Should Canadian Tourism Businesses Be Worried About U.S. Website Hosting?
If you run a tourism business in Canada, a lodge, outfitter, attraction, restaurant, or tour company. your website isn’t just marketing. It’s bookings, credibility, and often your primary point of contact with visitors from around the world. Lately, some Canadian business owners have asked us a fair question: “Given current geopolitics, is it risky to keep our website hosted by a U.S. company?” It’s a reasonable concern. Headlines can make things feel uncertain. The good news is that for most Canadian small businesses — especially in tourism — the real-world risk is much lower than it might seem. Let’s break it down.
The short answer: your site is probably safe
Most Canadian tourism businesses hosting with large U.S.-based platforms (like Squarespace, Wix, or major cloud providers) are not at meaningful risk of having their site suddenly taken offline due to political tensions.
These companies:
Serve customers globally, including Canada and Europe
Do not make hosting decisions based on nationality
Are driven by contracts, terms of service, and payment status, not geopolitics
Even in periods of serious diplomatic strain, commercial web hosting has historically been one of the last things disrupted, because shutting down foreign customers causes massive legal and financial fallout for hosting companies themselves.
What could realistically be affected?
While mass takedowns are extremely unlikely, there are a few areas where friction could appear in a worst-case scenario:
1. Billing and payments. Cross-border payment systems are often the first place tension shows up. This could mean:
Temporary billing hiccups
Requests to update payment methods
Delays in processing renewals
This is inconvenient, but it’s not the same as your site disappearing overnight.
2. Compliance with specific, targeted, legal orders.
If governments impose sanctions, they typically target:
Government entities
Large corporations
Specific regulated sectors
They do not target independent tourism operators, family-run lodges, or seasonal attractions.
What almost certainly won’t happen
Let’s be clear about what isn’t realistic:
Canadian tourism websites won’t be shut down “just in case”
There won’t be random censorship of inns, campgrounds, or tour operators
Hosting companies won’t silently pull sites without notice
That kind of instability would undermine the global internet, and hosting companies are built on avoiding exactly that.
The smarter question: how resilient is your setup?
Instead of asking “Should we panic?”, a better question is: “If something unexpected happened, how quickly could we adapt?” This is where good digital hygiene matters, regardless of politics.
At OmniWorx Design, we recommend:
Enabling multi-factor authentication
Making sure you control your domain name
Avoiding single points of failure
Knowing your options if you ever need to move hosts
These are best practices whether the world is calm or chaotic.
Why domain ownership matters more than hosting.
If there’s one part of your web presence that truly defines control, it’s your domain name.
If you own your domain independently:
You can redirect your site anywhere
You’re not locked to one provider
You retain your brand identity no matter what happens behind the scenes
That’s why OmniWorx Design offers an all-Canadian domain registration service, no foreign middlemen, no outsourcing. And yes, we’re proud that a portion of every domain registration supports the Peterborough Humane Society, helping local animals while strengthening Canadian digital independence. It’s a small choice that keeps more value, and goodwill, at home.
A note specifically for tourism businesses.
Tourism thrives on trust and stability. Visitors want to know:
You’re real
You’re reliable
You’ll be there when they arrive
The best thing you can do right now is not overreact, but also not ignore resilience. Keep your site professional, your information current, and your digital foundations solid. That’s what guests notice, not where your server rack happens to sit.
Our take at OmniWorx Design:
U.S. hosting platforms, including Squarespace, remain safe for Canadian small businesses
Panic moves create more risk than the situation itself
Ownership, backups, and flexibility matter far more than geography
Supporting Canadian digital services where it makes sense is a bonus!
If you’re unsure about your current setup, or just want peace of mind heading into the season, we’re always happy to talk it through, no pressure, no fear tactics. Because good design isn’t just about how things look. It’s about confidence, continuity, and care, for your business and your community.