It’s been a rough start to the golf season for Paul Dame, owner of Bluff Point Golf Resort in Plattsburgh, N.Y., about 100 kilometres south of Montreal.
Over the past two months, he said, business for both golf and lodgings has plummeted 30 per cent compared with the same period last year. Dame attributes much of the decline to far fewer Canadian golfers, who typically make up about half his business.
He said many past Canadian customers have told him they’re avoiding the U.S., and hence his golf course, due to anger over President Donald Trump’s trade war and threats to make Canada the 51st state.
“They don’t like being picked on, and to be honest, I can’t really blame them,” Dame said. “It’s disheartening to have something completely out of my control that is causing my business to have a major downturn.”
In an effort to show Canadians they’re welcome, Dame is now offering them a couple of freebies: a bucket of golf balls for practice at the course’s driving range, and a gift set of three golf balls adorned with Canadian symbols, like a beaver and a hockey jersey.
“The idea is that, ‘Hey, this is a gift from us to you to show that we care and show that we appreciate you,'” he said.
Dame joins many other tourism operators across the United States offering special deals for Canadians to try to convince them to cross the border — just in time for the summer travel season.
The stakes are high. Canadians traditionally make up the largest group of international tourists to the U.S. In 2024, they spent $20.5 billion US in the country, according to the U.S. Travel Association.
But that tourism market started to decline after Trump took office in January. By April, the number of return trips among Canadians travelling to the U.S. dropped by 19.9 per cent for air travel and by a whopping 35.2 per cent for land travel, compared with the same time last year.
“We’re really starting to see the impact now…. Everyone is scared,” said Kristy Kennedy, vice-president of marketing for the North Country Chamber of Commerce. It helps promote businesses in the Adirondack region in Upstate New York, including Plattsburgh.
To encourage their northern neighbours to visit, in April the chamber launched a TV ad campaign in Ottawa and across Quebec. It’s also set to launch a webpage on June 1 that will list tourism-related businesses offering exclusive discounts for Canadians.
Kennedy said the deals will include a 20 per cent room discount at the Best Western hotel and a free one-day rental at the Adirondack ElliptiGO bike shop, both in Plattsburgh.
“We understand that there were feelings hurt, but understand that Plattsburgh and the Adirondack region value you and we want to make this relationship continue,” Kennedy said. “We’re ready to roll out that red carpet.”
As Canadian travel to the U.S. continues to drop, CBC News has found several professional conferences relocated to Canada to avoid harsh new U.S. border security measures. One sociologist describes being grilled by U.S. customs officers who searched his phone and wallet.
Are deals enough?
Back at the Bluff Point Golf Resort, Dame said he may also offer some mid-week golf discounts. But he’s concerned that deals may not be enough to repair Canada’s fractured relationship with the U.S.
“If your friend insults you, you don’t give them $10 and go back to being friends,” he said.
Outside the CN Tower, a popular tourist destination in Toronto, several Canadians told CBC News that the U.S. is off their destination list, regardless of any promotions.
“Because of Trump, I’m not going to travel to the States,” Laura Livlik said. “I don’t like his stance on gender and trans rights. I don’t really like anything that he’s doing down there, and it makes me nervous to travel down there.”
Nilay Shah said Trump needs to end his trade war to make things right with Canadians.
“[A] discount is a temporary bandage, nothing else.”
But Maggie Hill said deals could entice her to cross the border.
“Especially in the U.S., I feel a good discount would definitely make a difference,” she said, referring to the Canadian dollar, currently worth 72 cents US.
The weak loonie was part of the reason Visit California, the state’s tourism organization, launched a website this month offering Canadians discounts on more than 1,000 California hotels, activities and attractions.
Posted deals include a 20 per cent discount at the Little Italy Hotel in downtown San Diego and 15 per cent off a massage at Studio Soothe day spa in San Francisco.
The campaign includes a promotional video ad celebrating Canada’s ties to the state.
“We sat down and said, ‘How do we reach out with that olive branch? … It couldn’t just be a heartfelt gesture,” said Caroline Beteta, president and CEO of Visit California. “There had to be something real, because the reality is, the [U.S.] dollar is so strong right now.”
The organization partnered with online travel agency Expedia to offer the deals. In a number of cases, Canadians must sign up for a free Expedia Rewards membership to take advantage of the offers.
Seattle campaign declares success
Up the coast from California, a grassroots campaign to entice Canadians to visit Seattle recently wrapped up.
Dubbed Open Arms for Canada, 40 local businesses, from restaurants to hotels, offered Canadians discounts of 30 per cent from May 9-11 — when the Toronto Blue Jays were in town to play the Seattle Mariners.
Howard Wright, chair of the Seattle Hospitality Group, which helped organize the campaign, said it proved successful, with Canadians taking advantage of the discounts more than 1,000 times over three days.
“Isn’t that amazing?” Wright said, adding that organizers may offer the deals again at different times during the summer.
He said the best part of the campaign was that it sent an important message, one he hopes will continue to resonate — even after Canada-U.S. relations are mended.
“What I hope is that after this is all behind us, that people remember that we reached out and said, ‘Hey, love you guys, come on down.'”
