Leading indicator of international arrivals to Canada, May 2023
Released: 2023-06-12
Highlights
In May, the number of international arrivals to Canada—non-resident trips and returning Canadian-resident trips—continued to increase from May 2022, but, for most indicators, has not yet reached the number of arrivals recorded in May 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.
In May 2023, in Canadian airports equipped with electronic sensors, the number of non-resident arrivals totalled 774,000 (+52.5% from May 2022), while the number of trips by Canadian residents returning from abroad reached 1.5 million (+34.0% from May 2022).
Meanwhile, US-resident trips to Canada through land ports with electronic sensors totalled 1.0 million in May 2023, a year-over-year increase of 64.1%. The number of Canadian-resident return trips from the United States via the same land ports also increased (+35.7%) in May, to 1.9 million trips.
To further explore current and historical data in an interactive format, please visit the Frontier Counts: Interactive Dashboard.
COVID-19 travel advisories
On May 5, 2023, the World Health Organization declared that COVID-19 is now an established and ongoing health issue which no longer constitutes a public health emergency of international concern. There are currently no public health-related travel advisories to Canada in effect.
Non-resident trips to Canada by air
Non-resident arrivals from overseas countries (404,000) and the United States (370,000) at Canadian airports equipped with primary inspection kiosks (PIKs) totalled 774,000 in May, over one and a half times the 507,600 trips recorded in May 2022.
Since June 2021, the number of non-resident arrivals by air also includes Toronto Pearson International Airport Terminal 1, which makes up a sizeable portion of total arrivals (see Note to readers). When numbers from Toronto Pearson International Airport Terminal 1 are excluded from the totals, Canadian airports in May 2023 recovered over four-fifths (89.4%) of their 2019 pre-pandemic volume of non-resident arrivals, up from the 86.2% recovery rate observed in April 2023.
Chart 1
Non-resident trips to Canada by commercial aircraft, May, 2019 to 2023
US-resident trips to Canada by automobile
In May 2023, US residents took 1.0 million trips to Canada, crossing by automobile through land ports equipped with the automated Integrated Primary Inspection Line (IPIL) application. This was over one and a half times the number of trips taken in May 2022 (619,200) and over four-fifths (83.4%) the number of arrivals by automobile during the same month in 2019. This was down from the 87.1% recovery rate observed in April 2023.
Chart 2
United States-resident trips to Canada by automobile, May, 2019 to 2023
Canadian-resident return trips by air
In May 2023, the number of Canadian-resident return trips from abroad through airports equipped with PIKs was 1.5 million, increasing 34.0% from the number of arrivals recorded in May 2022 (1.1 million).
Again, the figure for May 2023 includes arrivals at Toronto Pearson International Airport Terminal 1 (see Note to readers). When the arrivals at Toronto Pearson International Airport Terminal 1 are excluded, Canadian airports exceed their May 2019 pre-pandemic volume of returning Canadian residents by 11.1% in May 2023.
Chart 3
Canadian-resident return trips from abroad by commercial aircraft, May, 2019 to 2023
Canadian-resident return trips by automobile
In May 2023, the number of Canadian-resident return trips from the United States, crossing by automobile via IPIL-equipped land ports, was 1.9 million, up (+35.7%), compared with 1.4 million trips in May 2022. The 371,900 trips recorded during 2023 Victoria Day long weekend accounted for one-fifth (20.1%) of Canadian-resident returning trips by automobile for the month.
In May 2023, Canadian-resident return trips by automobile recovered four-fifths (80.8%) of the 2.3 million trips recorded in the same month in 2019, just above the 77.8% recovery rate posted in April 2023.
Chart 4
Canadian-resident return trips from the United States by automobile, May, 2019 to 2023
Note to readers
Additional levels of aggregation are now available in tables 24-10-0057, 24-10-0058 and 24-10-0059.
This release provides a first glimpse of international arrivals to Canada in May 2023. Complete counts for the May reference month will be available with the release of "Travel between Canada and other countries," on July 21, 2023.
All counts of arrivals by air are from commercial aircraft and are produced exclusively using Primary Inspection Kiosk (PIK) data. PIKs were deployed at Toronto Pearson International Airport Terminal 1 on June 22, 2021, and, as of July 2021, these arrivals are included in the total counts, which has consequently improved coverage. In 2022, PIKs captured approximately 92% of all commercial air arrivals.
Counts of arrivals entering the country by automobile through land ports equipped with the automated Integrated Primary Inspection Line (IPIL) system represent a subset of US-resident trips and Canadian-resident return trips by automobile. In 2022, IPIL land ports captured approximately 89% of all automobile entries. However, vehicles crossing the border with NEXUS authorization continue to be excluded.
In January 2022, some IPIL ports switched mode from land to water. In 2019, arrivals at these ports accounted for a small fraction (0.7%) of all arrivals entering or returning to Canada by automobile.
In January 2023, the unit of measurement in the charts was updated to "number of trips" to more closely align with Frontier Counts concepts. No changes were made to how the data are collected and disseminated.
Readers are encouraged to review the concepts, definitions, data sources and methods for Frontier Counts, especially when making historical comparisons and examining specific regions.
Selective estimates from the Canadian Tourism Activity Tracker for March 2023 are available upon request.
Contact information
For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).
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