While President Donald Trump quickly agreed to pause the tariffs he threatened to place on Canada and Mexico, the damage by eschewing diplomacy and using threats of 25% tariffs on almost every product coming out of these two countries is likely already done.
Trump called for a 30-day delay on his tariff plan after announcing the tariff on February 1. Then, the back-and-forth began.
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Prior to agreeing to the pause, and in exchange for agreeing to ramp up border security, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had urged his fellow citizens to “choose Canada” in ways that mean not just shopping local but also “changing your summer vacation plans to stay here in Canada.” Trudeau made his announcement on February 2 and Trump announced the pause on February 3.
On social media, many Canadians enraged by Trump’s threats (which also include repeated “jokes” about how Canada should become a 51st state) independently said that they are scrapping vacation plans to places like Florida and California booked many months ago.
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The Canadian internet is livid: ‘Snowbirds, stop spending your money in Florida’
“Just canceled our March trip to Great Wolf Lodge [a chain of water park resorts available in states such as Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Virginia] and will be going to West Edmonton Mall instead,” Monique Neufeld wrote on the social media platform Threads (META) in a post that received nearly 17,000 upvotes. “Keeping our money in Canada!”
“SNOWBIRDS, STOP SPENDING YOUR MONEY IN FLORIDA,” reads another Threads post from Kim Shay underneath which many Canadians report putting off Florida trips in favor of other sunny destinations such as Mexico.
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According to official numbers crunched by the United States Travel Association (USTA), even a 10% reduction in the total number of Canadian visits could cost the U.S. travel industry $2.1 billion in lost dollars as well as threaten 140,000 jobs in the hospitality industry, including lost revenue in hotels and restaurants, airlines and cruises.
Up north, surge of cancelations of U.S. travel and ‘milestone experiences’
Canadians accounted for 20.4 billion visits to the U.S. in 2024 and generated $20.4 billion in revenue for the travel industry so that 10% loss is significant.
The report shows that the states most frequented by Canadians were, in order of visits, Florida, California, Nevada, New York and Texas. While travel would be the biggest industry to take a hit, such a drastic drop in visitors would also seep into everything from retail to transportation.
Flight Centre, the largest travel agency in Canada often used to book cruises and package vacations, told Forbes Magazine that since the start of February they have already seen “a surge of customers” canceling travel to the U.S. “including bucket-list and milestone experiences valued at over $10,000 Canadian dollars.”
More on travel:
- American Airlines crash with U.S. Army copter leaves no survivors
- Trump starts presidency with three executive orders affecting travel
- Another country just issued a new visa requirement for visitors
Across different social media platforms, Canadians across the country have been posting about canceling trips and requesting suggestions for alternatives with different cruise lines.
“My family typically takes about three-four cruises a year all with the big three,” one wrote on the Cruising forum on Reddit. “In light of the Trump tariffs, my wife and I have decided to cancel our upcoming Alaskan and West Coast cruises with Norwegian (NCLH) and look for non-American alternatives. The problem is it seems most cruise lines are American-owned. Any recommendations for non-American cruise lines?”
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