Tourism, Bowen Island and other stuff that comes to mind

Quoted from http://www.tourismexchange.com/exchange/en/cobrand/ctc/getArticle.jsp?articleID=3819&languageID=1:

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CANADIAN TRAVEL INTENTIONS UP 11 PER CENT

The Hotel Association of Canada (HAC) has released new market research data that reveals that in 2007 11 per cent more Canadians intend to travel in Canada than in 2006, continuing a steady increase over the past few years (57 per cent of Canadians said they would travel in Canada in 2005, 67 per cent in 2006 and 78 per cent in 2007.) Conducted by FH Canada Research, the survey of Canadian travellers is the third annual Canadian Travel Intention study conducted by the Hotel Association of Canada. It also highlights that 71 per cent of Canadians are planning to get to their leisure destination by car, with more Quebecers than any other Canadians using their car to travel to their leisure destination (76 per cent). Ninety per cent of leisure travel respondents want to receive friendly service once they arrive. They indicated this is more important to them than if the lodging property has a pool, a restaurant/bar or the Internet, and something a majority said they would pay $20 a night more for. “We continue to take the pulse of our lodging industry annually so that our members can provide the service Canadians demand and offer the products and packages that continue to reflect our changing society’s wants and needs,” says HAC president Tony Pollard. The Internet continues to gain ground in the lodging industry, with the survey determining that leisure and business travel reservations by telephone are decreasing at the same rate as Internet reservations are increasing. Forty-six per cent of Canadians say they will be making their leisure reservations by phone, a decrease of four per cent over 2006 figures. Of those using the telephone, 52 per cent said they will be calling the hotel directly and 46 per cent said they will use a 1-800 number. The Internet is up four per cent over 2006, at 33 per cent and up from a reported 29 per cent in 2005. There is still a digital divide, however, with urban leisure travellers using the Internet more than their rural counterparts. Forty-two per cent of business travellers make their reservations by telephone and 28 per cent use the Internet. Business travellers (10 per cent) are more apt to use a travel agent than their leisure counterparts (five per cent). “This tells hoteliers that their web sites have to be up to date, easy to navigate and that the online reservation process must be fast and simple,” says Pollard. “We also know how important it is for our members to have excellent staff on the phones at their facilities because more of their leisure travel guests are contacting the property directly than are calling a toll free number.” Long family vacations continue to be a thing of the past, with 62 per cent of Canadians saying they will take a long weekend holiday in 2006. Other findings: Leisure travellers would rather eat than swim, when asked which of the two choices is most important, 57 per cent chose a restaurant over a pool. They also indicated they will pay more for a lodging that is located close to the attractions they are visiting. Almost 25 per cent of all leisure travellers said that a spa was important to them. Faced with similar trade-offs, business travellers’ value proximity to their work above anything else, and will pay significantly for it — with 50 per cent stating they would pay $40 a night more for a room at a lodging that is close to their business destination. Only one-third of business travellers value a business centre at a lodging property or a health club. The use of Blackberries and free wireless seem to be making the business centre a thing of the past for almost 70 per cent of business travellers. Author -First name Canadian - Last name: Travel Press - Company: Baxter Travel Group -Email: ctp@baxter.net

WOW…this is SO awesome! Such hard work by Peter Armstrong and his entire team at Rocky Mountineer Vacations.   WAY TO GO !!!!

Quoted from http://www.cotabc.com/news/#News695:

Council of Tourism Associations of British Columbia – Tourism News

February 4, 2007 COTA RELEASES REPORT ON PASSENGER RAIL TRANSPORTATION IN BC

COTA has released a new edition of its BC Tourism Series Review entitled “All Aboard:  Passenger Rail in British Columbia.”  Rail tourism has been a growth market for B.C. over the last 15 years, and the province can now boast the finest tourism rail network in North America.   COTA’s twenty page report reviews existing rail infrastructure in BC, its relationship to the tourism industry and opportunities for growth on a municipal, provincial, national and international level.  This report is an innovative look at policy and planning options for both industry and government stakeholders.  Read more.

To download a pdf copy of the report, click here. 

For information on other BC Tourism Review Series reports, click here.

Quoted from http://www.tourismexchange.com/exchange/en/cobrand/ctc/getArticle.jsp?articleID=3581&languageID=1:

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GETTING A TASTE FOR TRAVEL

While clearly a niche travel market, culinary travel involves millions of travellers spending billions of dollars. Overall, more than one-in-ten American leisure travellers have engaged in some type of culinary or wine-related activity while travelling within the past three years. Beyond participating in culinary activities on trips, travellers can be further divided into groups based on how central these activities have been to their trip and the planning process. According to a new report released by the Tourism Industry Apssociation and Edge Research: Just under one in ten leisure travellers report that food or wine-related activities were a key reason they took a trip or were a factor in their choice of destinations. These are classified as “Deliberate” Culinary Travellers. Another segment of leisure travellers can be classified as “Opportunistic” Culinary Travellers, meaning that they took at least one trip where they sought out culinary activities, but these were not a factor in choosing destinations. Finally, another sub-group of leisure travellers can be classified as “Accidental” Culinary Travellers because they participated in culinary activities on a trip “simply because they were available.” www.tia.org/researchpubs/index.html Author:

We are going to have a new gym opening on March 1 in Artisan Square.  I’m actually considering offering my time for a few hours a week to OPEN it…. maybe 6-9am….do a workout and then hit the golf course!   Hmmmm…… it DOES sound pretty good, now that I think about it.   Fridays?   Nice way to start the weekend!

Just to keep you up to date….. mark your calendars:

Friday Feb 9th – make sure you are signed up for the Walk to Whistler as part of the Bowen Island Spirit of BC Week and win a trip on the Whistler Mountaineer.  This is a return trip (does not have to be taken on the same day).  From Vancouver you’ll travel on the Coast Classic which features a wonderful Box Breakfast, juices, coffee, tea, softdrinks and the running commentary from the awesome staff.   On the way back, you’ll travel on the Glacier Dome…. enjoy the Afternoon Tea catered by the Fairmont Whistler with a selection of 6 teas; tea-sandwiches (cucumber, smoked salmon, ham); wonderful English Scones with Devonshire Cream and Jam plus a selection of desserts.  Not only does this leg of the trip include your coffee and tea but all of your wines, beers or softdrinks!  

Thursday Feb 15 – Bowen Tourism meeting – come and commit to building the economic future of the island based on tourism.  We will finish this section of where we were, what we have and where we are going!  Once we have the Foundation Program done, we will develop a Strategic Marketing Plan which will lever $20,000 a year that we can utilize to manage our tourism.  In 2006 we welcomed 12,630 visitors to the Info Centre…. and projecting close to 20,000 next year which equates to over $2 million in spending on our shores!

Sat/Sun Feb 17 & 18 – The Golf and Travel Show at BC Place (with the inflated roof) – The Bowen Golf Club and the Chamber will be promoting Bowen in the Vancouver Coast and Mountains Tourism Region section.  Come and Visit us…..better still, invest $50 and give us a stack of your brochures to promote your Bowen Product/Service

Thursday Feb 22 – If you missed the Golf and Travel Show, come to Capilano Mall where the Chamber will be participating in the North Vancouver Chamber of Commerce’s annual trade show!   We are just up from Starbucks!   Come and find out more about our amazing golf course and retailers and B&B’s.

Saturday Feb 24 – GRANT WRITING COURSE presented by the Bowen Island Community Foundation in cooperation with the Vancouver Foundation at BICS from 9am to noon.

Tuesday March 6 – The Bowen Island Chamber’s Annual Meeting at 7pm at CNIB’s Bowen Lodge by the Sea.  Learn about a HUGE new intitiative that is going to make such a difference to our quality of life on Bowen.  PLUS find out who will be the NEW President of the Chamber after I step down after 4 years!

Wednesday April 11 – Bowen Island Community Foundation’s Annual General Meeting at the IMAGINE Centre!   So many wonderful things are happening with YOUR way to ‘give back to Bowen”.

I have thought about doing a BLOG for a long time.  Now the challenge will be to keep it active.

To bring you up to date, I am giving up the Presidency of the Bowen Island Chamber of Commerce (www.bowenisland.org) at our AGM on March 6, 2006 and will be concentrating on the Community Tourism Foundations program and at the end of this, we will have a Tourism Management Program complete with a full Marketing & Sales program funded with $20,000 a year of matching dollars to DO things to benefit the economy of Bowen.     I will also continue in my role as Vice Chair of the Bowen Island Community Foundation (www.bowenfoundation.com) and as chair of the Spirit of BC – Bowen Island committee.