Travel between Canada and other countries, November 2024

Released: 2025-01-23

Highlights

In November, US residents took 1.4 million trips to Canada, and residents of overseas countries took 284,500 trips. The number of non-resident arrivals (US-resident and overseas-resident arrivals combined) in Canada represented 96.7% of the number observed in November 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.

In November 2024, Canadian residents returned from 3.9 million trips abroad, which represented 94.5% of the level recorded in November 2019.

According to seasonally adjusted data, on a month-to-month basis, non-resident arrivals in Canada increased by 3.3% in November 2024. The number of returning Canadian-resident arrivals rose 1.6% compared with October.

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 November, US residents took 1.4 million trips to Canada, up 18.4% from the same month in 2023, as a result of increases in arrivals by automobile and by air. The number of trips by US residents recorded in November 2024 corresponded to 98.6% of the level observed in November 2019, before the pandemic.

In November 2024, 74.2% of US residents visiting Canada arrived by automobile (1.1 million arrivals), and 53.4% of those arrivals were same-day trips. Arrivals by automobile were up 21.3% year over year and up 1.5% compared with November 2019 levels. US residents also crossed Canadian land borders in November 2024 by other means, such as by bus (19,700), as pedestrians (7,900) and by train (5,400).

Air arrivals (326,700) made up 22.6% of all trips to Canada taken by US residents in November. These arrivals increased by 14.0% from the same month in 2023 and represented 96.0% of such trips taken in November 2019.

In November 2024, the main points of entry for US residents entering Canada by automobile were near Niagara (including Niagara Falls and Fort Erie), near Vancouver (including Douglas and Pacific Highway in Surrey) and in Southwestern Ontario (including Windsor and Sarnia). Together, these were the points of entry for 73.1% of all such trips.

In November, the busiest points of entry by air were in Toronto (including Toronto Pearson International Airport and Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport), Vancouver, Montréal and Calgary. Combined, these points of entry represented 91.9% of all US-resident arrivals in Canada by air during the month.

Trips to Canada by overseas residents

In November, 284,500 overseas residents arrived in Canada, a decrease of 5.3% compared with the same month in 2023, representing the second consecutive month of year-over-year declines. The level seen in November 2024 reached 88.1% of that recorded in November 2019. In November 2024, 80.8% of overseas-resident arrivals in Canada were by air (229,700 arrivals).

Together, the top three countries of residence of overseas visitors—the United Kingdom (31,100), France (24,300) and Mexico (22,000)—represented 27.2% of all overseas arrivals in Canada in November. November marked the first time since March 2024 that Mexico was included in the top three countries of residence of overseas visitors, following changes to the visitor visa requirements for Mexican citizens coming to Canada.

In November, overseas residents arrived in Canada most frequently at airports in Toronto, Vancouver, Montréal and Calgary, which welcomed a combined 96.6% of all overseas-resident arrivals by air.

Trips abroad by Canadian residents

Canadian residents returned from 3.9 million trips abroad in November, up 6.8% from November 2023 and representing 94.5% of such trips taken during the same month in 2019.

Trips to the United States by automobile (2.1 million) represented 52.9% of the total trips taken abroad by Canadian residents in November 2024, and 70.4% 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 6.6% year over year and represented 89.2% of such trips taken in November 2019.

In November 2024, Canadian residents flew back to Canada from 1.8 million trips abroad, representing 45.7% of their total trips. Air arrivals in November were 7.6% higher than they were in the same month one year earlier and exceeded the number of such arrivals recorded in November 2019 by 3.4%.

The busiest points of entry for Canadian residents returning from the United States by automobile in November 2024 were near Vancouver (including Douglas and Pacific Highway in Surrey), in Southwestern Ontario (including Windsor and Sarnia) and near Niagara (including Niagara Falls and Fort Erie). Combined, these points of entry accounted for 63.7% of such trips.

The busiest airports for Canadian residents returning home from abroad in November were in Toronto, Montréal, Vancouver and Calgary. Combined, these airports represented 89.9% 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 November, the number of arrivals in Canada by US residents grew by 4.6% compared with October, driven by both automobile and air travel. The November increase marks the third consecutive monthly rise since September 2024.

The number of overseas-resident arrivals in Canada declined by 1.3% in November compared with October. With the exception of the Americas (excluding the United States), arrivals by volume from all continents (Africa, Asia, Europe and Oceania) declined.

Arrivals by residents of Europe—the largest overseas market, with 45.2% of the total overseas arrivals in Canada—decreased by 1.2% from October to November. By volume, the largest declines in arrivals were from Switzerland, France and Denmark.

Arrivals by residents of Asia—the second-largest overseas market, with 27.1% of the total overseas arrivals in Canada—decreased by 2.3% from October to November. Declines in arrivals from China, the Philippines and Taiwan contributed the most to the overall decrease.

Arrivals by residents of the Americas (excluding the United States)—the third-largest overseas market, with 17.9% of the total overseas arrivals—increased by 7.0% from October to November. There was a rise in the number of visitors from Brazil and Mexico.

Arrivals by residents of Africa, accounting for 3.5% of total overseas arrivals, decreased by 22.3% from October to November, driven by a decline in arrivals from Nigeria.

The number of Canadian residents returning from a trip abroad increased by 1.6% from October to November. Return trips from the United States were up by 1.2% in November. Meanwhile, Canadian-resident arrivals from overseas countries rose 2.8%, marking a fifth consecutive monthly increase.

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

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

Products

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