The US Just Lost Their Biggest Tourism Market - Here's How Canada Can Respond
The USA's biggest tourism market just disappeared.
Reported by the Globe and Mail: Canadian vehicle crossings to the US dropped for the first time since the pandemic, with 48% of Canadians saying they're less likely to visit in 2025.
Here's the opportunity: Canadians made 20.4M US visits last year and were 25% of Florida's international visitors. That's billions in tourism dollars ready to be reinvested in Canadian workers, businesses, and communities.
Recently Canadians have begun rethinking think about travel south. COVID started it, but now rising costs and political tension are accelerating it. Those billions in tourism dollars aren't vanishing - they're looking for new destinations right here at home.
The current wave of national pride is a massive opportunity for Canadian tourism:
🍁 We can keep billions in domestic tourism dollars in Canada
🌎 Our reputation for safety means more global visitors choosing Canada over the USA
💪 An opportunity to bolster our still hurting local tourism businesses and create better jobs
At my business, Go Tours Canada, we learned during the pandemic (and honestly, the hard way) that adaptability wins. That's why we're now looking at pursuing bus tours and school groups that traditionally head south. With tourism dollars shifting, the timing is right to show these groups what they've been missing in their own backyard.
Here's what happens when tourism dollars stay in Canadian communities:
Local businesses can create year-round jobs
Tourism workers earn enough to actually live in tourist areas
Small towns and Indigenous tourism operators see more visitors
Canadian experiences get the attention they deserve
Tariffs and an unfriendly neighbor don't mean the end of Canadian tourism. Instead, this is our chance to build truly global and more resilient.
And to my American friends - you're always welcome to come understand what makes us an incredible, unique, and independent nation.
From our cities to Indigenous tourism experiences, and East Coast kitchen parties, our door is open. But don't be surprised that more Canadians are exploring their own backyard in 2025.
Original short-form posted on LinkedIn.