Travel between Canada and other countries, October 2024

Released: 2024-12-23

Highlights

In October, US residents took 1.8 million trips to Canada, and residents of overseas countries took 491,300 trips. The number of non-resident arrivals (US-resident and overseas-resident arrivals combined) in Canada represented 93.0% of the number observed in October 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.

In October 2024, Canadian residents returned from 4.1 million trips abroad, which represented 95.1% of the level recorded in October 2019.

Using seasonally adjusted data, on a month-to-month basis, non-resident arrivals in Canada increased by 0.8% in October 2024. Meanwhile, returning Canadian-resident arrivals decreased by 0.6% compared with September.

To further explore current and historical data in an interactive format, please visit the Frontier Counts: Interactive Dashboard.

Trips to Canada by US residents

In October, US residents took 1.8 million trips to Canada, up 8.2% from the same month in 2023. The number of trips recorded in October 2024 corresponded to 95.0% of the level observed in October 2019, before the pandemic.

In October 2024, 66.0% of US residents visiting Canada arrived by automobile (1.2 million arrivals), and 51.7% of those arrivals were same-day trips. Arrivals by automobile were up 10.7% year over year and represented 94.5% of such trips recorded in October 2019. US residents also took trips crossing Canadian land borders in October 2024 by other means, such as by bus (31,300), as pedestrians (17,300) or by train (7,200).

Air arrivals (421,400) made up 23.9% of all trips to Canada taken by US residents in October. These arrivals increased by 10.6% from the same month in 2023 and represented 95.3% of such trips taken in October 2019. In October 2024, trips to Canada by US residents via cruise ship or other commercial boat were down 18.2% year over year, but they exceeded such trips taken in October 2019 by 20.3%.

In October 2024, the main points of entry by US residents entering Canada by automobile were near Niagara (including Niagara Falls and Fort Erie), in Southwestern Ontario (including Windsor and Sarnia) and near Vancouver (including Douglas and Pacific Highway in Surrey). Together, these were the points of entry for 67.8% of all such trips.

In October, the busiest points of entry by air were in Toronto (including Toronto Pearson International Airport and Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport), Montréal, Vancouver and Calgary. Combined, these points of entry represented 89.2% of all US-resident arrivals in Canada by air during the month.

Trips to Canada by overseas residents

In October, 491,300 overseas residents arrived in Canada, a decrease of 3.6% compared with the same month in 2023 and representing 86.4% of the level recorded in October 2019. In October 2024, 76.4% (375,200) of overseas-resident arrivals were by air.

Together, the top three countries of residence of overseas visitors—the United Kingdom (64,600), France (62,100) and China (34,400)—represented 32.8% of all overseas arrivals in Canada in October.

In October, overseas residents arrived in Canada most frequently at airports in Toronto, Montréal, Vancouver and Calgary, which welcomed a combined 96.4% of all overseas-resident arrivals by air.

Trips abroad by Canadian residents

Canadian residents returned from 4.1 million trips abroad in October, up 4.7% from October 2023 and representing 95.1% of such trips taken during the same month in 2019.

Trips to the United States by automobile (2.3 million) in October 2024 represented 55.9% of the total trips taken abroad by Canadian residents, and 67.0% of these trips to the United States were same-day trips. Trips by Canadian residents who returned by automobile from a visit to the United States increased by 4.3% year over year and represented 88.8% of such trips taken in October 2019.

In October 2024, Canadian residents flew back to Canada from 1.7 million trips abroad, representing 42.0% of the total trips taken by Canadian residents. Air arrivals in October were 6.1% higher than they were the same month one year earlier and exceeded the number of such arrivals recorded in October 2019 by 7.0%.

The busiest points of entry for Canadian residents returning from the United States by automobile in October 2024 were in Southwestern Ontario, near Vancouver and near Niagara. Combined, these points of entry accounted for 60.2% of such trips.

The busiest airports for Canadian residents returning home from abroad in October were in Toronto, Montréal, Vancouver and Calgary. Combined, these airports represented 93.0% of all air arrivals of Canadian residents from abroad.

Seasonally adjusted arrivals

Tourism is influenced by seasonal effects (e.g., actual seasons and holidays such as Canada Day and Thanksgiving) and by calendar effects (e.g., number of weekends in a month). All statistics in this section are based on seasonally adjusted data (for more information, please see the Note to readers).

In October, the overall number of arrivals in Canada by US residents increased by 0.8% compared with September, largely driven by same-day trips. October represented the fifth consecutive monthly gain in same-day trips to Canada. While the number of US residents arriving in Canada by air (-15.2%) and automobile (-11.6%) decreased from September, their impact was moderated by a 103.3% increase in the number of arrivals by other modes (e.g., cruise ship, bus or train).

The number of overseas-resident arrivals in Canada rose by 0.7% in October, compared with September. There were increases in arrivals from Africa (+23.6%) and Oceania (+4.4%). Meanwhile, arrivals from the Americas (excluding the United States) (-1.4%), Asia (-0.5%) and Europe (-0.2%) declined from the previous month.

Arrivals by residents of Europe—the largest overseas market, with 45.2% of the total overseas arrivals in Canada—decreased by 0.2% from September to October. By volume, the largest declines in arrivals were from the United Kingdom and Spain.

In October, arrivals by residents of Asia—the second-largest overseas market, with 27.8% of the total overseas arrivals in Canada—decreased by 0.5% from September. During this period, declines in arrivals from China, Japan and Singapore contributed the most to the overall decrease.

Arrivals by residents of the Americas (excluding the United States)—the third-largest overseas market, with 15.9% of the total overseas arrivals—decreased by 1.4% from September. During this period, there were declines in the number of visitors from Brazil and Mexico.

Arrivals by residents of Africa, accounting for 4.5% of total overseas arrivals, increased by 23.6% from September, driven by arrivals from Nigeria.

Canadian residents returning from a trip abroad in October decreased by 0.6% from September. Return trips from the United States were down by 3.1% in October, largely attributable to a decrease in return trips via automobile. Canadian-resident arrivals from overseas countries increased by 6.5%, marking a fourth consecutive monthly increase.

Chart 1 
Non-resident visitors entering Canada, October 2018 to October 2024

Chart 2 
Canadian residents returning to Canada from abroad, October 2018 to October 2024

Products

The product "Frontier Counts: Interactive Dashboard," part of the Data Visualization Products series (Catalogue number71-607-X), is also available.

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).