Did You Pay More to Travel in 2017?

Published March 22, 2018 at 1:34 am

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It’s costing Canadian travellers more cash to travel.

Canadian tourists forked it over for accommodation in more than 60 per cent of their Top 50 international destinations in 2017.

So says the latest Hotel Price Index (HPI) from Hotels.com released March 20.

The spike could be linked to the fact that international tourist arrivals worldwide grew to 1.3 billion in 2017, representing a 7 per cent jump, according to the latest UNWTO World Tourism Barometer.

The cost of overnight accommodation rose 2 per cent globally in 2017, the index finds.

“The slight increase in average accommodation prices globally, combined with numerous markets having record visitor growth, signals a strong travel economy and a growing desire from consumers to experience the world,” said Hotels.com president Johan Svanstrom.

“Cultural events have inspired travel more than ever before as we aspire not to just stand by and observe the action, but to instead actually be part of it.”

Price drops drove Canadian visitors to the U.S., and despite a decline in the overall number of foreign visitors to the States in 2017, the country remained the most popular outbound region for Canadians, who crossed the border in greater numbers, with New York keeping its spot as the top international destination.

The States also had some incredible price drops across the country in notoriously expensive cities, making them more accessible to Canadians.

International travel destinations, however, fluctuated in price and popularity.

Popular European destinations such as Portugal, Spain and Greece saw an increase in prices paid on accommodation overall as tourism hit record numbers.

Canadians felt the pinch in Lisbon and Santorini with a 10 per cent rise in average price, while Barcelona rose by 7 per cent.

Asian destinations provided excellent opportunities for Canadian travellers — a strengthening dollar against the Japanese Yen meant that Tokyo recorded the highest fall in average price, dropping 7 per cent compared to 2016.

On the South American front, Colombia made huge strides in 2017 in terms of popularity rank amongst Canadians.

Medellín made the top 200 for the first time, while Bogota cracked the top 100 most popular international destinations with a 40-spot gain.

With prices in Bogota averaging $107 a night in 2017, now is the time to travel to this diverse region, according to the findings.  

Back at home, Canada 150 created a record tourism boom.

Travellers found that prices paid for accommodation rose in most popular domestic destinations.

Although the country saw an average increase of only 2 per cent, most major destinations were hit harder.

Toronto, the most popular destination in 2017, with two-thirds of its record 43 million visitors domestic, and Montreal, who celebrated its 375th birthday, both saw an increase of 8 per cent.

The highest average increases were seen in Halifax, and up in the mountain resorts of Whistler, Mont Tremblant and Banff, where, together with Vancouver, overnight stays averaged more than $200 a night.

Niagara Falls enjoyed a busy year from both domestic and international markets but its average only rose by 4 per cent.

Where are you travelling this year?

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