Tourism spending in Canada is expected to bounce back quicker than expected
IAN STALKER
Tourism spending in this country is now expected to bounce back from the punishing Covid pandemic faster than was forecast a couple of years ago.
Marc Seguin, TIAC’s vice president, policy and government affairs, told a Feb. 1 town hall gathering in Toronto that “total tourism spending is now expected to recover in 2024,” considerably quicker than some earlier gloomier forecasts predicted, with many warnings having stated that that recovery might not happen before 2025.
“Domestic spending is poised to fully recover in 2023, U.S. spending in 2024 and overseas by 2025,” Seguin told the audience.
But Seguin also said that high inflation levels are now driving up tourism spending, and, when adjusted for inflation, “real tourism spending is, in reality, recovering much slower. It will lag behind by two or three years.”
Seguin cited a longer-term forecast that predicted “real tourism spending” to be 5% “above our pre-pandemic levels” by 2030.
TIAC surveyed member businesses last summer about their financial well-being, with respondents reporting that their revenues were down significantly and costs were up dramatically from 2019.
The level of debt tourism operators now carry also impacts their bottom line, Seguin added, with 73% of member businesses still carrying a debt load “generally considered problematic at the time of this survey.”
However, Seguin said there are a number of factors that give rise to optimism, with a majority of surveyed member businesses were hopeful about growth over the next three to five years.
Seguin also noted that last year saw the establishment of the Parliamentary Tourism Caucus, with that group’s members proving to be “true tourism champions.”
Seguin also noted a number of welcome developments coming from Ottawa, with one instance being the Temporary Foreign Workers Program being modified last year, making family members who accompany the “principal applicant to Canada” eligible for work permits themselves. The move is seen as being helpful in alleviating the labor shortages many tourism businesses are grappling with.
Seguin also pointed out that TIAC also became a World Travel and Tourism Council member last year and a United Nations World Tourism Organization affiliate member.
As well, June saw Rendez-vous Canada — which promotes Canada as a tourism destination internationally — reappear as an in-person event after a two-year hiatus resulting from Covid.
Meanwhile, Seguin reminded those on hand for the town hall that Tourism Week will this year run from April 24-30.
“This is the time of year when we rally the whole sector to celebrate tourism and highlight its importance to Canada’s economy, culture and shared heritage,” he said of the upcoming week.
