As we near the end of peak tourism season, we can now see how it began as Statscan releases June numbers.

• Trips by U.S. travellers saw a slight decline of 0.3% from June 2018, but are up 2.8% YTD.

• Overseas visits were up 7.1% from June 2018, and year-to-date are up 6.9%

Top Overseas Markets

1. Mexico once again led the overseas markets with a 36.5% jump over June 2018 and is up 34.9% YTD.
2. France saw a healthy increase of 20.3% from June 2018 and is up 12% YTD.
3. UK travellers were up 14.9% from June 2018 and 11.7% YTD.

Overseas Market Declines

1. Visits from South Korea were down -22.6% month over month and -18.5% YTD. We will continue keeping a close eye on this market.
2. Japan visitors were down -16.4% June to June, but YTD numbers are down -5.3% YTD. 
3. Brazil ranked third in declining travellers, dropping 5.4% over June 2018 and -4.8% YTD.

As of June, Canada-China relations have not yet resulted in a decline of Chinese inbound travel compared to 2018, maintaining a stable 1.6% increase in June and up 2.6% YTD. However, these increases are noticeably smaller than growth in previous years. We continue to monitor this important market closely.

While June saw encouraging growth in key markets, the numbers for July through September will help us paint a better picture of this summer’s performance. Stay tuned for additional updates in future editions of TIAC Talk!