Topline
Canadians intensified their U.S. travel boycott in July—cementing a massive economic loss for American tourism this year as visitors from all over the globe choose not to travel to the States.
The volume of Canadians taking road trips into the U.S.—the way most Canadians visit—dropped by 37% last month compared to July 2024, according to new data from Statistics Canada, following a 33% drop in June.
There was also a 26% decline in air travelers from Canada year-over-year.
July was the seventh consecutive month of steep declines in inbound Canadian travel, with double-digit year-over-year drops in both car and air travel to the U.S. every month since April.
Travel in the other direction is also down, though far less severely, with 7% fewer Americans having traveled to Canada by car in July compared to last year and a slight increase (0.7%) of Americans flying to Canada last month compared to a year ago.
In the first six months of 2025, Canadian travel to the U.S. was down 24% overall, according to Tourism Economics, a division of Oxford Economics—but that’s before factoring in the July numbers. It adds up to an enormous loss for U.S. tourism. In recent years, Canadian tourists have made up roughly one-quarter of all foreign travelers who come to the United States, according to the U.S. National Travel and Tourism Office , part of the Commerce Department. Last year, Canadian tourists vacationing in the U.S. spent $20.5 billion.
Unsurprisingly, U.S. states along the northern border—whose tourism industries are highly dependent upon Canadian visitors—saw the steepest declines in the first half of 2025. In the Pacific Northwest, Seattle (-27%) and Portland, Ore. (-18%) led the country in lost Canadian tourists, according to Tourism Economics data. The Great Lakes region also saw steep double-digit drops, including in Detroit (-17%), Cleveland and Buffalo (both -15%), Minneapolis (-14%), Columbus (-13%) and Indianapolis and Milwaukee (both -12%) suffering the biggest declines. In the East South Central U.S., Louisville (-16%) and Nashville (-14%) saw the largest drops in Canadian visitors. At least 20 city markets saw more than 10% fewer Canadian tourists from January through June, according to Tourism Economics.
Tourism Economics attributes the decline in US inbound arrivals to “the apparent negative consequence of a mix of Trump administration policies and statements that have shifted sentiment and raised concerns among many potential travelers,” including adversarial trade negotiations, statements challenging national sovereignty, and immigration and border security measures have attracted media attention and resulted in travel warnings by origin countries. While the recent announcement of a travel ban is expected to have a limited impact, it will add to “the perception of the U.S. as a less predictable and welcoming destination,” according to Tourism Economics’ latest report.
$1.8 billion. That’s how much in export revenue is lost for every 1% drop in international visitor spending, according to the U.S. Travel Association. If the downward trajectory continues through the end of the year, the country stands to lose at least $21 billion in travel-related exports.
Trump Administration: Some Foreign Tourists Must Post Bond Of Up To $15,000 To Enter U.S. (Forbes)