As Americans flock to Canada, a major travel trend is fully reversed

While President Donald Trump eventually dialed back earlier rhetoric around calling Canada “the 51st state” and former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau the “governor,” many Canadians continue to avoid any leisure travel to the U.S.

Airlines such as Air Canada (ACDVF) and WestJet have scaled back their service to many secondary U.S. cities amid a sudden downward spiral in demand, while travel agency Flight Centre (FGETF) calculated that business travel from Canada dropped by 40% in the early months of 2025.

What some initially saw as a temporary ebb due to high-profile news headlines has held steady as many Canadians continue to boycott their southern neighbor in response to the actions of the Trump administration.

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More Americans come to Canada than the other way around for the first time in history

The latest monthly report released by the Statistics Canada government branch recorded 1.8 million border crossings into Canada by car from Americans and only 1.7 million border crossings by Canadians in the other direction.

The number of Canadian return trips is a 36.9% decline from July 2024 and the first time in history that more Americans came into Canada than the other way around.

The number of travelers in each direction by both air and road was 6.3 million, down 15.6% from July 2024, amid both heightened tensions and a general decrease in travel spending power in both countries.

Many of the Americans who came to Canada for tourism in recent months were explicitly looking to support the country with their money amid President Trump's statements and tariffs.

“We booked a Montreal vacation in two weeks from Woodstock, New York!!!!” Neil Eisenberg wrote on social media platform Threads earlier this year. Americans in bordering and nearby states similarly reported booking getaways to British Columbia, Alberta and New Brunswick.

The number of Canadians who returned to the country from the U.S. by plane also fell by 25.8% in July 2025. The country has recently updated its travel advisory to make note of the administration's focus on border control and warn travelers that they need to “comply and be forthcoming in all interactions,” as acting otherwise could lead to them being “detained while awaiting deportation.”

The Kennebunkport Resort Collection in Maine launched a summer promotion for Canadian travelers.

Image source: Kennebunkport Resort Collection

An anti-Trump discount? Hotels are trying different things

Across the border, multiple resorts in states used to seeing high numbers of Canadian tourists have been looking for ways to woo those who may be on the fence about going amid a sudden dropoff in visitor numbers.

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The Kennebunkport Resort Collection in Maine and Campfire Hotel in Oregon's Cascade Mountains both launched promotions in which guests from Canada can score a discount and certain gifts and free perks on their stay throughout the summer.

Some states have also tried to attract Canadians at the highest levels available to them. In April 2025, California Governor Gavin Newsom published a video in which he said that “the Golden State and Canada have always shared so much in common” and urged Canadians to not to let their vacation plans be ruined because “you-know-who is trying to stir things up back in D.C.”