Latest news with #McKenzieMcMillan
CBC
13-05-2025
- Sport
- CBC
Where are Canadian travellers heading to avoid the U.S.?
From sports fans to event organizers, many Canadians are still avoiding travelling to the United States. Travel consultant McKenzie McMillan joins Hanomansing Tonight to discuss the 'complete drop' in leisure travel to the U.S. from Canadians, and the trends he's seeing in fliers and airlines.
Daily Mail
12-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Canadians boycott $20B US industry
Canadians are continuing to boycott American vacations, and they're turning to the sunny beaches of Mexico instead. Many Canadians have enthusiastically joined a boycott of American goods and services following President Donald Trump's tariffs on Canadian goods and threats to annex the country into the '51st state.' Canadians have long been the top international travelers to the US, driving $20.5 billion in spending last year. But Canadian air travel to the US dropped by 13.5 percent in March compared to a year earlier, and those crossing the border by car fell by more than 30 percent, data from Statistics Canada revealed. By contrast, Canadian visits to Mexico rose by 15.6 percent in March compared to the same month last year, according to the Mexican Secretary of Tourism. 'I think they are choosing more friendly policies,' Mexico's tourism secretary Josefina Rodríguez Zamora told the Financial Times. Rodríguez said the recent turmoil created by the US has made Canada and Mexico - who always had a strong relationship - 'more like brotherhood.' Mexicans are also pulling back on travel to America , with flights down by almost a quarter last month compared to 2024, according to the US Department of Commerce. Travel adviser McKenzie McMillan told the FT his clients plan to swap their beach holidays in California and Florida for Cancún and Cabo as long as Trump is in the White House. McMillan said the trend is likely to continue as the Canadian boycott of the US is 'only intensifying.' The shift has led vacation hotspots such as Palm Springs to run campaigns to try and lure back the Canadian visitors businesses depend on. Airlines have been forced to switch tack by cutting flights to US destinations and increasing frequency to Mexican alternatives. Air Canada reported on Friday that its Canada to US routes have seen a 7 percent drop in the first quarter of the year. In response, the airline has cut back its earnings expectations for the whole year and announced a new nonstop flight to Guadalajara. The Montreal-based company said it would also increase the frequency of its flights to destinations such as Los Cabos and Puerto Vallarta over the winter. Many Canadians, known as snowbirds, once headed to warmer climates such as Florida and California for a reprieve from the harsh winters of the Great White North. However, disillusionment with their southern neighbors has even led some Canadians to sell their dream US vacation homes. Canadian users booked 27 percent more stays in Mexico on Airbnb between March 2024 and March 2025. Meanwhile bookings in the US from Canadians using the short-term let platform saw a 12 percent drop. 'Visitation to the United States is tacit approval of their policies,' one Canadian who recently cancelled a trip to the US wrote on Reddit. 'Why would I spend my dollars supporting a hostile regime that aims to destroy the lives of me and my family?' Another boycotter wrote: 'I am only too pleased to help contribute to the steep decline in their tourism industry, whatever the state or region may have voted for.' 'It's cheaper to go to Mexico most of the time,' a third agreed. Want more stories like this from the Daily Mail? Visit our profile page and hit the follow button above for more of the news you need.
Daily Mail
11-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Travel industry risks $21B hit as Canadians take revenge on '51st state' Trump by choosing Mexico over U.S.
Donald Trump 's trade war has seen Canadians swerving American destinations for the sunny beaches of Mexico. Angered by the President's tariffs and his threats to make Canada the 51st state, they've been enthusiastically boycotting all things American. And that has many south-of-the-border tourist hotspots worried - Canadians have long been the top foreign visitors to the U.S., pumping nearly $21 billion into the economy last year. In March Canadian air travel to the U.S. dropped by 13.5 per cent compared to a year earlier, and those crossing the border by car fell by more than 30 per cent, data from Statistics Canada revealed. By contrast, Canadian visits to Mexico rose by 15.6 per cent in March compared to the same month last year, according to the Mexican Secretary of Tourism. 'I think they are choosing more friendly policies,' Mexico's tourism secretary Josefina Rodriguez Zamora told the Financial Times. Rodriguez said the recent turmoil created by the U.S. has made Canada and Mexico - who always had a strong relationship - 'more like a brotherhood.' Mexicans are also pulling back on travel to America, with flights down by almost a quarter last month compared to 2024, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. Travel adviser McKenzie McMillan told the FT his clients plan to swap their beach holidays in California and Florida for Cancun and Cabo as long as Trump is in the White House. McMillan said the trend is likely to continue as the Canadian boycott of the U.S. is 'only intensifying.' The shift has led vacation hotspots such as Palm Springs to run campaigns to try to lure back the Canadian visitors businesses depend on. Airlines have been forced to switch tack by cutting flights to U.S. destinations and increasing frequency to Mexican alternatives. Air Canada reported on Friday that its Canada to US routes have seen a seven per cent drop in the first quarter of the year. In response, the airline has cut back its earnings expectations for the whole year and announced a new nonstop flight to Guadalajara. The Montreal-based company said it would also increase the frequency of its flights to destinations such as Los Cabos and Puerto Vallarta over the winter. Many Canadians, known as snowbirds, once headed to warmer climates such as Florida and California for a reprieve from the harsh winters of the Great White North. However, disillusionment with their southern neighbors has even led some Canadians to sell their dream U.S. vacation homes. Canadian users booked 27 per cent more stays in Mexico on Airbnb between March 2024 and March 2025. Meanwhile bookings in the U.S. from Canadians using the short-term let platform saw a 12 per cent drop. 'Visitation to the United States is tacit approval of their policies,' one Canadian who recently canceled a trip to the U.S. wrote on Reddit. 'Why would I spend my dollars supporting a hostile regime that aims to destroy the lives of me and my family?' Another boycotter wrote: 'I am only too pleased to help contribute to the steep decline in their tourism industry, whatever the state or region may have voted for.' 'It's cheaper to go to Mexico most of the time,' a third agreed.
Daily Mail
11-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Canadians gleefully boycott $20B a year US industry... and hand cash to America's rival instead
Canadians are continuing to boycott American vacations, and they're turning to the sunny beaches of Mexico instead. Many Canadians have enthusiastically joined a boycott of American goods and services following President Donald Trump's tariffs on Canadian goods and threats to annex the country into the '51st state.' Canadians have long been the top international travelers to the US, driving $20.5 billion in spending last year. But Canadian air travel to the US dropped by 13.5 percent in March compared to a year earlier, and those crossing the border by car fell by more than 30 percent, data from Statistics Canada revealed. By contrast, Canadian visits to Mexico rose by 15.6 percent in March compared to the same month last year, according to the Mexican Secretary of Tourism. 'I think they are choosing more friendly policies,' Mexico's tourism secretary Josefina Rodríguez Zamora told the Financial Times. Rodríguez said the recent turmoil created by the US has made Canada and Mexico - who always had a strong relationship - 'more like brotherhood.' Mexicans are also pulling back on travel to America, with flights down by almost a quarter last month compared to 2024, according to the US Department of Commerce. Travel adviser McKenzie McMillan told the FT his clients plan to swap their beach holidays in California and Florida for Cancún and Cabo as long as Trump is in the White House. McMillan said the trend is likely to continue as the Canadian boycott of the US is 'only intensifying.' The shift has led vacation hotspots such as Palm Springs to run campaigns to try and lure back the Canadian visitors businesses depend on. Airlines have been forced to switch tack by cutting flights to US destinations and increasing frequency to Mexican alternatives. Air Canada reported on Friday that its Canada to US routes have seen a 7 percent drop in the first quarter of the year. In response, the airline has cut back its earnings expectations for the whole year and announced a new nonstop flight to Guadalajara. The Montreal-based company said it would also increase the frequency of its flights to destinations such as Los Cabos and Puerto Vallarta over the winter. Many Canadians, known as snowbirds, once headed to warmer climates such as Florida and California for a reprieve from the harsh winters of the Great White North. During his second presidential term, Donald Trump has been particularly vocal about his plans to absorb Canada as an American state However, disillusionment with their southern neighbors has even led some Canadians to sell their dream US vacation homes. Canadian users booked 27 percent more stays in Mexico on Airbnb between March 2024 and March 2025. Meanwhile bookings in the US from Canadians using the short-term let platform saw a 12 percent drop. 'Visitation to the United States is tacit approval of their policies,' one Canadian who recently cancelled a trip to the US wrote on Reddit. 'Why would I spend my dollars supporting a hostile regime that aims to destroy the lives of me and my family?' Another boycotter wrote: 'I am only too pleased to help contribute to the steep decline in their tourism industry, whatever the state or region may have voted for.' 'It's cheaper to go to Mexico most of the time,' a third agreed.
CBC
26-02-2025
- CBC
Some Canadians opt not to travel to the U.S. in the wake of Trump's tariff threats
It's not just politicians hitting back at Trump's tariff threats. Many Canadians with travel plans for spring break are heading anywhere but south of the border. Travel consultant McKenzie McMillan says he first noticed a dip in U.S. requests when talk of tariffs started about three weeks ago.
