New Statistics Show Increases in Domestic Tourism Spending, Decreases in Spending by Foreign Visitors to Canada

Statistics Canada has issued its National Tourism Indicators for the fourth quarter, 2010.

Tourism spending in Canada rose 0.3% in real terms in the fourth quarter, as increased spending by Canadians at home more than offset a decline in foreign tourism spending in Canada.  This was the sixth consecutive quarterly increase in tourism spending in Canada for a cumulative gain of 6.7% since the second quarter of 2009.

Tourism gross domestic product (GDP) advanced 0.3% in the fourth quarter, the sixth consecutive quarterly increase.  The accommodation, food and beverage services and other tourism industries (such as travel services and recreation and entertainment) all posted gains, while tourism GDP for the transportation industry declined.  Overall, Canada's tourism GDP reached $30 billion in 2010, a 7% increase over the previous year. 

Tourism employment increased 0.2% in the fourth quarter.  This was the second consecutive quarterly gain in tourism employment, led by growth in the accommodation and non-tourism industries.  As many as 617,300 jobs were attributable to tourism spending in 2010.

For further information, please visit the full article in Statistics Canada’s The Daily (link)

Win Your Registration to TIAC’s Tourism Congress by Participating in a Brief Survey From TIAC and Deloitte

As Deloitte and TIAC prepare to release our Summer 2011 issue of Navigate: New Directions in Tourism, Hospitality, and Leisure, we invite each of our members to participate in a brief, 5-minute survey.  This survey will allow us to gauge intentions and perspectives on the tourism industry from the view of businesses, attractions, accommodations providers, and numerous other organizations that welcome tourists to destinations across Canada. 

The aim of this semi-annual publication is to aggregate and analyze views from travellers and tourism organizations in Canada to provide leading insight on one of our most important industries.  As you'll recall, our Winter 2011 issue was released during November's TIAC Congress - if you've not yet had the chance to read the full issue, please click here. 

All members that participate in this survey will be entered into a draw to win one free registration to TIAC's annual conference in Ottawa this November.  In order to qualify for this prize, all surveys must be completed by Friday, April 15th.  The survey can be accessed by clicking here.

Thank you in advance for your participation.

Kevin Desjardins
Director, Communications
613-240-7225

Twitter: @TIAC_Kevin

New Election Brief to Provide Your Candidates With Overview on the State of the Tourism Industry

With a federal election scheduled for May 2nd, 2011, TIAC wishes to remind its members that it has prepared a brief presentation which outlines the top federal issues for Canada's tourism sector, as well as contextual information on the state on the industry.

Titled Gateway to Growth: Our Global Competitiveness Requires a New Roadmap (M.A.P.), this document breaks down our priorities to three essential planks:

  • M for Marketing - Competitive and sustainable funding for the Canadian Tourism Commission
  • A for Access - Structural barriers in our aviation and visa policies
  • P for Product - Investment in publicly-owned tourism products, and renewed support for attractions and festivals.

We encourage TIAC members and those who believe in the positive impact that the sector can have on the economy to look at the messages we have developed, and to share this document with candidates and canvassers in your community.

TIAC will continue to monitor developments throughout the campaign, and will keep members informed of any relevant campaign announcements with regard to our sector.

Tourism is a $74 billion industry which impacts on the economy of all 308 ridings. We invite our members from across the country to share their views, and would appreciate any feedback from the campaigns in your ridings across the country.

For more information, please contact:

Kevin Desjardins
Director, Communications
613-240-7225

Twitter: @TIAC_Kevin

Canada’s tourism voice strengthens once again with the addition of four new members

TIAC is pleased to welcome the following new members to the organization:

Courtyard by Marriott Niagara Falls – Tourism Business Category

The Courtyard by Marriott Niagara Falls is a 3-diamond, green-friendly hotel with 258 spacious guest rooms perfectly situated in the heart of the tourist district and just one block from the world famous Niagara Falls.  Whether you are visiting Niagara Falls for business or pleasure, you’ll find all the amenities and services you’ll need within the hotel.  The hotel is located only a short distance away from the Fallsview Casino, Casino Niagara and Clifton Hill. The Courtyard by Marriott is also surrounded by the best Niagara Falls restaurants, shopping and “must-see” Niagara Falls Attractions.  The hotel offers complimentary high speed wired and wireless internet access, guest laundry, indoor and outdoor pools, whirlpool, sauna, fitness centre and much more.

National Arts Centre – Tourism Business Category

The National Arts Centre (NAC)  is the only multidisciplinary, bilingual performing arts centre in North America, and one of the largest in the world.  Created by the Parliament of Canada as a Centennial project during the 1960s, the NAC has become Canada's foremost showcase for the performing arts.  Today, the NAC works with countless artists, both emerging and established, from across Canada and around the world, and collaborates with scores of other arts organizations across the country.  The NAC is strongly committed to being a leader and innovator in each of the performing arts fields in which it works - classical music, English theatre, French theatre, dance, variety, and community programming.  It is at the forefront of youth and educational activities, supporting programmes for young and emerging artists and programmes for young audiences, and producing resources and study materials for teachers.

Canadian Hotel Guide – Tourism Business Category

CanadianHotelGuide.com is an officially authorized hotel reservation agent for over 3,000 hotels in Canada. CanadianHotelGuide.com provides a secure real-time booking engine that processes hotel reservations instantly so that you know your hotel booking is guaranteed.  Launched in 2002, Canadian Hotel Guide.com reflects an intensive effort to deliver the largest quantity of choices for discount hotel reservations, travel, and recreational needs to a global audience at prices that are guaranteed to be EXTREMELY discounted. Canadian Hotel Guide.com combines the efforts of an aggressive, experienced, entrepreneurial management team.  In a noisy industry, where dozens of branded online travel companies claim to deliver discounts - and often fail to deliver anything close to the lowest possible prices - Canadian Hotel Guide.com will renew the online user"s belief that web-based operations can be leveraged to slash costs and deliver the cheapest hotel reservations on Earth.

The Canadian Biosphere Reserves Association – Sectoral Organization/Association Category

The Canadian Biosphere Reserves Association CBRA is an association of Canada’s 15 Canadian biosphere reserves. People in Canadian biosphere regions develop and promote innovative approaches to conservation and economic development.  Canadian Biosphere Reserve communities live and work in balance with the biosphere — the land, water, and atmosphere that support life. People in biosphere regions recognize that high-quality economies require high-quality environments, and that conservation is important to both.