Will Canadians Skip Their Winter Getaways?

All indicators suggest that Canada may be facing a long, cold winter. But the threat of a chilly season doesn’t seem to be enough to motivate Canadians to travel this holiday season.

Read more: Pack your bags, Canada: snowy winter ahead

In fact, some 58 per cent of Canadians surveyed said they are “not confident” they will be taking a winter vacation this year. The results are part of the inaugural Allianz Global Assistance 2016 Canadian Winter Vacation Confidence survey, conducted in partnership with Ipsos.

Not only are Canadians thinking about skipping their winter travels but a third of those surveyed (36 per cent) also said they haven’t taken a vacation in more than two years.

Those Canadians who said they are confident they will be travelling aren’t planning to spend a whole lot more than they did last year. Some 58 per cent of those planning to travel said they expected their spend per household to remain fairly flat this year. Just 16 per cent of respondents indicated that they would spend more than last year.

"It is an unfortunate reality that more than half of Canadians have a low level of confidence that they will be taking a vacation this winter," said Dan Keon, director, marketing and communications, Allianz Global Assistance. "One concern for Canadians considering travel in winter could be the costs of cancellation, especially when you look at the average cost Canadians say they will spend on a winter vacation: $2,593.20 per household."

Not surprisingly, the survey, which was conducted in early November, found that value of the Canadian dollar against the U.S. dollar could prevent Canadians from heading south of the border. Some 58 per cent of respondents indicated that currency exchange rates

"While the U.S. remains the top outbound destination for Canadians, the current value of the Canadian dollar against the U.S. dollar is clearly coming into play for potential vacationers," said Keon.

The news is not all bad. Looking forward, some 68 per cent of those surveyed said they plan to take a vacation in the next year.

The survey identified a trend they are calling a “Vacation Confidence Deficit.” While 70 per cent of Canadians surveyed said that an annual vacation is important to them, only 83 per cent of those respondents actually expect to take a vacation. Or, in other words, some 17 per cent of people who said an annual vacation is important to them expect not to take that vacation in the coming year.

Read more: Allianz Global Assistance to Test PassportCard, Simplified Travel Insurance Program

Additional Survey Results

• Men (47 per cent) are more confident than women (37 per cent) that they will take a winter vacation and they are more likely (40 per cent vs 32 per cent) to actually take their winter vacation.
• Canadian seniors, aged 55 and up, will likely spend $3,394.50 on their winter vacation, a number considerably higher the national per household average. Seniors were also the least likely (68 per cent) to allow the value of the Canadian dollar to influence their travel plan.
• Canadian households with kids (49 per cent) are more confident than respondents without kids (40 per cent) that they will take a winter vacation.
• Canadian households with an income above $100,000 are the most likely (59 per cent) to take an annual winter vacation. Likelihood of taking a winter vacation drops as income levels drop: $60,000-99,999 (46 per cent), $40,000-59,999 (34 per cent) and less than $40,000 (24 per cent).

Regional Highlights

British Columbia
• Least likely (37 per cent) to take a winter vacation this year.
• Expect to spend $3,342.70 per household on their vacation, higher than the national average.
• The value of the Canadian dollar is more likely to alter travel plans to Europe (22 per cent) than plans to travel to the United States (18 per cent).

Alberta
• Most likely (41 per cent) to take a winter vacation, just ahead of Quebec (40 per cent).
• Expect to spend $3,214.90 per household, more than the national average.
• Are most likely to rate an annual vacation as “important” (75 per cent), as those residents of other provinces.
• Tied with residents of Quebec as the most confident they will take a vacation in the next 12 months (71 per cent).

Prairies
• Expect to spend $3,359.30 per household, more than the national average.
• Least likely to consider annual vacations important; (37 per cent) compared to other provinces.
• Least confident they will take a vacation in the next 12 months (63 per cent).
•Most likely (26 per cent) to defer travel to Europe, due to the value of the Euro against the Canadian dollar.

Ontario

• Expect to spend $2,617.90 per household, slightly more than the national average.
• At 37 per cent, Ontarians are Just behind British Columbia (38%) residents in saying the value of the Canadian dollar will probably not affect travel to the United States.
• Some 66 per cent of respondents said they will not allow the value of the Canadian dollar to affect travel plans in the next year; just behind British Columbia (69 per cent) residents.
• The most likely (11 per cent), along with Alberta, to change planned travel dates due to the value of the Canadian dollar.

Quebec

• At an anticipated spend of $1,861.40, residents of Quebec expect to pay the least on vacation.
• They are the most confident (46 per cent) that they will take a winter vacation this year; just ahead of Alberta and the Atlantic (45 per cent).
•Second most likely (40 per cent) after Alberta (41 per cent) to take an annual winter vacation.
• The exchange rate of the Canadian dollar is more likely to deter travel to Europe (20 per cent) than travel to the United States (18 per cent).
• Residents of Quebec have the highest number of respondents (41 per cent) who have not taken a vacation in more than two years.

Atlantic Canada

• They are the least likely (26%) to take an annual winter vacation.
• They are the least likely (9%) to spend more money on this year's winter vacation than they did last year.
• They plan to spend about $2,291.90 per household, which is just around the national average.
• Residents of Atlantic Canada have the second-highest vacation cancellation rate in the past 12 months (19 per cent) due to the value of the Canadian dollar.

Read more: Passport Card, an Allianz Global Assistance program, is deemed the best specialist provider by ITHJ

As Canadians begin to plan their winter getaways, Allianz Global Assistance reminds them that their travel budget can easily be threatened by unexpected circumstances such as inclement weather

"In those cases, unprotected cancellations could place the entire vacation budget at risk,” said Keon. “Travel insurance can typically recover up to 100% of eligible prepaid travel-related expenses lost due to covered reasons for cancellations, such as an unforeseen illness or government advisory restricting travel to your planned destination."

For more information, visit www.allianz-assistance.ca.

Follow @MonicaPoling