Canadians, angered by U.S. tariffs and Trump administration talk of turning their country into a 51st state, really do appear to be boycotting the United States. Ticket sales for travel in summer, a crucial season for the industry, are down 21 percent compared with last year.
The decline in Canadian travelers, who make up roughly a quarter of all foreign visitors, is enough by itself to threaten tourism-oriented businesses in Florida, New York, Maine and other popular destinations.
Sometimes, however, the link between politics and personal travel decisions appears unmistakable. Since President Trump stepped up his hostility toward Canada, border crossings have plummeted.
Unlike air travel, land travel often isn’t planned months in advance, so changes reflect a change in sentiment more quickly. Crossings from Canada dropped sharply after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau urged Canadians to “choose Canadian products and services rather than American ones” on Feb. 1.
Traffic at two of the busiest crossings, near Niagara Falls, fell 42 percent in March compared with 2024. And traffic at a busy crossing point between Vancouver and Seattle fell 48 percent.
Glad they look at just non-canadian numbers here. I will, once again, point out the stupidly large amount of money Canadians spend on tourism in the states -
>The U.S. Travel Association (USTA) said in February that a 10 percent reduction in tourism from Canada could put 140,000 jobs at risk and result in $2.1 billion in lost spending. Forbes said that, using that calculation, a decline of 30 percent in Canadian visitors would cost the U.S. economy $6 billion in losses.
Imagine what that would do if spent in Canada.
We’re going to find out this summer.
I expect the well known tourist destinations here to be packed.