Following President Trump’s pointed rhetoric about Canada becoming the 51st state—and his implementation of steep tariff hikes—Canadians have started redirecting their vacation plans away from the US. What’s missed in the punch lines prompted by Trump’s 51st state talk is that Americans’ northerly neighbors represent its largest international visitor market, representing some $20.5 billion in spending each year. It’s no surprise that other countries are extending a warm welcome to Canadian tourists with hopes of cashing in.
Canadians are traveling more this summer than they did last year—just not to the US. According to data from Statistics Canada, the government’s data-crunching agency, they have logged 10% more flights to overseas countries in the first five months of 2025 than they did in 2024. In that same period, they also curbed their flights to the US by 20%. Car trips across the border have declined by 35%, leaving US border towns ravaged.
