Canadian Tourists Have Cost The US $3 Billion With Travel Boycott
Source: Independent, J.R. Duren
Photo: Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, right, told President Donald Trump that Canada is “not for sale” after Trump alluded to Canada becoming the 51st state (AFP/Getty)
Canadians are boycotting the United States in record numbers thanks to President Donald Trump.
That boycott by our northern neighbors has cost $3.3 billion in tourism dollars to the U.S., according to a new report from the Canadian government.
Visits hit rock bottom in July, falling more than 30 percent year-on-year for the first time since the months following 9/11 terrorist attacks.
“The resulting 11-month streak of year-over-year declines was the deepest and most sustained on record for border crossings from the United States,” the report also noted.
The report pointed to Trump’s return to the White House and his ensuing tariffs on Canada as the catalyst for the drastic decline in travel to the U.S.
Canada’s costly pullback from U.S. travel continued through early 2026, indicating Canadians are embracing a “persistent shift” from visits to America, the study said.
Canadians have a widespread distaste for Trump’s rhetoric and policies toward Canada over the past 19 months, a survey last month from polling firm Pew Research Center revealed.
Overall, perceptions of the U.S.’s reliability have also plummeted since 2022. “In Canada, 83% described the U.S. as a reliable partner in 2022, compared with 35% today,” the Pew survey found.
Only 17 percent of Canadians support Trump’s tariffs against Canada, which have reached 50 percent on aluminum and steel, according to nonpartisan think tank EconoFact.
Policies aside, Trump’s rhetoric about The Great White North has done America’s tourism industry no favors. The U.S. president has on multiple occasions said he wants Canada to become the 51st first state.
After one such mention to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney at a White House meeting in May, Carney responded: “It’s not for sale. Won’t be for sale, ever.”
While Trump’s not-so-veiled desire seems outlandish, the president’s tariff strategy is having concrete impacts on the Canadian economy. Significant layoffs have taken place in regional auto parts manufacturers that rely on U.S. exports for business, the Bank of Canada noted in a 2025 analysis.
“Several Ontario auto parts and assembly plants have announced layoffs and production cuts, and manufacturing jobs are down 55,000 since January,” the analysis said. “More broadly, we’ve seen a big decline in employment in trade-sensitive sectors since the start of the year.”
Trump’s trade policies with Canada could cut the country’s gross domestic product by as much as 2.1 percent, according to a study by the Yale Budget Lab.
That shift represents a shift that represents a loss of at nearly $49 billion in gross domestic product, or around 69 billion Canadian dollars, according to data from international relief organization The World Bank Group.
The Independent is the world’s most free-thinking news brand, providing global news, commentary and analysis for the independently-minded. We have grown a huge, global readership of independently minded individuals, who value our trusted voice and commitment to positive change. Our mission, making change happen, has never been as important as it is today.