Canadian Tourists Return to Vermont as Businesses Offer Deals

Following last year's decline in Canadian tourism to the U.S., some northeastern Vermont businesses are offering deals to entice visitors back. According to Canada's official statistics agency, travel from Canada fell by 25% last year after President Donald Trump threatened to annex their country.

Burke Mountain, a ski resort near the border with Quebec, is one such business. Last summer, Canadians made up about 40% of its visitors, but that dropped to almost none after the annexation threat.

This summer, however, some Canadian plates have returned to Burke's parking lot. The resort and other local businesses offered discounts to Canadians for most of July and early August, including a deal where they accepted the Canadian dollar at par, amounting to a nearly 30% discount on lift tickets.

Kingdom Trails' office manager Ilan Weitzen said this welcome has helped, with Canadians rising from about 10% of ridership last year to 17%, and even higher on weekends. One visitor, Sébastien Ouellet of Montreal, said he got the at-par deal but didn't want it, preferring to spend his fair share of money.

Another sign that more Canadians may head south this coming winter is Jay Peak's hockey arena, which hosts youth hockey tournaments with teams from both sides of the border. Last year, only four Canadian teams participated, but 30 have signed up so far for this coming winter.