Canadian travel to the U.S. slumps 25%, costing U.S. tourism billions

Canadian travel to the U.S. hits record low

Statistics Canada reports a ↓ 25% drop in cross‑border trips in 2025, the sharpest sustained decline since 1972. The dip translates into ↓ C$3.3 billion in lost leisure spending, shaving the total Canadian outbound outlay on U.S. visits to C$18.8 billion from C$22.1 billion a year earlier. Travel sentiment shifted abruptly after the 2025 U.S. administration adopted “America First” policies, prompting many Canadians to reroute vacations toward domestic destinations or overseas alternatives.

“The 7.1 million fewer trips were largely replaced by 5 million extra domestic journeys and 1.3 million more overseas excursions,” a Statistics Canada spokesperson said.

Key figures: 11 consecutive months of year‑over‑year decline, the longest since the pandemic; Canadian overseas leisure spending rose C$3.6 billion to C$22.8 billion, now just under half of total foreign travel outlays. Early 2026 data suggest a modest rebound, driven by road trips, while air travel lags. Reuters and Bloomberg note that the U.S. tourism sector will look to other source markets, including the upcoming World Cup, to offset the shortfall.