Canadians promised to boycott travel to US. They meant it
usatoday.comIt's not really a promised or conscious boycott. It's after weighing the pros and cons, many of them intangible, the feeling is visiting the US right now could result in unpleasantness ... and if there is anything Canadians are adverse to it is unpleasantness. Anecdata: a friend of ours crossing the US border, despite being a VP at a bank, for her first time ever had to surrender her phone for examination by US border agents. Who needs that!
Same here. I have friends in the US but I've resigned myself to not seeing them again for a long time because I won't subject myself to that amount of harassment. If ever a country hung out a giant "Please stay away, you're not welcome here" sign, this is it.
Yeah, it's the same for me, I'm in Europe but I have places to sleep in the US. I was supposed to go this summer with my family but the uncertainty on how we'll get treated at the border (last time wasn't great for those of us who struggled with English already, I can't imagine what would have happened under this admin).
It's sad because WV might have like 15 European tourist every year and we're 5-9 of them depending on the year, but we'll take a year off, that's OK.
I assure you, there is also a conscious boycott from many people.
You are right that it might not necessarily be a hard boycott, but it will take a hell of a lot to lure them into giving Trump and his supplicants a cent of leisure travel.
Surprised Canadians would pick the US as a tourist destination to begin with.
Europe is cheaper and more fun. America's one advantage: nature, is matched and at times exceeded by Canada. Flights to warm places like Miami and SD take just as long as Mexico or the Caribbean.
Other than NYC and Utah-area national parks, I can't think of unique reasons for Canadians to vacation in the US specifically.
Also, if you want the booming, futuristic metropolis experience that doesn't exist in any comparable way in the US, China now offers visa-free travel for Canadians[1].
ok thats interesting, wonder how they take to overlanding? drive west the whole way accross Canada, ship the rig, fly over , keep driving west till the atlantic shows up, ship the rig , fly home.
There were lots of places in the USA that (as a Canadian) my family and friends loved visiting - Kauai for hiking and beaches, Mt. Baker for skiing, bay area for all the weird stuff that goes on there, Nevada for that thing in the desert, Oregon coast for surfing, Utah-area parks like you said, hiking in Washington.
Lots of amazing outdoor adventures to be had in the USA. Now days I don't know anyone that goes to the states.
> Other than NYC and Utah-area national parks, I can't think of unique reasons for Canadians to vacation in the US specifically.
While NYC and Utah Area national parks are iconic, the US has immense geographic and cultural diversity beyond them. Destinations like New Orleans, the California coast, or the unique high-desert landscapes of New Mexico offer experiences that are distinct from anything available in Canada.
Trump aside, the US hasn't been good stewards of their tourism in major cities. Las Vegas is bent on pricing itself out of reach and New Orleans apparently hasn't been the same since Katrina.
I take your point, but I believe the U.S. brand has historically shown a strong ability to weather the types of challenges you mentioned. I’m actually quite optimistic that it can bounce back at least partially to its former standing relatively quickly once the current unrest subsides. Additionally, speaking as someone from outside North America, I find the unique appeal of New England to be a major draw also
Shorter, cheaper flights. Toronto to Orlando is 2.5 hrs I think?
All the major Canadian airports also have the US customs and immigration on-site. You go through it as part of the standard airport security process and then the airplane goes to a domestic terminal when it lands, as if the flight had originated within the US. You get off the plane, grab your luggage and leave, no additional lines, security, talking to officials, etc.
The only European airport that does this is Dublin, last I checked.
Shannon also has pre-clearance. The list is small outside of Canada though - Dublin, Shannon, Abu Dhabi, Aruba, Bermuda and Nassau.
You can use eGates in the UK, same as me as a British citizen (as long as your passport's new enough, probably all of them by now) - that covers it doesn't it? Otherwise I'm not clear what 'pre-clearance' is skipping? Painless for me into Canada too.
Americans can _often_ use eGates into the UK - but the same set of exemptions apply as to British citizens using them. For example, if you're traveling with children under 10, you can't.
However, as others have pointed out, this isn't what pre-clearance is. It's more akin to clearing French passport control and customs in Dover or rather than Calais, and can make the trip substantially shorter than it might be otherwise.
When I still lived in the UK, I found it quicker and more pleasant to fly from Heathrow (or Bristol) to Dublin and then on to the US having cleared immigration during the layover. It's also quite a bit cheaper when you fly from the UK in a premium cabin since Ireland doesn't have the egregious air passenger duties that the UK does.
It saves you the hassle of going through customs when you land at your destination.
No, they mean we actually clear US customs in Canada as non-US citizens.
That's what I thought until they mentioned Dublin etc., what does US customs have to do with those in the first place?
The portion of Dublin airport that has flights to the US is officially American soil. You deal with customs in Dublin airport, and then arrive to a domestic terminal at your US destination. It's very helpful.
But irrelevant in terms of where you might go on holiday from Canada?
I was pointing out the convenience of the process that may cause Canadians to enjoy flying to the US on holiday.
If you fly from London to Manchester, what happens when the plane lands? You get up and walk away, right? If you fly from London to Dubai, wouldn’t it be nice if you could just get up and walk away once the plane lands? Aren’t you tired of waiting in lines and ready to just fall into your hotel bed? Canadians can do that if they are flying to Miami or Los Angeles, but not Cabo San Lucas.
You could do this too if you flew from Dublin to New York, but not if you chose London to New York or Paris to New York.
Europe is likely much more cheaper and fun for those in and around the EU both proximity and accessbility wise.
Looking at the currencies, it might be a bigger difference.
Also looking at flight distance, it might be further.
Visa requirements coudl also vary too.
I did a two week trip through Southern Utah and northern Arizona two years ago and it was amazing. I loved it, the scenery was incredible and I would love my parents to make the same trip to share what I experienced. They recently outfitted their truck with a camper in the back and have been enjoying long roadtrips in their retirement and it would be a perfect trip for them.
But they have zero interest in going. Part of it is fear and uncertainty about the situation there currently, but another part is just the sourness that the idea of visiting the US right now gives that kind of sucks the appeal out of such a trip.
There are other places they can visit, and Canada is indeed a lovely country in its own right, but I hope there is a time again where they can find joy in the idea of visiting the US and enjoying the beauty of the southwest before they are too old to really appreciate it.
An 8 hour flight vs a 2 hour flight maybe?
I don't see how getting to Europe is cheaper or easier than getting to the US.
Also the US speaks english which can be nice for an easy vacation. No need to learn phrases or customs before going somewhere.
US is far easier to get to. Just go to a Maine or NH beach the the summer. People from Quebec are everywhere.
FWIW, you have not lived until you see a way overweight man wearing only a tiny bikini bathing suit :)
Tabernac!
> America's one advantage: nature
Proximity? Language? Hard to drive to Europe.
At one point, the largest cohort of illegal immigrants in the US was Canadian visa overstays. They must have liked something about the place...
That was Indians, mostly punjabis, hopping the border.
florida and california are drivable from canada
As a Canadian, we don't think of travelling to the US as "international travel". It's more like going to a friends house.
I remember flying Alaska Airlines out of SFO and when I went to check-in at the International Terminal, the gate agent said "Canada isn't International" and looked at me like I was the dumbest human on the planet.
Either she was seeing Trump's future, or....
I know it might be hard for a population who elected the current POTUS twice, but some of us mean what we say. I fail to see what's so surprising about this.
If only that was to translate to cheaper hotel room prices in the US. Currently they are sky high.
Tell me about it. I remember being able to snag a nice room at a Courtyard/Hampton caliber of hotel for like $100 in 2016-18 timeframe. Based on https://www.in2013dollars.com/us/inflation/2016?amount=100 I would expect that to cost about $135 now if adjusting only for (hyper)inflation. It instead tends to cost something like $175-225/night. WTAF.
Trump has been devaluing the dollar quite rapidly. Give it time. The US will become a like developing nation in no time.
The US is, and always has been, a developing nation. What sets it apart from all other developing nations is that it controls the de facto world currency, making it a very wealthy developing nation. All of the cultural factors are closer to a third world country, but the wealth is first world, more like Russia than like western Europe.
Canada's policy is to keep the CAD cheaper than USD. No matter how fast USA goes, Bank of Canada can keep up.
I would imagine the economic situation in Canada isn't helping either.
Canada is also experiencing record travel from domestic travellers, so I don’t think that’s the case no.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/bakx-tourism-travel-d...
I would think that would be an indicator of economic issues; it's usually cheaper to stay in your own country vs traveling abroad. Especially vs. the US Dollar, although it's got better the last couple of months.
US prices are insane if you're paid in CAD. The good news is that Canada is great if you're paid in USD and are used to costal prices. It's like going to a third world country.
US prices are no less insane for people paid in CAD than they were two years ago.
Not quite third world country, but yes, the 25-35% built-in discount when visiting Vancouver or Victoria from Seattle or Bellingham is quite nice :) Similar discounts to visiting the Midwest, with none of the Midwest part!
It's almost like Trump is making a series of consistently terrible decisions that are economically and socially bad for America.
Why didn't more people vote for the side that understands that illegal migration is needed for cheap labor in the agricultural sector?
While our agricultural sector does use cheap labor, I specifically take issue with the word "needed". I may be nitpicking, but read a certain way it implies the "cheap" aspect of the labor is the essential part.
Certain industries employing quasy-slave labor to this day and getting away with it is one thing only: a stain on our society.
Long has been the fight for freedom from oppression and it is not over yet. Just like Martin Luther King was assassinated fighting for colored civil rights, Cesar Chavez was assassinated fighting for humane conditions for immigrant workers.
If immigrants are what's "needed" for America to function then they should be naturalized and granted fair wages just like anyone else.