect on travel to the USA will be following this morning’s news – there are a lot of variables in play,” says Cheapflights’ Andrew Shelton. And he’s right.

He goes on to add that “we know that the USA is perennially the most popular long-haul destination for British holidaymakers, with New York being the most searched-for city in the world – but the reality of a Trump White House may drive further uncertainty.

It could mean that Britons delay booking their Stateside holidays until the dust settles – or even consider switching to an alternative destination, such as Canada.”

A coup d'etat didn't stop us visiting the Maldives Credit: Fyle - Fotolia

I’m not sure about the second point here – Canada is a fine and fascinating country, but I cannot envisage it replacing the USA in British travel affections.

America is no less beautiful this morning Credit: Kris Wiktor/Kris Wiktor

But the point about growing uncertainty is a prescient one. The world will watch America with caution in the next few weeks and months – and if Trump’s rhetoric about tougher borders and (even) tighter security comes into play, it will undoubtedly have an effect on the country’s image as a holiday option.

After all, who, planning a fortnight on the beach as a source of relaxation, really wants to factor in a two-hour session of queuing and questions at the airport – let alone darker, disgusting queries about why the colour of their skin or the religion they subscribe to makes them a suitable figure to be allowed to visit the country?

Is there room for one more?

Early statistics suggest an impact. A survey of British customers conducted just before the election by low-cost holiday website Travelzoo.com saw one in five respondents say they would "definitely" not consider the USA as a destination should Trump be elected, with a further one in nine mitigating their disapproval to warning that they would "probably" not visit under a Trump presidency.

With some 3.8million Britons journeying to the USA every year, these percentages would equate to a sizeable decline in UK tourist traffic to the USA. Joel Brandon-Bravo, the UK managing director for Travelzoo, suspects that this will happen.

"Following confirmation of a win for Donald Trump in the presidential election today, we are now forecasting an unstable 2017 for US tourism, with over one million UK travellers set to reconsider the country as a holiday destination," he advises.

We ran a poll with the original feature, asking: “Does Donald Trump put you off visiting America?” The result came in as a pretty even split between “Yes” (34 per cent) and “No, the person in charge makes no difference to me” (32 per cent). We are running a new poll today (see above), asking the same question. It will be interesting to see if the numbers have changed.

But does the basic thrust of the original article still hold water? In my opinion, it does. If we only ever venture to places where the politicians are to our liking, we will never cross our own doorsteps.

The Maldives underwent a coup d’etat in March 2012 which saw the ousting of a democratically elected president – but this does not seem to have damaged the islands’ reputation as a haven for beach bliss, nor even have encroached on many holidaymakers’ knowledge of the archipelago nation. Trump can at least claim a mandate.

There is an element of gritted teeth to saying this today, but the USA is no worse a travel destination today than it was yesterday, or than it will be in November 2020 or January 2025.

The Grand Canyon is as wide and magnificent as ever, the San Francisco skyline still an architectural wonder, the bars of Brooklyn unwaveringly chic, Route 66 still a meandering road-trip ribbon across the landscape, Colorado still a snowy oasis for skiers.

Travel really does broaden the mind – and the world could use some broadening today.

Of course, if Mr Trump does plan to build a giant wall along the Mexican border then Big Bend National Park – where the Rio Grande swerves between towering walls of rock as it separates the two countries, and is pretty much the most spectacular thing in all Texas – will be destroyed. And who knows what ambitions he might have for Mount Rushmore?