From Washington state to northern New England, American companies which have lengthy relied on Canadian guests are seeing site visitors dry up — and with it, a vital income.
A brand new report shared solely with Fortune by the Joint Financial Committee (JEC) – Minority, a congressional standing committee courting again to 1946 chargeable for documenting the financial situations of the U.S., particulars how a pointy drop in Canadian tourism is hitting each U.S. state alongside the northern border. The findings come as President Trump has proposed annexing Canada, imposed a number of rounds of tariffs on Canadian items, and repeatedly damaged off commerce talks with Ottawa, contributing to a chill in cross-border journey and spending.
From January to October 2025, the variety of passenger automobiles crossing the U.S.-Canada border fell by almost 20% in contrast with the identical interval in 2024, based on the JEC evaluation, which pulls on U.S. Customs and Border Safety journey statistics. In some border states, the decline reached 27%, a shift that native tourism companies say is displaying up in fewer vacationers, extra resort vacancies, and weaker gross sales.
“Going back for generations, Canadians have visited New Hampshire and many other states along the U.S.-Canada border to see family or friends, stay in our hotels, share a meal at our restaurants, and shop at our stores,” mentioned U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Rating Member of the Joint Financial Committee. “However, in the wake of President Trump’s reckless tariffs and needless provocations, fewer and fewer Canadians are making trips to the United States, putting many American businesses in jeopardy and straining the close ties that bind our two nations.”
Canadians have traditionally been among the many most vital worldwide guests to the U.S., each in sheer numbers and in spending. Analysts and tourism officers notice that rising costs, a weaker Canadian greenback, and heightened political tensions have nudged many vacationers to decide on home journeys inside Canada or various worldwide locations as an alternative. For U.S. border communities, that shift is being felt in actual time.
“These are more than numbers; they represent missed revenue for local businesses, reduced hotel demand, and fewer dollars supporting jobs and investment in our community,” mentioned Shirley Hughes, president and CEO of Go to Fargo-Moorhead in Fargo, North Dakota, and Moorhead, Minnesota.
In northern New Hampshire, the absence of Canadian license plates is very stark. “Being only eight miles from the border, normally Canadians make up anywhere from 15-25% of visitors. Now, I can probably count the number of Canadian visitors on one hand. I’m just trying to plug along and keep my nose above the waterline,” mentioned Elizabeth Guerin, proprietor of the Fiddleheads reward store in Colebrook, New Hampshire.
The affect stretches past retail and lodging into wineries and sights that depend on cross-border regulars.
“The drop in visits from Canadian tourists has had a noticeable impact on our bottom line. With Canadians making up about 10% of our business, fewer cross-border travelers mean fewer tastings, tours, and wine sales — a ripple effect that touches our entire operation, underscoring how important cross-border tourism is to our business model,” mentioned Scott Osborn, president and co-owner of Fox Run Vineyards in Penn Yan, New York.
Some operators fear the harm will outlast any eventual thaw in U.S.–Canada commerce relations, as Canadian vacationers kind new habits elsewhere.
“This is long-lasting damage to a relationship and emotional damage takes time to heal. While people aren’t visiting Vermont, they’ll be finding new places to visit, making new memories, building new family traditions, and we will not recapture all of that,” mentioned Christa Bowdish, proprietor of the Outdated Stagecoach Inn in Waterbury, Vermont.
On the West Coast, competition organizers are additionally feeling the pinch.
“Since March of this year, we have not only seen Canadian traffic drop drastically, but we have also seen a drop in our number of attendees at our festival this year in late September. We knew that after March, we could not rely on our Canadian business because of fear at the border and lack of understanding of what is happening with tariffs and Canada drawing a strong line of promoting Canada first,” mentioned Kevin Coleman, government director of SeaFeast in Bellingham, Washington.
For companies up and down the northern border, the query now is not only when Canadians will return in power, however how a lot of that misplaced enterprise can ever be gained again.
For this story, Fortune journalists used generative AI as a analysis instrument. An editor verified the accuracy of the knowledge earlier than publishing.
