Oilers fans may be in Florida this week to cheer on Connor McDavid and Edmonton in the Stanley Cup final, but that’s the only reason some of them are visiting the United States.
Some Canadians in Florida told CityNews they would not have made the trip south of the border if it weren’t for the Oilers’ Cup run.
With beautiful beaches, hot weather, and no shortage of things to do, Florida has always been a popular destination for Canadians to escape the winter.
But a Fort Lauderdale tourism official confirms they’ve seen a marked decline in the number of Canadians visiting Florida since U.S. President Donald Trump began making comments about Canada become the 51st American state, and imposing tariffs.
“Yeah, it’s been concerning,” said Stacey Ritter, the president and CEO of Visit Lauderdale, the marketing organization for Greater Fort Lauderdale. “Canadian tourism is down about 20 per cent. Canada’s our number one visitor market, so it’s disturbing.
“We are the same people we were last year and the same people we were five years ago, and we don’t intend to change that.
“Perhaps the world around us has changed, or at least parts of it have changed, but we have not.”
Ritter says the tourism board began to notice the downward trend of Canadians making trips to the Sunshine State this February – just days after President Trump was inaugurated. She called it a “troubling sign,” because February is still high season for the area.
She says travel bans and visa issues are also leading to a drop in numbers.
“It has been pretty significant.”
Ritter, who called the presence of Oilers fans in Florida for the second summer in a row “a huge economic bump to us,” adds she understands why Canadians are feeling this way.
“Because of who we are as a community, and because of the values that we hold so dear, we respect Canadians’ opinions about this, we recognize why those sentiments are where they are,” she said.
“But when you are ready to come back, and we hope that you will be ready to come back, we will be here with open arms and open hearts, and ready to embrace you. Because you’re gonna find us the same people that were here before you decided not to travel.
“We will always be here for those people who are here now or who will consider coming back when uncertainty turns into certainty.”
It’s not just tourism heads worried.
Richard Clavet, who has been in Florida since 1990, owns a motel complex in Hollywood, Fla., that caters to Canadian snowbirds.
Clavet, who is from Quebec, says his regulars began cancelling this past winter and spring.
“After mid-March, it just went ‘whoosh,’” he told CityNews.
Clavet adds some of his customers have told him explicitly they’re cancelling because of the U.S. president, leaving behind deposits on rooms and choosing to vacation in nearby Cuba.
It’s something Clavet says he doesn’t agree with.
But for some Oilers fans in Florida, they’re putting politics aside to support the team.
