In celebration, under the theme Tourism Unexpected, Tourism Victoria created an interesting blog by interviewing six professionals who you probably didn’t know depended on tourism. From a proud third-generation longshoreman to a senior manager at a digital ad agency to an engineer at a hotel, tourism runs wide and deep in our community.
To some, tourism appears to be a sector that “just happens”; when it’s sunny and the dollar is low, visitors magically appear. I can assure you tourism is as sophisticated and professional as any other service sector. Generating an estimated $1.9 billion in economic impact to Greater Victoria, tourism is responsible for approximately 22,000 jobs.
As a tourism professional, I am pleased to see an increasing understanding of how tourism contributes to our region. To any who think tourism is a thin, seasonal business, allow me provide some context to explain how Greater Victoria is an important player in the world’s trillion-dollar tourism economy.
The United Nations World Tourism Organization states there are now 1.13 billion international travellers per year. Likely reaching 1.8 billion by 2030, this number does not count the high numbers of domestic travellers who are the foundation of our industry. Tourism is now the No. 2 employer in the world and the fourth largest contributor to GDP. As a strong pillar in Greater Victoria’s economy, tourism is therefore a sector to be counted on.
Nationally, Canada’s tourism industry generates $87 billion annually, and $17 billion of this is export. Importantly, this $17 billion in revenue makes tourism Canada’s largest service-sector export. As Victoria is one of Canada’s top destinations, there is no doubt Victoria’s regional tourism economy is an important engine for our country.
With this in mind, Tourism Victoria appreciates that the recent federal budget includes support for Connecting America, a $30-million marketing program led by Destination Canada that is designed to attract U.S. visitors.
Similarly, tourism is important to the province of British Columbia and is a pillar of the B.C. Jobs Plan. This spring, Jock Finlayson of the B.C. Business Council remarked that: “The tourism industry and the advanced IT industry are the two sectors that will guide B.C. through this current resources slump.” Finlayson also remarked on how labour-intensive the tourism industry is, providing quality employment that keeps citizens engaged in the economy and gaining new skills.
Municipally, we are seeing a deeper understanding of how tourism positively affects the economy and society of metro Victoria. In the recently approved City of Victoria strategic plan, there was recognition of tourism and support for our sector’s growth, and we thank mayor, council and staff for this.
As a bold statement for the future, the board of Tourism Victoria was pleased to see the city purchase 812 Wharf St., thereby keeping this iconic building in local control. As B.C.’s busiest visitor centre, this site is vitally important to our members, and we look forward to deepening our partnership with the city.
With the number of leisure travellers and conference delegates to Victoria trending upward, it is important to see milestone investments such as the collaboration between the provincial government and private sector to invest $17 million in the Belleville Terminal docks. Also important is the announcement of a new Delta Air Lines flight from Seattle, connecting Victoria to Delta’s global network.
With this, it’s key to remember two facts: Visitors often settle and invest where they travel, and, because tourism is an amenity-based business, many services that locals enjoy are made possible by tourism.
This week, we celebrate that tourism supports 660,000 direct jobs across Canada and recognize the Statistics Canada figure that one in 10 jobs is directly supported by tourism. The six people profiled in Tourism Victoria’s Tourism Unexpected blog truly demonstrate the incredible opportunity the tourism industry provides for a diversity of careers (tourismvictoria.com/blog).
On behalf of all Tourism Victoria members, to the citizens of Greater Victoria, thank you for your ongoing support of our vitally important industry. In doing so, please remember that tourism is innately local and cannot be outsourced. We are an industry that supports cultural interaction and activity, and tourism is the one export industry where goods and services are made and consumed locally.
Dave Cowen is chairman of the Tourism Victoria board of directors.
