As Canadians cancel trips due to Trump, the U.S. tourism industry could lose billions [View all]

Source: NPR

March 6, 2025 5:02 AM ET


Leena Yousefi and her family typically visit Hawaii four or five times a year. The Vancouver attorney used to live in Maui and had booked another trip for this year.

But that was before President Trump, shortly after taking office in January, said he would impose 25% tariffs on many Canadian goods and repeated his wish to turn the country into the 51st U.S. state. "Obviously out of loyalty to Canada and our values and just holding our ground, we had to cancel," Yousefi said.

Her family was even considering buying a two-bedroom condo in Hawaii given how often they vacation there. "But now we're looking at Costa Rica," she said. The Trump administration's recent attacks on its northern neighbor have been met with confusion, frustration and anger by many Canadians, some of whom are now abandoning their trips south and boycotting travel to the U.S. in protest.

Tourism industry leaders say that could pose a major threat to the U.S. travel sector, which relies heavily on Canadian visitors. According to the U.S. Travel Association, Canadians are the largest group of foreign visitors to the U.S. annually and accounted for $20.5 billion in spending last year alone. Florida, California, Nevada, New York and Texas are the top U.S. states for Canadian tourists.

Read more: https://www.npr.org/2025/03/06/nx-s1-5316354/trump-tariffs-canadian-tourists