Canada posts record tourist arrivals for 2018
Destination Canada announced another record-breaking year, welcoming 21.13 million travelers to Canada in 2018.
That equated to an economic impact of $102.5 billion and supports 745,000 jobs, the agency says.
Overnight arrivals to Canada from overseas not including the US reached an all-time high of 6.7 million in 2018.
"Canada’s tourism sector creates good jobs and supports middle-class families in every region of the country. Our government is determined to help this sector reach its full potential," said Mélanie Joly, minister of tourism.
China arrivals surpassed 700,000 for the first time, boosted by new visa application centres in China, although current geopolitical issues could hamper further growth.
China is Canada’s third largest source market.
More than 14 million US travelers visited Canada last year, the highest number since 2004.
"Destination Canada has aligned industry partners across the country when marketing Canada internationally to give Canada a competitive edge," said Ben Cowan-Dewar, chairperson of Destination Canada’s board of directors.
"These strong results reflect the passion and dedication of the thousands of Canadians who work in our tourism sector."
New flight routes and increased service to Canada grew by 6% in 2018, the agency said.
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Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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