Canadian Snowbird Survey: 40% of Regular Snowbirds Plan to Stay Home This Winter

Canadian Snowbird Survey: 40% of Regular Snowbirds Plan to Stay Home This Winter

November 19, 2020 ctn_admin

Canadians may not be able to find a place to stay in British Columbia this winter. But Florida and Arizona could be pretty wide open.

According to a recent survey conducted by Snowbird Advisor, more than 40% of Canadian snowbirds said they will not be travelling this winter, while slightly more that 30% said they are definitely going away for all or part of the winter and 25% are still undecided.

The survey, conducted November 2-7 among Canadians who normally go south every winter, includes responses from over 3,000 snowbirds across Canada and reveals a number of interesting facts about snowbird travel intentions this year.

“There has been a lot of speculation about whether or not Canadian snowbirds will travel this winter, but no actual data to support it.” says Stephen Fine, President of Snowbird Advisor, “This survey helps to
provide a more accurate picture of snowbird travel plans backed up by real data.”

The number one reason for not travelling is fear of catching COVID.
Snowbirds who said they were not planning to travel this winter said the number one reason they decided to stay home was “the risk of getting COVID 19 while away,” followed by “I can’t drive to the US while the land border is closed” and “not wanting to fly during COVID.”

Rounding out the top five reasons were “not being able to access medical treatment if COVID 19 cases increase in my destination” and “not having adequate travel medical insurance.”

When are snowbirds leaving and how long are they going for?

Among snowbirds who said they are going away this winter, 16% said they have already left, 42% said they plan on leaving before the end of the year and the balance plan to leave in January or February. More than 60% said they plan on being away for between three and six months.

Where are Canadian snowbirds going?

Of those snowbirds planning to go away this winter, approximately 50% are going to Florida, 20% to Arizona, 8% to California, 6% to Mexico and the balance heading to various other destinations.

One interesting note is that 5% plan to travel to B.C. this year, up from less than 1% in other years. That’s great news for owners of campgrounds, hotels and other tourism businesses in places like Victoria and the Okanagan Valley.