Number of Canadians returning from U.S. trips down again in May: StatCan

Canadian and U.S. flags fly atop the Peace Arch monument at the Douglas-Peace Arch border crossing in Surrey, B.C., Monday, Nov. 8, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

OTTAWA — Canadians continued to avoid making trips to the U.S. in May, according to preliminary data from Statistics Canada.

Statistics Canada said Tuesday return trips by Canadian residents by air from the U.S. in May fell 24.2 per cent compared with a year ago to 488,800, even as return trips from overseas countries rose 9.8 per cent to 1.1 million.

Meanwhile, Canadian resident return trips from the U.S. by automobile totalled 1.3 million, down 38.1 per cent compared with May 2024, to mark the fifth consecutive month of year-over-year declines.

Canadians have boycotted travel to the U.S. in response to President Donald Trump’s tariffs and “51st state” threats over the past few months.

The response has affected the airlines, which have moved to reduce capacity to the U.S. in response to the lower demand.

In March, Air Canada reduced flights by 10 per cent to Florida, Las Vegas and Arizona, while rivals WestJet, Flair Airlines and Air Transat also made similar moves.

Air Canada cut its financial forecast for the year last month amid the lower U.S. demand.

The Montreal-based airline has said Canadians’ appetite for travel has shifted partly to domestic destinations, but also Europe as well as Asia and Australia.

According to the preliminary figures Tuesday, Statistics Canada said international arrivals in May, including returning Canadian residents and non-residents combined, by air and automobile totalled 4.8 million, down 16.7 per cent from May 2024.

Non-resident arrivals to Canada by air totalled 894,200 in May, down 1.3 per cent from a year ago. The number of U.S. residents arriving by air totalled 439,800, down 0.3 per cent from a year ago, while the number of overseas residents arriving slipped 2.3 per cent to 454,500.

The number of U.S.-resident trips to Canada by automobile was 1,044,700, down 8.4 per cent from a year ago, to make it the fourth consecutive month of year-over-year declines, Statistics Canada said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 10, 2025.