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Economic News

Canadians’ Travel to the US Fell for the Fifteenth Consecutive Month

May 21, 2026
Kari Norman
Senior Economist

Highlights

  • The number of Canadian-resident return trips from the US dropped 6.4% year over year in March, while US residents travelling to Canada increased 4.4% y/y.
  • At the same time, the number of Canadian residents returning from trips overseas climbed 3.5% y/y, and overseas arrivals to Canada rose 5.6% y/y. Table 1 summarizes key travel indicators.

Comments

The number of Canadians returning from trips to the US continued to decline, falling 6.4% in March, marking the fifteenth consecutive year-over-year decrease. By comparison, visits to Canada from the US grew 4.4%, suggesting that inbound travel from the US remained resilient (graph 1). Visitors from Europe and Asia accounted for the bulk of non-US travellers to Canada. Year to date, the over one million fewer Canadian trips to the US was only partly offset by an increase of 286,000 in overseas travel, as compared the first three months of 2025.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, the contraction in Canadian travel to the US was concentrated in overnight trips. While day trips south of the border increased slightly from a year ago, they remain well below pre-tension norms. Some of these remaining day trips likely reflect routine cross-border commuting by Canadians living in border communities.

Regional patterns in the first quarter of 2026 remain mixed. Ontario continued to receive the largest share of international visitors, though outbound travel by Ontarians still exceeded inbound travel flows (graph 2). Quebec showed a similar imbalance, with more residents travelling abroad than foreign visitors arriving. In British Columbia, flows were closer to parity, with inbound visitors modestly exceeding outbound.

Implications

The sustained pullback in cross border travel is reshaping Canada’s tourism landscape. Our recent research External link. shows that strong domestic travel intentions are expected to keep a larger share of tourism spending within Canada throughout the 2026 summer season. This reallocation, combined with longer stays and higher per-trip spending, should continue to support the tourism industry.

Major events, including the FIFA World Cup, are also expected to provide incremental support to inbound and domestic travel flows. Despite higher fuel costs and ongoing Canada–US policy uncertainty in the background, the sector enters the peak season on solid footing, with domestic demand continuing to anchor growth.

NOTE TO READERS: The letters k, M and B are used in texts, graphs and tables to refer to thousands, millions and billions respectively. IMPORTANT: This document is based on public information and may under no circumstances be used or construed as a commitment by Desjardins Group. While the information provided has been determined on the basis of data obtained from sources that are deemed to be reliable, Desjardins Group in no way warrants that the information is accurate or complete. The document is provided solely for information purposes and does not constitute an offer or solicitation for purchase or sale. Desjardins Group takes no responsibility for the consequences of any decision whatsoever made on the basis of the data contained herein and does not hereby undertake to provide any advice, notably in the area of investment services. Data on prices and margins is provided for information purposes and may be modified at any time based on such factors as market conditions. The past performances and projections expressed herein are no guarantee of future performance. Unless otherwise indicated, the opinions and forecasts contained herein are those of the document’s authors and do not represent the opinions of any other person or the official position of Desjardins Group.