Visitor numbers to British Columbia keep going up, up, up!

OCTOBER marked another strong month of growth for British Columbia’s tourism sector, with an increase in international visitors.

Statistics Canada reports a 6.1% increase in international overnight custom entries to the province over the same month last year, with 19,100 more visitors arriving in British Columbia. The total year-to-date international visitor arrivals are also up 3.2%, with B.C. welcoming 158,837 more visitors so far this year.

October typically represents about 5.7% of annual international overnight entries to the province. A spike in direct flights to the province, as well as B.C.’s global reputation as a beautiful destination, are contributing factors to the increase in visitors.

Notable increases for October (over October 2016) include:

  • Brazil – up 69.5%
  • South Korea – up 29.9%
  • France – up 25.3%
  • New Zealand – up 23.1%
  • Southeast Asia – up 19.7%
  • Germany – up 18.7%
  • Switzerland – up 13.4%
  • Australia – up 10.8%
  • China – up 6%
  • United States – up 7.4%
  • Japan – up 2.4%

Notable increases for year-to-date visits include:

  • Australia – up 21.7%
  • Mexico – up 19.2%
  • Brazil – up 15.6%
  • Germany – up 15.1%
  • Austria – up 8.7%
  • China – up 6.2%
  • Japan – up 4%
  • France – up 3.2%
  • Italy – up 3%
  • New Zealand – up 2.8%
  • United States – up 2.6%
  • United Kingdom – up 1.3%
  • Taiwan – up 1%
  • Southeast Asia – up 0.8%
  • South Korea – up 0.7%