Tourism Gains Momentum as U.S. Visits to Canada Jump 13%

By Tahani Elghazaly
Published July 24, 2026

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Canada’s tourism sector recorded a strong improvement in May, as the number of trips made by United States residents to Canada rose by 13% compared with the same month in 2025.

According to Statistics Canada, U.S. residents made approximately 2.2 million trips to Canada during May 2026, marking the fourth consecutive month of year-over-year growth in arrivals from the United States.

Road travel remained the most popular way for Americans to enter Canada. About 1.3 million arrivals were recorded by automobile, an increase of 13.6% from a year earlier. More than half of those crossings were same-day trips.

Air arrivals also increased, rising by 6% to approximately 510,000 visitors. Cruise travel recorded the strongest percentage growth, with the number of U.S. residents arriving aboard cruise ships jumping 24.5% to nearly 244,900 passengers.

Overall, Canada welcomed approximately 2.89 million non-resident visitors in May, representing an annual increase of 11.4%. The figures indicate renewed momentum in cross-border tourism and stronger demand for Canadian destinations as the summer travel season begins.

Tourism from countries outside the United States also improved. Canada received approximately 665,300 overseas visitors during May, up 6.2% from the same month last year. Visitors from Europe and the Americas, excluding the United States, were the main contributors to the increase.

The United Kingdom, India and France were Canada’s three largest overseas tourism markets during the month, together accounting for more than 30% of all overseas arrivals.