'Ghost town': Bellingham residents feel effects of B.C. boycotts as tariff war continues
The number of Canadians planning travel to the United States amidst the ongoing tariff war continues to drop, and residents just south of British Columbia are seeing the effects.
With United States President Donald Trump doubling tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum products on Wednesday and Canadians now having to pay a new surtax at the U.S.-Canada border, there’s been a visible decrease in traffic at Washington shopping destinations that B.C. residents used to regularly visit.
And while some Bellinghamsters debate on Reddit whether the “fuss is exaggerated,” others claim that the number of Canadian visitors is the lowest they’ve ever seen.
Trader Joe’s
“Both Trader Joe’s and Costco have been dead,” said one commenter. “Our economy is really going to suffer.
“I wish we could support each others’ small businesses across the borders so that we don’t hurt the individuals while we are trying to make a bigger point. Like, we are the bluest state! But yeah, the Canadians are MIFFED.”
“I was just [at Costco] on a Friday at 5 p.m. Rolled right in and got gas. Parked eight stalls from the front. As I was leaving, I counted three Canadian plates in that whole row. It’s a ghost town, comparatively.”
A Washington resident compared the amount of southbound Peace Arch border crossings on the first Saturday in March 2025 to a year ago using data from Cascade Gateway Border Wait Times and discovered that total border traffic was down over 31 per cent.
Peace Arch border crossing (Shutterstock)
“While this is very unfortunate and will hurt many people, I’m with my Canadian neighbors who have had their economy and sovereignty threatened by Trump (including today),” added the resident. “His interests don’t align with either regular Americans or Canadians. It won’t be easier to stand up to him later, it will be much harder and dangerous.
“There’s nothing to celebrate here for regular people — tariffs and threats are going to make the lives of all of us worse, and local businesses will eventually have to cut staff. I’m aware of multiple businesses that are holding off on hiring and projects until things stabilize. The good people have got to stick together and do what is right.”
A number of Bellingham residents shared anecdotal evidence trying to prove that the amount of Canadians coming down south remains near normal levels.
“Parking lots are still packed with them,” said a Redditor. “Maybe a slight reduction, but things in the Vancouver area are tough. I spoke to one, and the cost of food for them is outrageous enough that if they can come down here to buy food, they will, regardless of politics.”
Bellingham Costco (Google Maps)
Employees at local shopping outlets responded to the contrary.
“Long-time Trader Joe’s worker here. We have certainly experienced the slow down, and our sales are dipping a bit,” said one person.
“I was talking to someone who works [at Costco Bellingham] yesterday and he said it’s the slowest he’s ever seen it,” shared another
“I work at the Walmart in Bellingham and can confirm that we’ve had measurably less Canadians come through in the past few months, understandably,” added another commenter.
Several residents north of the border chimed into the conversation.
“Vancouver resident here, a lot of my friends and family, myself included, have stopped going down to the States. The exchange rate is worse than ever, ongoing tariff wars make me want to support Canada,” posted one British Columbian.
“You’re always welcome here, as a visitor,” added a Canadian Redditor. “But as a country, and as a (former?) friend, there’s a lot you gotta work on before the country as a whole will be in our good graces.”
City of Bellingham
And with the recent news that Canadians who plan to visit the United States for longer periods will soon need to register their information with President Donald Trump’s government, the drop in Vancouver visitors to Bellingham may continue for the foreseeable future.
One Bellingham resident shared a simple message to all of Canada during the ongoing trade war.
“We love you, Canada. I am sorry.”