Growth all round for Canadian tourism sector: Global dollars, local impact

Canada’s tourism sector grew twice as fast
as the broader economy last year

The data is in and the picture is clear. The 2024 GDP infographic developed in collaboration with Statistics Canada, confirms that tourism delivers high growth and fast returns, offering one of Canada’s highest growth export opportunities.

In 2024, tourism was among the fastest growing sectors, contributing $50.8 billion to Canada’s GDP accounting for 1.8% of overall GDP. That’s a 3.6% growth rate (inflation adjusted) from the previous year and outpaces the national GDP growth rate of 1.7%.

The data also shows that:

• Tourism export revenue is up 7% year on year (inflation adjusted). As Canada's second-largest services export, tourism continues to contribute more to GDP than some of the largest industrial sectors like mining or automotive manufacturing
• Tourism sustains more than 265,000 businesses in 5000 communities from coast to coast to coast
• The number of jobs generated by tourism increased - 1 in 10 workers across the economy are supported by tourism industries
• Tourism activities generated $129.7 billion in revenues in 2024 - that’s $350 million per day and represents a 3.5% increase (inflation adjusted) from 2023.

Learn more about tourism's contribution to Canada (2024), in the full infographic now available on the award-winning Canadian Tourism Data Collective.

In the next five years, the Canadian tourism sector is expected to continue outpacing the Canadian economy, in line with the goals outlined in Destination Canada’s 2030 strategy.

Learn more about the value of travel and tourism in Canada.