By Michael Baginski/ As Canadians “pivot” towards alternative destinations to the U.S. amidst ongoing Trump tribulations across the border, Britain is poised to pick up some of the pieces, with all signs pointing to a banner year for the destination this year and into 2026, according to VisitBritain.
Of course, the U.K. is already a popular destination for Canadians, however the current climate has British tourism execs forecasting just shy of a million visitors from this market in 2025 and spending £942 million pounds (CDN$1.76 billion).
“You can see the change coming,” said VisitBritain CEO Patricia Yates at the recently concluded Destination Britain Americas (DBA) event in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico, which saw approximately 50 top trade buyers and media from Canada, the U.S. and Brazil meeting with an equal number of British suppliers and tourism officials to help boost travel to Great Britain.
In an interview with Travel Industry Today, Yates said, “We’re hearing real confidence from the Canadian trade about the UK. We’ve heard from tour operators that the booking window stayed solid and advance bookings for 2026 are strong.”
Notably, Air Canada was a sponsor of the DBA and Yates hailed increased airlift across the board going into Britain from Canada, including the recent launch of Virgin Atlantic service from Toronto.
“Airlines don’t put planes in unless there’s a strong economic case for it, so that confidence in lift indicates there’s going to be a strong transatlantic year coming up,” Yates observed. “We can see an uncertain world and Canadians are looking for a destination to possibly replace America… and Britain is regarded as a safe and, where I think we’re telling a compelling story of why people should visit. (And) the link is very strong between Canadians and Britain.”
The increased and varied lift also enhances VisitBritain’s designs to promote the Britain beyond London, with Yates observing, “Our regional destinations are becoming much more accessible to international visitors… Britain is a small island and with a lot of different experiences. You can fly into Manchester and be in the Peak District or in Wales within an hour. So, distances are very small between varied experiences.”
VisitBritain’s chief exec noted that greater accessibility for visitors also ties directly into the organization’s ongoing “Starring Great Britain” global screen tourism campaign, which capitalizes on the country’s “starring role” in countless films and TV shows, from James Bond to Harry Potter, as well “Spiderman,” “Misson Impossible,” “Bridgerton,” “Peaky Blinders” and “House of Dragons,” plus new and upcoming entries like “Downton Abbey,” “Hamnet” and “Wuthering Heights.”
In addition to visitors flocking to the sites of their favourite screen stories, other cultural touchstones are equally popular, such as this year’s 250th anniversary of Jane Austen, which is seeing numerous events across the country, not least in Bath where fans even dress in character to celebrate the beloved author.
“(Such events) provide really authentic experiences that people can have an emotional experience with,” said Yates, pointing out that visitors will find bookable product around the events that can be accessed directly or with travel advisors.
Travel advisors
As for the latter, Yates says that since the pandemic, “a change that has been surprising has been the strength of travel advisor and travel trade. Pre-COVID, people believed the whole world was going to switch to OTAs and that people to people, the world wasn’t going to be like this. But then post-COVID, people want this.”
Indeed, Yates says VisitBritain research shows that 47% of Canadians still book through the travel trade – and that has increased from 41% in 2024.
“So, not only is that nearly half the market, but it’s growing,” says Yates. “We’re so overloaded with information that we need somebody to cut through that and do the (hard work), and actually make the booking.”
Travel advisors are also critical in helping VisitBritain succeed in its sustainable tourism goals, which have advanced to what VB executive for the Americas Gavin Landry calls “regenerative tourism,” which seeks to goes beyond simply minimizing negative impacts to actually improving the environments that tourists visit.
That includes encouraging seasonal travel, where agents can find better deals for their clients than during high season, and clients will discover a quieter Britain, says Yates.
Besides, she adds, “Britain is very beautiful in the Spring, and in the autumn when there are log fires in the pubs. It’s very different than in the summer.”
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