Vancouver Adds China Flights as Chinese Visitor Arrivals Through B.C. Fall in 2026

More flights between Vancouver and China have not necessarily brought more Chinese tourists to B.C. According to Destination BC, 18,265 Chinese tourists visited BC in June 2022, a 7.8% decrease compared to June 2021. From January to June 2022, Chinese tourists visiting BC also decreased compared to the same period in the previous year. While more direct flights between Canada and China have been allowed, the BC government is also working to promote tourism. Air Canada and other airlines have resumed flights between Vancouver and China, however, more direct flights do not guarantee an increase in Chinese visitors. The BC government will have to work to promote tourism to bring Chinese tourists to BC.

Vancouver China flights grow against a weaker arrivals picture

The two developments can appear contradictory. Airlines and governments are making room for more travel between Canada and China, yet the latest published monthly figures available from Destination BC show fewer Chinese nationals entering Canada through B.C. than a year earlier.

Destination BC’s June 2026 international visitor arrivals report, prepared from Statistics Canada data, recorded 18,265 entries from China through B.C. That was 7.8% below June 2025 and 48.2% below June 2019.

For the first six months of 2026, the report recorded 77,104 entries through B.C. from China. That was 5.6% below the same period in 2025 and 47.3% below the comparable 2019 period. The year-to-date result shows why a new flight schedule, by itself, cannot establish that inbound tourism has recovered. (destinationbc.ca)

Sources: Destination BC’s June 2026 arrivals report and its published 2026 leisure travel forecast. The customs-entry and leisure-visit series have different definitions and should not be treated as one continuous measure. (destinationbc.ca)

There is also a timing difference. June’s arrivals describe travel that has already happened. Later flight plans concern capacity that airlines expect to offer. Future services cannot explain away a decline in an earlier month, but they may help shape what happens next.

Why an airport arrival is not always a B.C. holiday

The wording of the official data matters. Destination BC’s monthly report counts international visitors who cross Canadian customs in British Columbia. It does not count every person who spends a holiday in the province.

Someone arriving at Vancouver International Airport may continue to another Canadian province. Conversely, a visitor who enters Canada through another province and later travels to B.C. will not appear in B.C.’s customs-entry figure.

Destination BC makes both limitations clear in its published methodology. It also says its overseas arrivals series currently includes trips of all durations, including same-day and overnight travel. That means the June figure should be described as entries through B.C., rather than as a count of overnight Chinese tourists staying in the province. (destinationbc.ca)

The distinction changes the question for the tourism industry. More passengers through YVR may help the airport and airlines. For a hotel in Vancouver, an attraction in the Rockies or a tour company on Vancouver Island, the more useful measures are visits, nights stayed and money spent in B.C.

Canada has opened the door to more direct services

On 20 April 2026, Transport Canada announced an incremental increase in the direct passenger flights permitted between Canada and China. The arrangement also allows up to 20 all-cargo flights a week and gives airlines reciprocal access to points in both countries.

The announcement was a change in what airlines are allowed to operate. It was not a statement that every permitted passenger flight had started, or that each extra aircraft would carry tourists bound for B.C. Airlines still decide which services to schedule and sell. (Canada.ca)

Vancouver already had a substantial direct network. During a provincial trade mission announced in June, Destination BC said B.C. had 26 direct weekly flights from mainland China to Vancouver at that point. It described that as about 40% of 2019 levels, with further weekly flights from Hong Kong and Taiwan counted separately. (Destination BC)

YVR’s publicly available 2026 route brochure, updated in July, lists mainland China services to Beijing, Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Xiamen. It is a useful picture of the established network, but its publication date means it cannot confirm every reported change planned for November. Travellers should check their airline’s current timetable before making plans. (yvr.ca)

The longer recovery tells a different story from one month

June’s fall is newsworthy, but it should not erase the wider improvement recorded in 2025. Destination BC’s China market profile estimates that Chinese travellers made about 169,000 overnight visits to B.C. in 2025, up 23% from 2024.

The organisation estimates those visitors spent C$487 million in the province, up 24% year on year. It puts average spending at about C$2,900 per visit. The profile labels these figures preliminary and subject to revision. (Destination BC)

This gives the current story its sharper edge. B.C. entered 2026 after growth in both visits and spending, but the first-half customs-entry figures from China were lower than in 2025. The two series measure different things, so they cannot be combined into a single trend line. Together, they show why editors and tourism businesses need more than a flight count to judge the recovery.

China remains significant for B.C.’s tourism economy. Destination BC ranks it as the province’s third-largest overseas market by visits in 2025 and estimates that B.C. received 51% of Chinese overnight arrivals to Canada that year. A change in this market can therefore matter well beyond the airport. (Destination BC)

B.C. is trying to turn access into longer trips

The provincial tourism agency has responded with direct work in China. During a 2026 trade mission, Destination BC planned meetings with airlines, online travel sellers and travel agencies in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. Its stated aim was to strengthen tourism relationships and put B.C. itineraries in front of potential visitors. (Destination BC)

The agency also identified the return of Approved Destination Status for Chinese group travel as part of the market’s changing conditions. For travel businesses, that creates an opportunity to offer organised itineraries. It does not establish how many groups have booked or travelled; those outcomes need separate evidence. (Destination BC)

Where visitors go within B.C. is another part of the story. Destination BC says 91% of Chinese travellers to the province visit the Vancouver, Coast & Mountains region. Its published strategy proposes promoting routes and experiences beyond Greater Vancouver, including Rainforest to Rockies, Valleys & Vineyards, the Infinite Coast and ski travel. (Destination BC)

That regional goal gives tour operators and local businesses a practical test. If direct air access improves, will more itineraries include additional B.C. destinations? Published regional visits and spending, rather than airport traffic alone, would show whether the benefits spread.

What the spending forecast does and does not promise

Destination BC forecasts 198,927 Chinese leisure visits to B.C. in 2026, an 18% increase on its 2025 estimate of 168,586. It forecasts C$589 million in visitor spending, up 21% from C$487 million. (Destination BC)

These are forecasts for the full year, not results already achieved. They give hotels, attractions and travel sellers a view of the opportunity that Destination BC sees, while the first-half entry figures show that performance still needs to be checked against actual travel.

Spending is especially important when assessing the economic effect. An additional flight can carry visitors, people seeing family, business travellers and passengers connecting elsewhere. Only the share that visits B.C. and buys accommodation, transport, meals or experiences contributes directly to the visitor spending measured in the provincial forecast.

It would also be too early to put a job-creation figure on the proposed flight growth. The official sources reviewed here provide a tourism spending forecast, but no verified estimate of jobs created by the additional China services. Any employment claim would need its own published model and clearly stated assumptions.

A practical visa distinction for travellers

Improved air links do not change entry rules automatically. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s entry guidance tells travellers to check which document they need for Canada according to their passport and circumstances. Visitors should complete that check before booking a non-refundable trip. (Canada.ca)

There is a separate change for travel in the opposite direction. The Chinese embassy in Canada says Canadian citizens holding ordinary passports may enter China visa-free for up to 30 days for eligible purposes, including tourism, from 17 February to 31 December 2026. That policy applies to eligible Canadians visiting China; it does not remove Canadian entry requirements for Chinese visitors travelling to Vancouver. (ca.china-embassy.gov.cn)

Travellers should also check the operating airline and the date of each flight. A route shown in an airport brochure may have a different frequency on the intended travel dates, particularly when airlines change from summer to winter schedules.

Frequently asked questions

Are Chinese visitor numbers in B.C. falling despite more flights?
Destination BC’s published customs-entry figures show a 7.8% year-on-year decline in June 2026 and a 5.6% decline for January to June. Those figures count entries through B.C., not every Chinese tourist who stayed in the province. Later flight plans have yet to be assessed against later visitor results.

Do Chinese passport holders need a visa to visit Canada?
Travellers should use Canada’s official entry-requirements tool for their passport and circumstances before booking. China’s visa-free policy for eligible Canadian passport holders travelling to China is a separate rule and does not apply in reverse. (Canada.ca)

Where can travellers check direct flights between Vancouver and mainland China?
YVR publishes an airlines and destinations page and a route brochure. Travellers should confirm their specific dates, frequency and ticket conditions with the operating airline, as schedules can change. (YVR)

What comes next for B.C. tourism

According to Destination BC, Chinese tourism is set to rebound by 2026. In the meantime, recovery in direct trade with China has not been a steady line. The latest customs data, covering the first half of this year, shows rising exports to China but a decline in imports from China. The most relevant data to assess recovery will be international visitor arrivals, overnight visits, regional stays and visitor expenditures. These data will show if improved flights to British Columbia have helped international tourists visit the province and if once-activated local businesses have been able to serve and sustain tourists. Currently, the data show increasing visits from international tourists but a more broadly recovery effort by British Columbia to attract international tourists.(destinationbc.ca)