ESSEX, Vt. (AP) – A favorable exchange rate for the Canadian dollar is bringing more Canadians south of the border to search for bargains and entertainment than in years.
The influx of Canadians has caught the attention of area retailers, restaurant owners and hoteliers.
“I’m at the point where I’m starting to look for waitresses who speak French,” said Bob Conlon, manager of Leunig’s Bistro on Church Street in Burlington.
A few weeks ago on a Saturday night, Conlon estimated, one in three of his patrons at the French bistro were Canadian. Maybe it’s the familiar sound of singer Edith Piaf and other French musicians that filters out onto the street that draws them in, Conlon said.
On Saturday at the Essex Outlet Fair, white and blue Canadian license plates popped out among the green Vermont plates.
“I find a lot of bargains,” said Yiota Smith of Vaudreuil, Quebec, who was doing some back-to-school shopping at the outlet stores Saturday morning with her daughter, Amanda Smith.
She also shops the outlets in the Lake George area of New York, she said.
And chances are the increase is due to the exchange rate between Canadian and U.S. dollars. On Friday the Canadian dollar was worth 72 cents to the U.S. dollar Friday, not far from the 52-week high of 75 cents June 18. The 52-week low was 63 cents on Oct. 4.
Bargain shopping isn’t the only draw for Canadians. Gas prices are also a big attraction.
“I buy all my gas in the U.S. It’s three-and-a-half bucks a gallon in Canada,” said John Kimppon, who lives just over the border near Stanstead, Quebec.
, and was snoozing in the car while his wife shopped at the outlet mall in Essex.
Hotels and motels in the area are also noticing more Canadian visitors.
“It’s definitely a lot of walk-in traffic,” said Gary Farrell, president and owner of Clarion Burlington Hotel and Suites. “Particularly the Canadian travelers don’t make the reservations in advance. They just drive down here and they ask what you have and what kind of a rate.”
AP-ES-08-10-03 1300EDT
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