Canada is a country where the score of a hockey game can turn inter-provincial relationships sour. For generations the scars of the battle of Alberta have continuously been reopened to the resounding theme of Hockey Night In Canada. Likewise, Montreal and Toronto’s century long rivalry to be known as the team of record in Canada has resulted in many bilingual debates across the bars, workplaces, and homes of Canadians.
It isn’t uncommon to see a sea of rival jerseys invading home rinks of even the most popular Canadian teams. FlightHub, a Canadian online travel agency, and their CEO Matt Keezer recently compiled a list of the top destinations in Canada. Rather than rank them by name, why not have some fun and rank them by NHL squad.
1 – Toronto – Home of the Maple Leafs
It pains them to say it as a Montreal-based company, but FlightHub’s top Canadian destination was unsurprisingly Toronto, Ontario. This comes as no surprise as Toronto is Canada’s largest city and is a booming business town, drawing both a large number of tourists and business professionals alike. Matt Keezer says Toronto routinely tops the list adding “there is an obvious correlation between population size and flights,” adding “that’s why you always see cities like New York at or near the top of similar lists in the United States.” In total, Toronto accounted for 24.3 percent of all destinations within Canada.
2 – Vancouver – Home of the Canucks
Canada’s second largest city, Vancouver is the Toronto of the West. With vast environmental beauty and a thriving city that is fresh off hosting the 2010 Olympics, the city still has the coat of wax that was applied five years ago intact, making it one of the best skylines most beautiful cities in all of Canada.
3 – Calgary – Home of the Flames
As a larger city in Canada, Calgary routinely ranks high on these kind of lists. What is surprising is the success it has during the Winter, as many of Calgary’s key tourism events like the Calgary Stampede occur during the Summer months.
4 – Edmonton – Home of the Oilers
Edmonton accounted for 7.1 per cent of Canada’s holiday destinations. Edmonton is the fifth largest city in Canada, ranking just behind Calgary in this regard.
5 – Montreal – Home of the Canadiens
Montreal makes for some of the most confusing numbers when it comes to holiday destinations. While Montreal has a small language barrier, the fact that the second largest and one of the most cultured cities in Canada paces far behind much smaller cities is quite surprising and bucks the trend that population always correlates with tourism rates. Matt Keezer believes the key factor may be climate based saying “Montreal has notoriously cold Winters,” adding “this could have something to do with their success at drawing tourists in the Winter months.”
6 – Ottawa – Home of the Senators
Ottawa’s lower placement is not a surprise. With a hefty percentage of workers in Ottawa being employed by the federal government and many more commuting there or transplanting there from across the country, it comes as no surprise that Ottawa’s stock as a destination takes a hit at one of the most family focused times of the year.
7 – Winnipeg – Home of the Jets
Lastly, Winnipeg. The team name here is somewhat ironic as Winnipeg accounted for just 4.4 per cent of all of Canada’s destinations this Winter.