Number of overseas visitors to Canada nearly doubled from last year, reaching 281,400 in March

Travellers pass lineups at the Ottawa International Airport, as airlines cancel or delay flights during a major storm in Ottawa, on Friday, Dec. 23, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang

Data from Statistics Canada shows that the number of overseas residents to Canada nearly doubled compared to last year, reaching 281,400 in March 2023.

While travel to Canada is still below pre-pandemic levels, the StatCan report released Tuesday reveals that Canada is making significant progress welcoming back tourists, having achieved approximately four-fifths (81.13 per cent) of the pre-pandemic levels of overseas visitors during the same month in 2019.

When it comes to the origin countries of overseas visitors to Canada, the March data shows that over two-fifths (114,700) of arrived from Europe, up from 68,800 in March 2022 and reaching four-fifths (83.7 per cent) of the level seen in March 2019.

Of the total overseas visitors, 72,400 came from Asia, more than half (58.5 per cent) of the number of arrivals from Asia seen in March 2019.

The data also indicates that there were approximately 1.1 million trips made by U.S. residents. This figure is nearly two-and-a-half times higher than the number of trips taken by U.S. residents in March 2022 (465,200) and accounts for approximately three-quarters (74.4 percent) of the trips made in March 2019.

According to the data, of 1.1 million U.S. arrivals, 779,400 were by car, and 52.6 per cent of these were same-day returns. It shows that the number of arrivals by vehicle also has increased by two-and-a-half times compared with the same month in 2022 (310,300) and reached over three-quarters (76.3 per cent) in March 2019.

The number of Canadians who made a return from U.S. trips has reached 3.3 million, which shows a significant increase of two-and-a-half times compared to March 2022 (1.3 million trips) and 82.6 per cent of the level recorded during the same month in 20219.

The report also shows that of the total return trips by Canadian residents in March 2023, two million trips were by automobile, and two-thirds (61.1 per cent) of which were on the same day. In addition, 1.3 million by air (more than doubled than the same month in 2022) and 14.0 per cent increase compared to March 2019.

StatCan says that this marks the seventh consecutive month in which the number of return trips by air has surpassed the pre-pandemic level, starting from September 2022.

When it comes to Canadian residents who traveled overseas, data shows that 915,200 Canadian residents had return trips from overseas in March 2023, up 33.6 per cent comparing the same time last year and corresponded to almost two-thirds (63.3 per cent) in 2019.

Reporting for this story was paid for through The Afghan Journalists in Residence Project funded by Meta.