US-Canada border could soon reopen, tourism industry reacts
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The United States-Canadian border could soon reopen and businesses are welcoming the news.
Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced late Thursday the country could reopen its borders to vaccinated travelers from all countries by early September and for vaccinated Americans as soon as mid-August.
The possible opening of the border has resort and business owners in the Northwest Angle feeling hopeful. They say a lot is at stake.
"It’s going to affect a lot of people, and I think a lot of people are really hopeful right now," Joe Henry, executive director of Lake of the Woods Tourism, said.
For 14 months, people haven’t been able to cross the northern border. Trudeau announced that could change if vaccination rates continue to go up and the spread of the virus stays down.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau leaves a news conference in Ottawa, Monday, Dec. 7, 2020.[Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press via AP]
"Our people are a little bit gun shy … There’s been hope before. So we are hoping, but I think it’s a cautious optimism," Henry said.
Henry said some resorts in the Northwest Angle have been down 70% to 90% in revenue over nearly the last year and a half.
"I know one resort owner and his wife, they have nobody in their resort, nobody, during the heart of the summer season," Henry stated.
If the border does reopen to vaccinated Americans in mid-August, Trudeau hinted that travelers will likely have to show a COVID-19 vaccination card.
On Friday, Sen. Amy Klobuchar was asked by KSTP how this will play out.
"We don’t have any official IDs with the vaccination … We have to get to the details," Klobuchar said.
Klobuchar, who chairs the Canada-U.S. Interparliamentary Group, said it’s been a long time coming.
"This is such a good sign, and it is not all finished yet. They’re our biggest trading partner of any foreign country, and of course, trade has been going on, but it has been severely limited, especially tourism," she added.
This has been a long road for resort and business owners. Canada closed its land border with the U.S. in March 2020. Trudeau said he expects to share more details on this possible reopening early next week.