Researchers find 42% drop in Canadians visiting US metro areas amid Trump 2.0

[Eugene]

Source: The Guardian

Researchers find 42% drop in Canadians visiting US metro areas amid Trump 2.0

Data from University of Toronto suggests Canadians are avoiding US cities during the second Trump administration

Anna Betts
Mon 11 May 2026 11.00 BST
Last modified on Mon 11 May 2026 11.02 BST

A new research tool that tracks cell phone activity has found a 42% drop in visitors from Canada to big metropolitan areas in the US that is much higher than official border-crossing data, suggesting Canadians during the second Trump administration are avoiding US cities in particular.

Researchers from the University of Toronto said the tool showed a “year-over-year median decline of approximately 42% in Canadian visits to US metropolitan areas – significantly higher than official border-crossing data, which showed a roughly 25% decline”.

The economies of US border towns reliant on Canadian traffic have been slammed as their northerly neighbours think twice about travelling to the US, put off by immigration enforcement operations and border crackdowns, and anger at Donald Trump’s tariffs and his threats of making Canada “the 51st state”.

But the researchers said that their data also showed steep declines in Canadian visitors to cities, in states such as New York, New Hampshire and Vermont. It also found declines to major tourist destinations such as Las Vegas and Walt Disney World, and to winter recreation areas, including in Florida – typically a central destination for overwintering Canadians.

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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/11/canadians-visiting-us