As spring break takes full swing, flights and travellers are flowing in and out of Kelowna, B.C., in high numbers.
Kelowna International Airport (YLW) is handling between 6,500 to 7,500 people daily, according to Sam Samaddar, the airport’s CEO. The airport is building on an already busy year, seeing a growth of about 10.5 per cent in the first two months of 2025 compared to last year, with expectations for a busy March ahead.
For many, travel plans this year may look a bit different. Ongoing tensions between the U.S. and Canada have led some to stay local or avoid the United States altogether, as a gesture of Canadian solidarity.
“Our Canadian carriers point of sale into the U.S., we’ve seen demand drop quite a bit, we’ve also seen people change their plans from going to the U.S. to going into the Mexico market for example,” said Samaddar.
However, travel to Canada remains virtually unchanged. Point of sale from the U.S. into Kelowna is still strong, with American carriers like Alaska Airlines continuing to see strong numbers, says Samaddar.
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This trend is also evident on the ski hills, with US visitors flocking to the Okanagan Valley.
“The USA has really found the Okanagan,” says Michael J. Ballingall of Big White Ski Resort. “We’ve seen strong reports from Revelstoke, SilverStar, Big White, and Sun Peaks — thanks in part to new flights out of Alaska.”
At Big White, occupancy is soaring, with the resort experiencing 95 per cent to 100 per cent occupancy during this busy spring break.
As domestic and international travel to the region continues to increase, YLW is focused on capitalizing on this growing demand.
“Domestic travel is still strong. What we are working towards … is there an opportunity to build even more demand over this coming summer, so we’re working with our air carriers to potentially build more demand,” Samaddar says.
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