December's Canada border crossings' increase raises questions

PLATTSBURGH | After months of car crossings from Canada at Champlain being down about 30 percent, the prime holiday shopping season in December actually saw a small increase compared with 2024. The car count in December 2025 was 75,006, up from 71,523 in December 2024. "This was a remarkable shift that many of us sensed last month as we saw Quebec plates and heard French in the stores," said Garry Douglas, President of the North Country Chamber of Commerce. "In another welcome sign, Canadian license plates accounted for 80% of cars at Plattsburgh International Airport in December, a prime time for Quebecers going to Florida via Plattsburgh." "Time will of course tell if this is more than a one-month holiday season bump," noted Douglas, "but even a bump is welcome as we continue our messaging across the border." The Chamber has continued active outreach in Quebec in particular, including through social media, Canadian news media and trade shows, and in December launched a messaging campaign called "We Know Canadians As...", highlighting appreciation of the special support of Canadians for Americans through history (available at www.northcountrychamber.com). Assemblyman Michael S. Cashman said, "It is encouraging to see the recent increase of visitors from Canada to New York State, and we certainly welcome the return of our Canadian friends and family. "It still remains to be seen whether this bump in border crossings marks a return to normalcy with our Neighbors to the North, or if it was a temporary increase due to the holiday season. We cannot ignore the fact that there is still volatility in the landscape. The issue of nonsensical tariffs remains prominent, and the bluster surrounding tariffs only serves to move us backwards. However, I applaud the North Country Chamber of Commerce for their efforts to reinforce the importance of our historic partnership with Canada, and I look forward to continuing this partnership through my work as the Chair of the Task Force on New York-Canada Relations."

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December's Canada border crossings' increase raises questions

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