THUNDER BAY — Northbound traffic at the Pigeon River border crossing has fallen this summer, but local hotels are still doing well as Thunder Bay benefits from an increase in Canadian visitors.
Data from the Canada Border Services Agency shows the number of American-registered vehicles entering from Minnesota fell by nine per cent both in June and July compared with last year.
It was a reversal from a promising start to the travel season in May, when traffic was up by about four per cent.
US automobiles entering Canada at Pigeon River
- May 2025 - 8441 May 2024 - 8124
- June 2025 - 15,562 June 2024 - 17,145
- July 2025 - 14,793 July 2024 - 16,262
Source: Statistics Canada
Paul Pepe, manager of tourism for the City of Thunder Bay, said the trend is concerning but it's likely due to multiple factors.
"June and July softened, and I think that comes down to growing concerns by U.S. consumers about international travel, economic concerns, inflationary concerns, the perception about being welcome travelling outside their borders. It's unfortunate, but it's just the reality of the current economic and geopolitical climate in North America."
Pepe said the growth in domestic travel in Canada has countered the drop in American traffic.
"Typically, the U.S. market is 20 per cent to 30 per cent of our overall market. While that's significant, domestic is overwhelmingly our major market here, and that growth can offset the U.S. travel to some degree."
This summer, the tensions resulting from the imposition of tariffs by the Trump administration have prompted more Canadians to vacation at home.
"We're seeing Canadians getting out and exploring Canada. Canada offers good value compared to the exchange rate when travelling to the U.S., and out of a sense of loyalty, I think, a lot of Canadians have decided to explore their own country," Pepe said.
He noted that in June — the latest month for which data is available — the Terry Fox Visitor Centre saw over 5,500 more visitors, or a 41 per cent increase from a year ago.
Currently, the staff at the centre are greeting between 800 and 1,000 people a day.
Pepe said hotel occupancy in Thunder Bay in June climbed to just over 80 per cent, an increase of more than five per cent from last year.
He expects to get the data for July around the middle of next month, but he believes it will show the "healthy gain" in hotel occupancy in June will be repeated right through early September.
Pepe added that more and more Canadian and American visitors are looking to get back to nature and visit less crowded destinations rather than big cities.
"It's been gratifying to see that people are continuing to travel this year, and we're hoping to continue supporting that, and promoting and finding where the market opportunities are."
