Fewer Canadians in eastern Ontario making trips to the U.S.

Travellers wait for flights at the Ottawa International Airport on Feb. 19, 2025. (Dave Charbonneau/CTV News Ottawa)

As tensions with the United States continue on, new data from Statistics Canada shows that the number of Canadians in eastern Ontario making trips to the U.S. continues to decline.

Statistics Canada says 127,156 Canadian residents returned from the U.S. to eastern Ontario in February, a decrease of more than 17,000 trips compared to 2025. In February 2025, Statistics Canada counted 144,225 trips and in February of 2024, the organization recorded 165,121 trips.

Travel to countries other than the U.S. rose in February, with Statistics Canada recording 38,957 trips from eastern Ontario to other countries, up from 31,917 in 2025 and 31,115 in 2024.

Statistics Canada says Canadian travel to the U.S. decreased by 12.5 per cent compared to last year.

“In February 2026, Canadian residents returned from 2.0 million trips to the United States, representing a 12.5 per cent decrease from the same month a year earlier and marking the 14th consecutive month of year-over-year decline,” Statistics Canada wrote in its bulletin.

• Return trips from U.S. to eastern Ontario drop by 250,000 in 2025

While fewer Canadians are travelling to the U.S., Statistics Canada data also shows that more Americans are travelling to Canada. In February, 56,862 U.S. residents entered eastern Ontario, up from 48,648 in 2025 and 51,486 in 2024.

Statistics Canada says the total number of trips to Canada by U.S. residents has increased by 5.9 per cent year over year.

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