New data from Statistics Canada shows domestic travel increased by 3.3 per cent in July compared to the same month a year earlier as cross-border traffic into the United States declined.
With cross-border passenger traffic down 8.7 percent in July, the agency notes that this figure was “significantly lower than the same month in 2024,” which was 12.5 percent.
A decline of approximately 1 per cent was observed in July compared to the same time the previous year, with three of the largest airports recording losses in July 2026: Vancouver International (-4.5 per cent), Montreal/Pierre Elliott Trudeau International (-2.0 per cent) and Calgary International (-0.1 per cent).
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In addition, July 2024 The number of international passengers screened increased by 6.2 per cent as of July 2023, with cross-border passenger movement considered by Statistics Canada to be “fully recovered” at that time as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Canadians have begun traveling to the United States again after 15 months of consecutive travel declines due to tensions between neighboring countries, and April was the first month that U.S. travel saw an increase since January 2025.
The decline in travel saw Canadian spending on travel to the United States fall by $3.3 billion in 2025 amid the “Buy Canada” movement, with separate Statistics Canada data indicating that “Canadians shifted overseas leisure travel away from the United States (-21.5 per cent; -3.2 million visits) in favor of overseas options (+12.2 per cent; +1.1 million visits).”
In total, Canadian travel spending to the United States will reach $18.8 billion in 2025, while spending on travel abroad will reach $81.3 billion.
&Copy 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
