Millennials Fuel Gains in Canada's Online Travel Market

Despite uneven economic performance and a fluctuating Canadian dollar, Canadians' enthusiasm for travel has kept the country's travel industry healthy. And while Canada has historically lagged the U.S. and Western Europe in online travel adoption, the market is finally catching up, as millennials drive a rise in online transactions. Online gross bookings are projected to grow 11% in 2017 to reach C$18.6 billion. Canadian online travel penetration of the total market will rise from 41% in 2017 to 47% by 2021.

The share of Canadian travelers who only/usually book online rose from 50% in 2014 to 55% in 2017. However, online booking incidence correlates strongly to age: more than six in 10 Canadian travelers age 18-34 only/usually booked online in the past twelve months, compared to just 44% of travelers 55 and older.

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Phocuswright's Canadian Online Travel Overview Fourth Edition tracks the changes taking place in the Canadian travel market. The report sizes the total and online leisure/unmanaged business travel market, and provides sizing and trend analysis across travel product segments and channels. The research also delivers insight into consumer behavior trends, including travel incidence, shopping, booking, mobile adoption and more.