Canadian travel spending in U.S. fell by $3.3B in 2025 amid ‘Buy Canadian’ push

Canadian travel spending in the United States plummeted by $3.3 billion in 2025, a decline attributed to the 'Buy Canadian' movement and strained U.S.-Canada relations. New data from Statistics Canada reveals Canadians significantly reduced leisure travel to the U.S., with a 21.5% decrease in visits, opting instead for overseas destinations which saw a 12.2% increase.

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Canadians shifted outbound leisure travel away from the United States (-21.5 per cent; -3.2 million visits) in favour of overseas options (+12.2 per cent; +1.1 million visits).

Travel for visiting family and friends in the U.S. also saw a 9% drop. In total, Canadian spending on U.S. travel reached $18.8 billion in 2025, while overseas travel expenditure climbed to $81.3 billion. The "Buy Canadian" sentiment, fueled by U.S. trade disputes and President Donald Trump's rhetoric, prompted many Canadians to boycott U.S. travel.

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The United States has long been Canada’s primary international travel destination, partly because of its proximity and warmer climate.

However, a slight recovery began in April, with a 1.8% year-over-year increase in return trips from the U.S. for Canadian residents. This uptick was primarily driven by automobile travel, with 65% of these being same-day trips. The shift in travel patterns followed changes in the U.S. administration and its "America First" policies, which altered Canadians' travel plans.

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Following the change in the U.S. administration in early 2025 and the implementation of America First policies, Canadians’ travel plans shifted abruptly.

Air travel also reflected this trend, with passengers on flights to and from the U.S. falling 7.9% to 29.4 million in 2025. Airlines responded by canceling transborder routes and introducing new international services. Statistics Canada noted that 54% of Canadian-resident international travel in 2025 was for holiday and leisure purposes, with leisure-related visits to the U.S. alone decreasing by $2.2 billion.

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Leisure-related travel to destinations other than the United States was a driving force behind the $50 billion in tourism spending outside Canada in 2025.