Tourism from Canada jumps 11.8% amid US boycott

International tourism via Mexico’s airports continued to summation successful the archetypal six months of the year, with Canadian visitors flocking to the state astatine an accelerated rate, according to a study issued Tuesday by Mexico’s National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI).

During the archetypal fractional of the year, 23.4 cardinal planetary tourists entered the state via airplane, a 7.3% summation implicit the aforesaid play of 2024. Of that figure, astir 2 cardinal visitors came from Canada. 

While the United States continues to pb successful the fig of planetary aerial arrivals to Mexico with 7.36 cardinal betwixt January and June, Canada’s second-place full of 1.68 cardinal visitors for the half-year marked an yearly summation of 11.8%.

Other planetary markets contributed 1.77 cardinal tourists from implicit 230 countries.

Demonstrating expanding formation accessibility, from January done June, the fig of tourists arriving by level surpassed 11 cardinal for the archetypal time. 

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“These results are a coagulated instauration for continued growth,” said Tourism Minister Josefina Rodríguez Zamora. “With the motorboat of caller planetary flights, we are assured that the accomplishment of overseas tourists volition proceed to increase, generating much opportunities for Mexico’s economical and societal development.” 

President Claudia Sheinbaum hopes to presumption Mexico wrong the world’s apical 5 most-visited tourer destinations arsenic portion of her Plan México nationalist improvement project, announced successful January. 

Why much Canadians similar Mexico to the US 

Not coincidentally, the uptick successful Canadian visitors to Mexico coincided with a boycott by galore Canadians of traveling to the United States arsenic a absorption to the ongoing commercialized warfare betwixt the 2 countries and the perceived hostility of U.S. authorities toward Canadians.  

In the archetypal fractional of the year, visitant arrivals from Canada to the U.S. fell by astir 33.1% by car and astir 22.1% by air, according to Canada’s nationalist statistic agency. 

Many Canadians who typically sojourn states specified arsenic California and Florida during the colder months are present opting for alternate Mexican destinations, specified arsenic the Baja California peninsula, Nayarit and the Riviera Maya.

The Bajío authorities of Jalisco, successful particular, is utilizing the displacement successful tourism trends to pull much Canadian tourists, with the opening of respective caller formation routes.

Ever-increasing concern and improvement aimed astatine tourism person brought Puerto Vallarta to planetary prominence. (Hello Cinthia/Shutterstock)

“The United States, each things considered, has a superior occupation successful the tourism sector; that’s wherefore [Guadalajara] went from 2 flights to Canada to 5 flights to Canada; obviously, the ones we spot arsenic slightest consenting to spell to the United States are Canadian tourists, and they’re comparatively adjacent to us.”

In May, Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacífico (GAP) announced plans to motorboat 2 caller formation routes by the extremity of the twelvemonth — betwixt Guadalajara and Montreal, operated by Air Transat, and Guadalajara-Toronto, operated by Air Canada. A caller WestJet way is besides planned for Guadalajara-Calgary. 

The 3 caller routes adhd to the 2 existing Flair Airlines routes — Guadalajara-Vancouver and Guadalajara-Toronto — which launched successful May and September 2024, respectively. From Puerto Vallarta, Canadian tourists tin alert nonstop to Montreal, Calgary and successful the wintertime months, Toronto.

With reports from Forbes México, Real Estate Market & Lifestyle, La Crónica de Hoy, El Economista and Forbes