US Travel Association Responds to Canada Reopening Border

The Canadian government announced on Monday it would reopen the border to fully vaccinated Americans and permanent U.S. residents on August 9.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that travelers from other countries who received two doses of an approved COVID-19 vaccine would be able to visit, beginning on September 7, as long as the coronavirus situation in Canada stays favorable.

As part of the updated coronavirus-related policies, Canada is also eliminating the controversial, three-night quarantine hotel policy for those arriving by air as of August 9.

In response, U.S. Travel Association Executive Vice President Tori Emerson Barnes issued the following statement regarding the announcement:

“Canada is getting this right and we applaud the release of a timeline that will allow vaccinated Americans to visit and cross the land border after many long months. Travel is a core component of the economy and job creation, and today’s announcement will spur a rebound of both in Canada. While we have stated that vaccines should not be a requirement for travel, we strongly encourage all Americans to get a vaccine, and we commend Canada for starting this process to restore border travel.

“We urge the Biden administration to reciprocate by determining a date and a plan to welcome Canadian visitors at U.S. land borders. Land travel accounted for more than half of all overnight visits to the U.S. by Canadians pre-pandemic, so taking this step – given the strong rates of vaccination in Canada – will help the U.S. begin safely rebuilding with its No. 1 source market of international visitors.

“Each month that travel from Canada remains at a standstill comes at a cost to the U.S. economy of $1.5 billion in potential travel exports.”

The announcement finally provided an end date to a border closure that began way back in March 2020. The current border closure order is set to expire on Wednesday, July 21, and will likely be extended to August 9.