StatCan: Canadian travel to the U.S. down 31% by car, 19% by air

Transborder travel continued to weaken in December, with a sharp drop in the number of trips Canadian residents made to and from the United States, according to Statistics Canada.

Canadians made 1.3 million automobile return trips from the United States last month, a decline of 30.7 per cent compared with the same period in 2024, according to Statistics Canada’s monthly travel figures, which were released Monday (Jan. 12).

That total was unchanged from November, when cross-border car travel was down 28.6 per cent year over year. December’s results extended the trend to 12 straight months of annual declines.

Air travel from the U.S. also continued to fall, with Canadian return trips dropping 18.7 per cent in December to 470,700.

In contrast, return air travel from overseas destinations rose 10.4 per cent to 1.1 million trips.

Overall, Canadians returned from 1.6 million international air trips, a marginal decrease of 0.1 per cent from a year earlier.

U.S. residents likewise cut back on travel to Canada. In December, they made 981,800 trips by car, down nine per cent year over year and marking the 11th consecutive monthly decline.

Air travel by U.S. visitors also fell, slipping 8.9 per cent.

Taken together, total international arrivals to Canada by air and automobile — including returning Canadians and foreign visitors — reached 4.6 million in December, representing a 12.7 per cent decrease from December 2024 and the 11th straight month of year-over-year declines.

Non-Canadian arrivals by air totalled 752,700, down 1.1 per cent from a year earlier.

Statistics Canada said the overall drop reflected fewer U.S.-resident arrivals, which fell 8.9 per cent, partially offset by a 6.6 per cent increase in arrivals from overseas countries.

A new report from congressional Democrats found that a drop in Canadian tourism is hurting U.S. businesses in border states, blaming factors such as President Donald Trump’s threats to turn Canada into the 51st state, tariffs on Canadian products, and unpredictable, stop-and-start trade talks.

“In 2024, Canadian tourism contributed $20.5 billion to the U.S. economy and supported 140,000 American jobs. The negative impacts of President Trump’s tariff policies have been particularly stark in states along the U.S.-Canada border, which have many businesses that rely on short-term visits by Canadians,” the report by the Joint Economic Committee Minority said.

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