TORONTO — AI may be transforming how Canadians research and book travel, but travel agencies are continuing to see strong revenue growth.
According to Global News, Statistics Canada reported that operating revenue for Canada’s travel arrangement and reservation services industry climbed 8.8% to $18.3 billion in 2025, following a 9.3% increase in 2024. The growth came despite a 25.4% decline in Canadian travel to and from the U.S.
StatCan divides the travel arrangement and reservation services industry into three main sectors: travel agencies; tour operators; and other travel arrangement and reservation services, including CVBs, airline, bus, train and ship ticket offices and sports and theatre ticket agencies as well as airline, hotel, car rental and restaurant reservation centres, and more.
While they’re sharing the glory with the other sectors, the results point to the continued relevance of travel advisors even as consumers have access to more online booking tools and AI-powered trip-planning services, notes Global.
ACTA President Suzanne Acton-Gervais said the continued strength of advisors comes down to the value of human expertise in an increasingly crowded digital landscape.
“A search engine can offer a thousand answers. A great travel agency and travel advisor knows which questions to ask first. That is the value of human judgment,” she said.
Global noted that air travel accounted for 35% of agencies’ operating revenue in 2025, while packaged tours represented 25.2%. The strong performance of packaged travel points to continued demand for more curated, streamlined vacations.
The industry is also seeing opportunities among younger, digitally savvy consumers, who may use social media and AI to research destinations but still turn to professional advisors for expertise and support.
U.S. travel remains a significant challenge, with 60% of travel agencies’ operating revenue tied to travel to the U.S. At the same time, Statistics Canada reported that Canadian return trips from the U.S. fell 4.6% in the first half of 2026, while return trips from other countries increased 4.8%.
