Florida tourism set a new record last year, welcoming 143.3 million visitors, according to data released by Visit Florida. That represents an increase of 0.2% over 2024 and represents the highest yearly total in state history. Domestic tourism represented nearly 92% of all visitors. Overseas visits were up 4%, with almost 9.3 million visits. But visits from Canada were down a substantial 14.7%, reaching roughly 2.9 million for the year. Visit Florida, which markets the Sunshine State to the world, says it’s engaging in talks with Canadian travel groups in an effort to change that. But it may not be Read more
Asia
Visiting China is about to become a lot easier for many Canadians. As of tomorrow (Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026), holders of Canadian passports can travel to China without having to pay for a visa. A China travel visa currently costs about $140 CAD, so this would mean a savings of almost $300 for a couple and more than $550 in savings for a family of four. The CBC reports Canadian passport holders will be “exempted from visa to enter China and stay for up to 30 days for business, tourism, family/friends visit, exchange and transit purposes.” The policy also applies Read more
A new Flight Centre Canada national YouGov survey suggests the shift away from U.S. travel for Canadians isn’t going away. It also says three times as many Canadians are interested in a Europe trip as they are in a visit to the States. The study found that 62% of Canadians say they are less likely to visit the U.S. in 2026 compared to last year. The U.S. also placed fifth on the list of where Canadians would like to go this year, finishing far behind trips within Canada and trips to Europe and slightly behind visits to Mexico and Asia. Read more
A new list of top hotels from Forbes. Tourism jumps for Anguilla, Curacao and Shanghai. A new Marriott hotel in Barbados. And a continued drop in Canadian visits to the States. That plus a Cuba tourism update and TPC Sawgrass PGA Tour golf in today’s travel report. FORBES HOTEL, SPA, RESTAURANT AND CRUISE RATINGS FOR 2026 Forbes has come out with its annual list of top hotels, restaurants, spas and cruise ships around the world. Totaling 2,422 properties, the winners include 343 Five-Star, 708 Four-Star and 679 Recommended hotels and 82 Five-Star, 138 Four-Star and 80 Recommended restaurants. They also Read more
Top places around the world to visit this year includes the Canadian Rockies, southern Ontario, Western Australia, New Zealand, Italy and Argentina. I also have news on new flights from Canada to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, a report on Arizona tourism seeking Canadian visits, and a new kids’ zone at the Chelsea Hotel Toronto. TIME OUT TOP WORLD PLACES FOR 2026 Time Out magazine recently came out with its list of best places in the world to visit this year. It’s an interesting list with a nice mix of well-known and probably unheard of places for some travel fans. Here’s Read more
