Nearly a third of British Columbians will be spending the holidays away from home this Christmas season.
According to a Leger poll conducted for CIBC, 31% of B.C. respondents plan to travel in December, compared with only 25% of Canadians overall.
B.C. residents are among the most likely to travel in the country this year, followed by residents in Manitoba and Saskatchewan (27%) and Ontarians (26%). Only 22% of Albertans and 21% of Quebeckers and Atlantic Canadians plan to take a trip by the end of the year.
For most B.C. travelers (44%), the U.S. was the key destination. Meanwhile, 22% plan on taking a trip within B.C., 23% will be traveling somewhere else in Canada and 8% plan to travel overseas.
By comparison, only 25% of Canadians plan to visit the U.S., with a third of Canadians staying within their home province. About 20% plan to travel out-of-province, while 17% plan to visit an international destination.
Ontarians and Quebeckers were the most likely to take a trip within their own province, which should provide a boost to the local economy. Quebeckers were among the highest vacation spenders with survey respondents saying they’d be spending nearly $1,700 for their trip, followed by Albertans ($1,781) and residents in Manitoba and Saskatchewan ($1,675).
B.C. residents were the most cost-conscious travelers with average spending of $1,314, just above Ontarians ($1,341) and Atlantic Canadians ($1,210).
