Most Canadians less eager to travel post-Covid

Over 50 per cent of Canadians reported that Covid-19 decreased their desire to travel abroad, according to a survey by insurance policy comparison site HelloSafe, with 48.7 per cent of Canadians saying that they are still as eager to travel as before the crisis.

The survey, which was conducted by HelloSafe between 22 February and 7 March 2022 and had 726 Canadian respondents, also found that 40.8 per cent of respondents said that they are not planning to go on a vacation at all in 2022.

Of the remainder who do, over 50 per cent say that they have a trip planned outside of North America, with the remainder planning a trip either within Canada or elsewhere on the continent.

Furthermore, 81.3 per cent of respondents said that they hadn’t been out of Canada since the beginning of the pandemic. Only 18.7 per cent of respondents had travelled abroad since the March 2020.

A lasting effect on Canadians’ desire to travel abroad

HelloSafe says that the survey implies that ‘Covid-19 seems to have a lasting effect on the Canadians' desire to travel abroad, probably due to the fear of still having to face health restrictions once at the destination’.

It adds that the limited number of people who have left the country since the pandemic reflect the effect of worldwide travel restrictions, both in Canada and abroad.

Canada has been relatively slow in easing its international travel restrictions, with the government announcing that it would ease pre-flight Covid testing rules for fully vaccinated international travellers from 28 February. Some countries, such as the UK and Ireland, are process of removing all remaining restrictions this month.

Canadians may be becoming more comfortable travelling further overseas

In ranked order, the most popular three international destinations for Canadians according to the survey were:

1. United States
2. Italy
3. Mexico.

HelloSafe said that while the presence of the US and Mexico was unsurprising, the presence of Italy suggests that Canadians are beginning to become more comfortable with travel to destinations Europe and further abroad as restrictions ease and Covid cases fall.

Other destinations (Dominican Republic, Cuba, France, Algeria and Tunisia) which were referenced further down the list indicate reinforce this suggestion that there is still some interest in travelling abroad.