New campaign showcases Toronto through the eyes of insiders

Actor and writer Simu Liu is one of five Toronto insiders in Destination Toronto’s first U.S.-facing marketing campaign since 2019. You Gotta See What We See uses video storytelling to invite viewers to see the city through their lens, highlighting the diversity and uniqueness of Canada’s largest city.

In addition to Liu, who is known for portraying Shang-Chi in the 2021 Marvel Cinematic Universe film Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, the campaign features: Nick Liu, critically-acclaimed chef and owner of DaiLo; Mariah Amber, live and digital host for the Toronto Raptors; Santee Siouxx, a Dakhota and Odawa content creator who focuses on Indigenous history, representation, cultural appropriation, and sustainable brands; and Sonia Mangat, host and reporter on CTV’s ETalk and CP24 Breakfast Television.

“Toronto has played such an integral role in the launch of my career,” said Liu. “I am thrilled to be a part of this campaign sharing my love of this city. I owe everything to the arts and theatre scene here; It’s an incredible community for the exchange of ideas, cultural perspectives and extraordinary stories.”

Each video takes a first-person approach to storytelling, featuring the insider’s favourite spots in the city, their unique perspectives on what makes Toronto special, and stories about what they love about the city.

“Toronto is best experienced by engaging with its people, neighbourhoods, cultures, festivals, cuisine and more. Our role is to share the stories from this incredible city — in this case directly from those who know and love Toronto best — to fuel curiosity and inspire exploration,” said Scott Beck, President & CEO of Destination Toronto. “Our new campaign, You Gotta See What We See, is a video content series developed to amplify the voices of Toronto insiders, sharing their diverse and authentic local perspectives on what they love about the city.”

Running until October 2022, You Gotta See What We See targets the major cities of New York/New Jersey, San Francisco/San Jose, Chicago and Washington D.C. with the primary goal of building brand awareness, fuelling curiosity and ultimately encouraging travel to Toronto.

In 2019 the city saw almost 2 million American travellers who brought nearly $1.36 billion in spending to the visitor economy. You Gotta See What We See follows the recent announcement of the country’s first MICHELIN Guide coming to Toronto later this year, and the recent addition of Canada’s first Ace Hotel and the soon-to-be opened Nobu hotel.