Gone are the days of Canadians crossing the border to do some shopping at the much loved Walden Galleria or Grove City Outlet in the U.S.

Instead, our neighbours from the south are trying to come here to do their shopping, despite COVID-19 travel restrictions. 

According to CTV News, 12,819 Americans have been denied access at the Canadian border between March 22 and Aug. 5. More than a quarter of those U.S. citizens were turned away after admitting they were coming to Canada for sightseeing. 

Although 6,000 were barred for entering the country for undisclosed "other" reasons, 3,658 were attempting to come to Canada for "tourism" or "sightseeing". Over 600 of those Americans said "non-essential shopping" was the reason for their visit.

Canadians are not too happy about this. 

This truly baffles me about Americans. I get it if they are coming for essential work, but seriously. My mom and Aunt, who live in the states right now, wont be visiting their families soon.They understand and thought what is at risk.

— mcgk (@mcgkn) August 14, 2020

"Seriously what part of closed borders don't these guys understand? It's bad enough int he U.S.A as it is with cases, we don't need them bringing it here to Canada," another Twitter user wrote.

However it isn't just Americans wanting to have fun in Canada. 

More than 100 non-U.S. foreign nationals were also turned away at different ports of entry because they wanted to do some shopping. Approximately 1,000 non-U.S. foreign nationals were denied entry due to "other" reasons.

Of course, this hasn't stopped American citizens from finding their way in.

Last month, a Florida couple each received a fine of $1,000 after entering Canada in Fort Erie to attend a seasonal property. They did not complete the mandatory 14-day self-isolation.