According to the latest edition of Expedia’s Vacation Deprivation Report, 58% of Canadians say they’re feeling vacation deprived.

However less than half (45%) of Canadians used all their vacation days in 2023 and only a quarter have already booked or taken vacation in the current year.

The annual report has been analyzing time-off trends around the world for 24 years.

Canadians take on average, seven more vacation days annually than their American neighbors. Some 65% of Americans said they feel vacation deprived. The 2024 report found that American and Japanese workers take a similar number of days off each year (11 and 12 respectively), but Japan boasts the lowest vacation deprivation levels in the world (53%). France and Hong Kong take nearly a month off annually.

Compared to the rest of the world, Canadians are slightly more likely to go a year or more between vacations (21% vs. 18% globally). For Canadians, hoarding time off in case of an emergency was the number one reason vacation days were left on the table last year, whereas American’s felt life was too busy to plan or take vacation.

“We may not be able to control how many days off we get, but the research begs the question: What can we learn from other countries that will help Canadians use their time off to the fullest extent,” said Melanie Fish, head of Expedia Group brands public relations. “In Japan, people take time off every month instead of just twice a year. For the French, a full month of vacation still doesn’t feel like enough time. Clearly there’s a lot to borrow from, whether it’s spreading your PTO throughout the year or prioritizing rest on your next vacation.”

One in five Canadians (20%) didn’t use all their time off in 2023 because they were saving up for a big trip, then often ended up leaving days unused. Fish says taking the pressure off a big annual trip can be a time, money and PTO saver for deprived Canadian travellers.

Expedia’s annual Vacation Deprivation study was conducted online March 26 – April 3, 2024 among 11,580 respondents across the U.S., UK, Canada, Mexico, France, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Source: Travelweek