The Canada-United States trade war hasn’t deterred many Canadian workers from flying south of the border, new data from a major travel company suggests.
In 2026, the number of U.S. cross-border air bookings through August rose to 58,584, a six per cent increase compared to 2025, according to Corporate Traveller Canada data shared with CTVNews.ca on Thursday.
Amra Durakovic, head of communications for Flight Centre Travel Group Canada, the Canadian parent company of Corporate Traveller Canada and Flight Centre Canada, said while the situation remains “fluid,” the impact of the latest U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods isn’t yet known.
“When we look at business travel, it did react, but it didn’t stay down,” Durakovic said in a video interview with CTVNews.ca on Thursday from Toronto. “When tensions first picked up over tariffs in February of 2025, we did see some businesses pull back, but by the end of 2025, U.S. cross-border business bookings were basically flat for the year, and now they’re growing again.”
In January, U.S. cross-border air bookings were up 4.1 per cent year over year before declining in February and March. The spring and summer months saw increases, climbing to 16.5 per cent in August, the highest bump so far in 2026.
“So, this really tells us that while many businesses may pause or rethink a trip, they still need to be in those key markets,” Durakovic said.
While some business relationships are harder to substitute, Durakovic said travelling to the U.S. is often key to companies whose customers, suppliers, investors or operations are based there. She said the trends apply to sectors like manufacturing, mining and natural resources, finance and banking, as well as technology.
Corinne Pohlmann, executive vice-president of advocacy for the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, said the findings are not a “big surprise.”
“Simply because you have new tariffs doesn’t necessarily mean that everything ends overnight, in terms of relationships between companies,” Pohlmann said in a video interview with CTVNews.ca on Thursday.
“In fact, if anything, you may want to talk to your supplier, your customer face to face a bit more, to see if you can work through some of the issues that you may have.”
Leisure travel trends
Meanwhile, Flight Centre Canada data suggests that U.S. leisure travel plummeted in 2025.
“Leisure travel is much more sensitive, I would say, to sentiment, because when you’re planning a leisure travel, it’s personal. You get to choose where you want to go,” Durakovic said.
New U.S. leisure bookings were down 35 per cent in January compared to last year, and down 29 per cent in February, according to Flight Centre Canada. They rose slightly in the spring before plunging 27 per cent in June. The monthly year-over-year increase was seven per cent in July and 17 per cent in August.
Durakovic noted that U.S. travel remains below 2024 levels.
“We saw, on average, a 40 per cent decrease on new U.S. bookings in 2025,” she said. “Now this year, we are seeing some improvement, but you have to remember the context is that it is coming off of a very low base.
“At the same time, Canadian leisure travellers, they’re still travelling,” she added. “They’re simply choosing other destinations.”
