Travel from Canada to U.S. took another hit in April: CBP, StatCan

Travel from Canada to the United States continued to drop in April, according to newly-released U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data, with overall volumes down 15 per cent year-over-year.

The figures — shared by the Association of Canadian Travel Agencies and Travel Advisors (ACTA) in a LinkedIn post — suggest rising political tensions are taking a visible toll on cross-border movement.

In total, 5.1 million travellers entered the U.S. from Canada in April 2025, compared to six million during the same month last year, CBP’s data shows.

The most dramatic decline occurred at land borders, where volumes dropped a staggering 26 per cent, falling from 3.9 million to 2.9 million.

The numbers point to mounting pressure on drive-market travel — a vital segment for tourism and trade between the two countries, especially in border communities.

Air travel fared better, seeing a modest increase of 4.6 per cent, reaching 2.2 million passengers.

Gains were primarily led by Halifax and Ottawa, which saw slight year-over-year improvements.

However, this was offset by declines at Canada’s largest air gateways: Toronto and Montreal. Edmonton registered the sharpest decline among western Canadian airports.

This latest CBP data includes all travellers entering the U.S. from Canada, regardless of nationality, and does not distinguish between Canadian, American, or foreign residents.

New from Statistics Canada

Statistics Canada paints a similar picture. 

According to preliminary StatCan data published Monday (May 12), the number of returning Canadian residents and non-residents to Canada by air and automobile fell for the third straight month to 4.5 million in April, down 15.2 per cent compared to the same time last year.

When it came to Canadian-resident return trips from the U.S. specifically by automobile, the number declined to 1.2 million in April, a steep decline of 35.2 per cent from the same period in 2024. It was also the fourth month in a row of year-over-year declines.

Meanwhile, Canadian-resident return trips from overseas countries increased in April to 1.3 million, showing a 9.9 per cent increase over last year. 

Background noise

U.S. President Donald Trump’s confrontational posture toward Canada has sparked widespread backlash north of the border, forcing some Canadians to rethink their U.S. travel plans.

According to a Longwoods International study of Canadians released on April 29, six in 10 adults are avoiding the U.S. because of U.S. President Donald Trump and his policies. 

The research also sheds light on trip cancellations. More than one-third (36 per cent) of those surveyed were planning to visit the U.S. in the next year, but have since cancelled.

Fewer believe the U.S. is “welcoming of visitors from their country” (42 per cent) and that America “values international visitors” (38 per cent).

Layered on top of the political unease is the weak Canadian dollar. For some Canadians, the cost of visiting the U.S. has simply become too high.

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