(Originally published in TOURISM)
Besides the Northwest Territories, no other provincial or territorial destination shares Nunavut’s predicament, argues Brian Webb, Nunavut Tourism’s director of marketing and communication. “We are completely a long-haul destination even for the domestic market. So the trends we see usually are the trends affecting the long-haul market, rather than those of short- or mid-haul markets.”
Most domestic travellers to Nunavut are business travellers. Webb has observed a consistent increase year after year, as more come north. “And more leisure travellers are also coming; we see a consistent 1% increase per year; and we see approximately 14,000 leisure visitors per year, of whom over 85% originate from the domestic market.”
If you take the business travellers out of the equation, those numbers shift significantly, Webb continues, to 65 % domestic and 35% for all the other markets. “Visitors surveyed last year indicated business travellers spend, on average, three extra days in Nunavut, which is very high. So, they extend their stay, they take in the area, the culture and the activities. If you are going to come this far, you might as well enjoy it!”
“Our tourism season very much runs from the end of April until the end of September. After that, there is not a lot of travel into the territory. Business travel will still continue, but even those business travellers don’t seem to want to come in the winter. It is amazing how unimportant a business trip seems when it is -40… ‘I think I’ll wait until June!’”
The vast majority of visitors come to Iqaluit, which is the capital. “This is by far what most visitors see,” notes Webb. “Second and third are our other regional centres: Rankin Inlet and Cambridge Bay. I would say the three destinations account for 95% of the business traveller visits.”
Challenges abound. “Our biggest need in Nunavut continues to be product development. We do not have the wealth of product people are looking for when they are up here. What we do have is very good, but it is not sufficient to meet the demands of the business travellers. Conversely," Webb continues, “we are noticing that the businesses which have the products and the schedules have been doing very well.
Our cruise industry has doubled in each of the last three years, and I have heard it is going very well again this summer. “One of our cruise lines (Cruise North) is only three years old and is projected to make a profit this year in its third year of business, which is exceptional. The lodges in the area have been booked solid, but it is just our local community product where people have their boat trips, their adventures, dog sledding activities and excursions. They haven’t really formalized things, which is what we need to work on now because there is a market out there.
The most vivid example of success is the cruise product. Taking a cruise ship to see Nunavut, as opposed to doing it on one’s own, is an attractive proposition as an easy way to see the territory. “When you go on a cruise ship, everything is taken care of," Webb points out.
Besides the Northwest Territories, no other provincial or territorial destination shares Nunavut’s predicament, argues Brian Webb, Nunavut Tourism’s director of marketing and communication. “We are completely a long-haul destination even for the domestic market. So the trends we see usually are the trends affecting the long-haul market, rather than those of short- or mid-haul markets.”
Most domestic travellers to Nunavut are business travellers. Webb has observed a consistent increase year after year, as more come north. “And more leisure travellers are also coming; we see a consistent 1% increase per year; and we see approximately 14,000 leisure visitors per year, of whom over 85% originate from the domestic market.”
If you take the business travellers out of the equation, those numbers shift significantly, Webb continues, to 65 % domestic and 35% for all the other markets. “Visitors surveyed last year indicated business travellers spend, on average, three extra days in Nunavut, which is very high. So, they extend their stay, they take in the area, the culture and the activities. If you are going to come this far, you might as well enjoy it!”
“Our tourism season very much runs from the end of April until the end of September. After that, there is not a lot of travel into the territory. Business travel will still continue, but even those business travellers don’t seem to want to come in the winter. It is amazing how unimportant a business trip seems when it is -40… ‘I think I’ll wait until June!’”
The vast majority of visitors come to Iqaluit, which is the capital. “This is by far what most visitors see,” notes Webb. “Second and third are our other regional centres: Rankin Inlet and Cambridge Bay. I would say the three destinations account for 95% of the business traveller visits.”
Challenges abound. “Our biggest need in Nunavut continues to be product development. We do not have the wealth of product people are looking for when they are up here. What we do have is very good, but it is not sufficient to meet the demands of the business travellers. Conversely," Webb continues, “we are noticing that the businesses which have the products and the schedules have been doing very well.
Our cruise industry has doubled in each of the last three years, and I have heard it is going very well again this summer. “One of our cruise lines (Cruise North) is only three years old and is projected to make a profit this year in its third year of business, which is exceptional. The lodges in the area have been booked solid, but it is just our local community product where people have their boat trips, their adventures, dog sledding activities and excursions. They haven’t really formalized things, which is what we need to work on now because there is a market out there.
The most vivid example of success is the cruise product. Taking a cruise ship to see Nunavut, as opposed to doing it on one’s own, is an attractive proposition as an easy way to see the territory. “When you go on a cruise ship, everything is taken care of," Webb points out.
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