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May 30, 2025VISITOR TRAVEL SURVEY, Q4 2024 Quarter-over-quarter (Q4 2024 vs Q4 2023)
International visitors to Nova Scotia spent $100.2 million in Q4 2024. Expenditures by visitors from the US were the majority, accounting for 54.3% of total visitor spending in Nova Scotia. International visitor expenditures were down 12.7% from the same period in 2023. Across Canada, international visitor expenditures were up 6.2% with declines in 6 provinces. Saskatchewan and British Columbia reported the largest gains and New Brunswick reported the largest decline in international visitor expenditures.
The other types of expenditures category and clothes and gifts reported the only gains while the other categories reported declines lead by accomodations in Q4 2024 compared to Q4 2023.
Note: during the pandemic, Visitor Travel Survey collections were suspended from March 2020 to Q1 2023. Data were modelled using Frontier Counts estimates until the Visitor Travel Survey resumed in Q2 2023. Comparison with modelled data should be interpreted with caution due to the different methods used.
2024 vs 2023
In 2024 international visitors spending in Nova Scotia grew 5.0%. Nationally epxenditure levels grew 7.1%. Newfoundland and Labrador reported the largest gain and Manitoba experienced the largest decline.
There was an increase among all individual expenditure categories except expenditures on food and beverage. Nova Scotia's expenditures were up most for other types of expenditures.
International travel expenditures have largely recovered to pre-pandemic levels in the last year, though some of this recovery includes the effects of rising prices. After a peak in the first quarter of 2024, international expenditures started to decline in Nova Scotia. Canada's international expenditures continued trending up.
In unadjusted results by quarter, Nova Scotia's accommodations expenditures by international visitors were in line with previous levels for Q4.
Clothing and gift spending by international visitors has recovered in line with the 2019 levels.
Food and beverage spending by international visitors was a little lower than the pre-pandemic levels.
Recreation and entertainment spending by international visitors was in line with pre-pandemic levels for Q4.
Expenditures on transportation (including higher fuel prices) were in line with pre-pandemic levels in Q4 2024.
Other international visitor spending was below Q4 2018 levels, but above the same quarters of the following years.
Overall international visitor expenditures have returned to pre-pandemic levels in the last two years.
Notes: Statistics Canada’s Visitor Travel Survey (VTS) provides quarterly statistics on United States and overseas visitors to Canada, their characteristics of travel and their spending levels. From the first quarter of 2018 to the first quarter of 2020, spending data were derived from a Small Area Estimation model. Collection activity related to the VTS was suspended in March 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic; estimates from the second quarter of 2020 to the first quarter of 2023 were produced using a model based on historical 2019 VTS estimates combined with alternate data and adjusted with Frontier Counts results. As of April 2023, VTS collection partially resumed, with the Air Exit Survey (AES) restarting in five major Canadian airports. The non-air component of VTS (visitors arriving by modes of transportation other than air) uses modelled data based on historical VTS estimates while the air component is based on estimates obtained from AES survey results.
The Frontier Counts program at Statistics Canada receives administrative data from the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) on all international arrivals into the country, consisting of both non-resident visitors to Canada and Canadian residents returning from abroad.
Source: Statistics Canada. Table 24-10-0066-01 Visits, nights and spending for visitors to Canada by geography of visit, residency and mode of transport (x 1,000)
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