Canadian travellers increasingly exploring their home base and it’s costing Americans

Canadian travellers pulled hundreds of millions of dollars out of the United States in the first part of 2026, according to new data released by Statistics Canada.

The agency’s regular National Travel Survey released Tuesday showed Canadians cut back on trips, average visit length and spending on trips into the United States during the first three months of 2026, when compared to the same period a year prior.

Canadians made nearly 500,000 fewer trips into America and spent about $800 million less on those trips year over year, according to preliminary numbers gathered by Statistics Canada.

The spending total accounts for the total costs of the trips made between January and March, which includes money spent in Canada and on airfare for travel.

The data shows a continued decline in Canadian interest in U.S. travel, even before the latest round of trade tensions between the two countries.

“There’s nothing I really want to see in the States,” said Patti Page, an Ontario tourist travelling in St. John’s this week. “I’d rather see more of Canada.”

“I think we’re just wanting to support Canada and Canadian businesses and Canadian tourism,” said her travel partner Donna Richardson.

The National Travel Survey suggests that Canadian businesses are benefiting — spending on internal trips, within the country, increased to $14.5 billion in the first quarter of 2026, up from $13.8 billion in the same period for 2025.

That data includes business and leisure travel.

“Now, I’m just travelling Canada,” said Micheline Charette, a Quebec resident visiting Newfoundland and Labrador on Tuesday.

“I go to the Rockies, I go everywhere, Halifax, I’m travelling everywhere.”

There’s been an increase in in-country visits overall, which have benefited tourism operators in Newfoundland and Labrador and helped those business weather other high costs — like jumps in the cost of diesel and gasoline.

“More trips, which does help on the other side of the scale of things to balance it out,” said Luke Gatherall, who helps run the Gatherall’s boat tour company on Newfoundland’s Southern Shore.

“I think this year was a great year, things were really busy,” said Craig Foley, the CEO of Hospitality Newfoundland and Labrador. “We’ve heard that the season started very early. We’ve also…made a concerted effort around extending the shoulder season [as] we call it.”

There are also signs that despite Canadians turning away from their southern border, American visitors are still interested in crossing into Canada.

The National Travel Survey shows American visitors spent nearly $3 billion on visits to Canada between January and March 2026, an increase of about $500 million from the same period the year prior.

Some Canadian tourists say they’ve soured on U.S. travel long-term, and are unlikely to return so long as U.S. President Donald Trump remains in office.

“It’s not an age question, I’m fit,” said Charette, “It’s just Canada has so much to offer.”