U.S. City’s Canada Tourism Decline Leaves Locals Struggling Financially

Canadians are keeping the U.S. travel boycott alive, as June visits remain below pre-Trump levels. Affected U.S. destinations continue to work on luring Canadians back, with one state begging to improve cross-border relations as Canadian visits drop by almost half.

Local workers are feeling the brunt, with many from a U.S. city that once welcomed over 1.4 million Canadian tourists a year struggling to make ends meet. The mayor said she didn’t realize how severe the impact was until “we offended the Canadians.”

This comes after new tariff increases and President Donald Trump’s controversial “51st state” remarks. However, TheTravel found that 2026 figures hint at a slight turning of the tide for this vibrant city’s tourism scene.

Las Vegas Locals Struggle Financially Amid Decline In Canadian Tourists

Local workers in Las Vegas say they are feeling the financial pinch as the city continues to see a decline in international tourists, particularly Canadians, amid political tensions. “Everything’s costing more,” Aaron Mahan told ABC News. Mahan works at an off-Strip restaurant that had to scale back from 24-hour operations to a breakfast-and-buffet service only.

Las Vegas welcomed 38.5 million visitors in 2025, a 7.5% decline (3.1 million fewer visitors) compared to 2024.

Joe Spica, a bellman at a resort on the Las Vegas Strip, also shared the harsh impact of lower hotel occupancy on service workers’ income. Spica used to afford multiple dinners for him and his family with his tips from a day alone. Now, he feels “lucky” to get one dinner from a day’s tips.

‘We Offended The Canadians’

Canadian visitation to Las Vegas dropped by 17.4% in 2025, marking a loss of roughly 252,400 visitors compared to the previous year. Las Vegas Mayor Shelley Berkley said she “did not realize until we offended the Canadians—how much of our foreign business came from Canada.”

While Berkley is “pleased” about the city’s current economic standing, she wishes Canadian business in Vegas was not “very soft” these days. Nevada Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez-Masto points to the current administration’s policies as the driver of the massive tourism shift affecting Las Vegas.

“We have gone as a country from a $51 billion tourism trade surplus in 2019, to now a $70 billion trade deficit in this country on travel and tourism under this administration,” Cortez-Masto said.

Local workers add that President Trump’s “No Tax On Tips” federal policy has not been helpful for them. The policy allows eligible workers to deduct up to $25,000 in tips per year from their federal taxable income for the 2025 through 2028 tax years.

According to Mahan, a registered Republican who voted for Trump twice before opting out in 2024, “it doesn’t really affect you until you get your taxes back. So, for a month-to-month relief, there isn’t much.” While a turnaround may still feel distant on the ground, the latest 2026 data from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) indicates that tourism is tracking ahead of last year.

2026 Data Shows Mild Rebound In Las Vegas Tourism

From January to June 2026, LVCVA recorded a modest 0.2% increase in visitor volume year-to-date (YTD). Convention attendance particularly spiked by 12.6%, with hotel occupancy remaining steady at 82%. Clark County’s overall gaming revenue is also up 2.5% so far this year, boosted by a 3.2% rise on the Strip and 1.9% for Downtown.

June visitation edged down 0.5% year-over-year to 3,079,800 tourists. However, this minor dip signals a stabilizing trend compared to the sharp 11.3% drop seen in June 2025 when Las Vegas welcomed just under 3.1 million tourists. Additionally, Harry Reid International Airport’s latest available passenger data shows a small bump in international arrivals on one major Canadian carrier.

In June 2026, Air Canada brought 19,565 international passengers to Las Vegas, an 11.42% increase (2,005 more passengers) from 17,560 in the same month last year. However, overall international arrivals on Canadian carriers plummeted by 24.2% during the first half of 2026 compared to the same period in 2025.

Canadian Arrivals By Air In Las Vegas

The figures below are based on the number of international passengers who deplaned from Canadian carrier flights at Harry Reid International Airport.

Despite this continued downturn, Las Vegas has recently seen successes in targeted promotional campaigns to attract Canadian tourists back.

What Las Vegas Is Doing To Attract Canadian Tourists Back

In 2025, the town welcomed a total of 1,196,300 Canadian visitors, a 17.42% decline from 2024. Meanwhile, Mexican travel to Las Vegas rose 1.06% to 1,187,400 visitors, nearly erasing Canada’s lead. However, despite the overall plunge, Canadians remained Las Vegas’ top international tourist group.

To reverse the slump, tourism leaders and casino operators have launched major marketing efforts early this year. LVCVA has approved a three-year, $3.5 million deal with Reach Global Marketing to promote Las Vegas tourism across Canada. In January, Circa Resort and Casino CEO Derek Stevens also introduced an “At Par Program” across his Las Vegas properties: Circa, the D, and Golden Gate.

To offset exchange rate barriers, the promotion accepts Canadian dollars at parity with U.S. dollars ($1 CAD = $1 USD) for select hotel stays, bars/drinks, and up to $500 CAD in gaming credits. By July, the program had already drawn over 75,000 Canadian tourists.