Some Canadians are rethinking their U.S. travel plans after controversy surrounding U.S. tariffs and President Donald Trump.
Amy Gleiser had planned to go on a family vacation to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina for March Break next week. But the Gleiser family decided to cancel the trip last month after hearing about tariff threats.
“It’s just not right when there is a trade agreement in place for Donald Trump to cause so much chaos,” said Amy.
They had been to Myrtle Beach before in 2022.
“Last time we went on a road trip to head to Myrtle Beach it was pretty fun,” said 11-year-old Brielle.
The Gleisers booked the trip last August but cancelled it and rebooked for Mayan Riviera, Mexico.
Amy’s husband, Matthew, said it was a choice they were more than comfortable with making.
“[There’s been] attacks on Canada - just breaking up all the trade agreements that we have with them. They’re no longer someone to look up to and respect,” said Matthew Gleiser.
The family did lose their deposit for the hotel when they cancelled but said it was still the right choice. They were also travelling with several other families who also cancelled.
“We would have eaten in restaurants. We would have shopped in stores. We were staying in a hotel. We would have spent a considerable amount of money,” said Amy.
They have been to Mexico before and are excited to return.
“I last thing I liked about Mexico was because there was a buffet and you could just go swimming, and then you could just walk into a buffet and get whatever you want,” said Brielle.
The family said they don’t plan on returning to the U.S. to visit for the foreseeable future.
“I have no intentions to go there at all. It really upsets me how we’ve been treated as a country,” said Matthew.
They were considering purchasing property down south for the winter months but said they’ve also put those plans on hold.
Travel trends
Travel agency Flight Centre said 20 per cent more Canadians cancelled their U.S. trips from November to February.
“Now if I look [at] year-over-year bookings from Canada to the U.S., when I compare February 2025 to February 2024, it’s quite a significant decrease. It’s a 40 per cent decrease in bookings for February alone,” said Flight Centre spokesperson Amra Durakovic.
Durakovic said travellers are emotional about the decision to cancel or change plans.
“A lot of sentiment towards feeling that trust has been broken now and they just really want to travel anywhere but the U.S. That’s what we’re seeing,” she said.
She added the weak Canadian dollar could be a contributing factor in the decline in U.S. travel, but she believes the trends in February specifically are due to tariff tensions.
Air Canada announced in February that it would reduce flights by 10 per cent to Florida, Las Vegas and Arizona starting in March.
WestJet said instead of bookings trips to the U.S., many are booking sun destinations like Mexico and the Caribbean.
