Tourist arrivals decline to Canada – and not only from the USA
Canada recorded its fourth consecutive monthly decline in May with total international overnight travelers down by 7% at 1.7 million. From January to May, total overnight arrivals reached 5.5 million, a decline of 6% according to the Canadian tourism data collective.
The obvious boycott of Canadian travelers to the USA (-15% by air and over -30% by car) is also matched by US travelers to their northern neighbor. However, US travelers reluctance is less severe. According to Canadian data, US overnight arrivals declined by 5% from January to May 2025 compared to the same period of last year. This represented a total of 3.8 million overnight arrivals. However, arrivals by land declined by 7% while arrivals by air were slightly up by 1%.
Nevertheless, USA inbound was not the only one to decline. Overnight arrivals from France, Germany and Mexico declined as well. The first two countries recorded a drop of 6% from January to May while Mexican arrivals collapsed by 18%. The UK and Australia showed no growth at all during the same period.
North Asia inbound remains the most resilient
Meanwhile, Northeast Asian markets were up from January to May 2025. China inbound grew by 4%, Japan by 6% and South Korea by 7%. The rest of the world (no details given) showed a worrying decline of 12%, translating into 824,900 arrivals.
Destination Canada explains that geopolitical uncertainties are the main reason for the current negative trend. The change in travel sentiment towards Canada may be part of a broader change in travel patterns, tells the tourism authority.
Tourism remains meanwhile an important economic sector for Canada. According to Destination Canada, in 2024, tourism was among the fastest growing sectors, contributing US$37.1 billion (C$50.8 billion) to Canada’s GDP. It accounted for 1.8% of overall GDP. It represents a 3.6% growth rate (inflation adjusted) from the previous year. Tourism consequently outpaces the national GDP growth rate of 1.7%.
TravelMole Editorial Team
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