Who’s Still Crossing: Canada’s Holdout Travelers

U.S. trade policies and political rhetoric spurred a travel boycott from Canada, but a new federal report shows it wasn’t enough to keep every traveler away.

About 16 million Canadians visited the U.S. last year. That’s down about 21% from 2024, led by a sharp 30% pullback from land arrivals compared to an 11% dip in visitors by air. The drop was big enough to allow Mexico to take over as the U.S.’ No. 1 source market with nearly 18 million arrivals last year.   

But land arrival data released by the federal government this week shows certain Canadian travelers proved to be more resilient. 

A larger share of Canadians crossing the border are drawn to the U.S. for obligations like family visits and business, with family units, solo travelers, and those traveling with a business associate growing as a percentage of total trips. Meanwhile, vacationers pulled back and people traveling with tour groups and friends thinned.