Canada saw a significant year-over-year decline in international arrivals in May 2025, according to new data released by Statistics Canada. A total of 4.8 million people entered the country by air and automobile, including both returning Canadian residents and non-residents—down 16.7% compared to May 2024. This marks the fourth consecutive month of year-over-year declines in international arrivals.
Non-resident arrivals to Canada by air reached 894,200 in May 2025, a slight decrease of 1.3% from the same period a year earlier, Statistics Canada reported. This total included 439,800 U.S. residents (down 0.3%) and 454,500 overseas visitors (down 2.3%).
Despite the overall dip, the U.S. Memorial Day weekend offered a short-term lift. “According to the daily traffic data, a daily average of 17,800 US-resident arrivals was observed from Friday, May 23, to Monday, May 26, 2025 (Memorial Day in the United States), which was 49.7% higher than the average for the other Friday-to-Monday periods of the month,” Statistics Canada noted.
Canadian residents returning home by air totalled 1.6 million in May 2025, down 3.7% year over year. The decline came despite a 9.8% increase in return trips from overseas destinations, which reached 1.1 million. The drop was driven by a sharp decline in U.S. return travel. “Return trips by air from the United States declined in May 2025 (488,800; -24.2%),” according to Statistics Canada.
Victoria Day, observed on Monday, May 19, marked the busiest day for air arrivals by Canadian residents, with 64,000 returnees. The quietest day was Thursday, May 29, with just 41,100 arrivals.
U.S.-resident trips to Canada by automobile fell to 1,044,700 in May, a year-over-year decrease of 8.4%. According to Statistics Canada, this was the fourth straight month of lower volumes compared to the previous year.
Holiday weekend traffic was again an exception. “The highest numbers of arrivals of US residents were observed on Friday, May 23 (before the Memorial Day long weekend in the United States) (81,900) and Saturday, May 24 (80,800). The average for both days was 90.6% higher than the average of the other Friday-to-Saturday periods of the month,” the agency reported.
Canadian residents returning from the U.S. by automobile totalled 1.3 million in May 2025—a steep 38.1% decline from May 2024. According to Statistics Canada, this marks the fifth consecutive month of year-over-year declines in this category.
Victoria Day again saw the highest volume, with 106,900 return trips. “This number was 169.8% higher than the average for the other Mondays of the month,” the agency said.
With declines seen across nearly every mode of international travel, Statistics Canada’s May data points to a continuing trend of softer cross-border movement. While holiday weekends provide temporary boosts, the broader picture shows sustained reductions in both inbound and outbound travel to and from Canada.
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