(Originally published in TOURISM)
According to information from Travel Manitoba, that province's tourism industry was reporting strong performance as the summer season drew to a close. The hotels and accommodations sector reports the number of room nights sold year-to-date increasing by 5.6% over the same period in 2006. Winnipeg's international Airport was also reported as busier compared to last year, welcoming 7.9% more scheduled travellers year-to-date, also as of June 30.
Domestic markets continue to play a vital role in overall tourism in Manitoba; the majority of visitors originating from Ontario, Quebec, Alberta and British Columbia. Travellers from North Dakota and Minnesota top the list of US visitors. Visits to the province by overseas guests jumped 13.6% from January to June, compared to the same period last year, according to a recent report from Statistics Canada, with the majority of guests originating from Germany and the UK. Overall visits from the US to Manitoba are expected to drop by about 4.5 per cent in 2007, according to forecasts released by The Conference Board of Canada.
Strong sector performance was demonstrated by attendance at Manitoba's major festivals in 2007, with events such as the 20th annual Winnipeg Fringe Festival attracting record crowds of 71, 921, compared to 69,320 in 2006, and the 18th annual Dauphin Countryfest attracting a record 48,000 attendees, compared to 44,000 in 2006. The 34th annual Winnipeg Folk Festival recorded near-record crowds and had a record 6,331 visitors camp on-site. Folklorama attracted a record 111 group tours and welcomed the highest number of visitors seen at the event in five years.
While final numbers on July and August's performance will not be available until later this fall, the Conference Board of Canada predicts that overall visits to Manitoba will increase by 2.3% in 2007 and 3.5% in 2008. Accordingly, tourism revenues are expected to increase by 3.4% in 2007 and 4.3% in 2008.
According to information from Travel Manitoba, that province's tourism industry was reporting strong performance as the summer season drew to a close. The hotels and accommodations sector reports the number of room nights sold year-to-date increasing by 5.6% over the same period in 2006. Winnipeg's international Airport was also reported as busier compared to last year, welcoming 7.9% more scheduled travellers year-to-date, also as of June 30.
Domestic markets continue to play a vital role in overall tourism in Manitoba; the majority of visitors originating from Ontario, Quebec, Alberta and British Columbia. Travellers from North Dakota and Minnesota top the list of US visitors. Visits to the province by overseas guests jumped 13.6% from January to June, compared to the same period last year, according to a recent report from Statistics Canada, with the majority of guests originating from Germany and the UK. Overall visits from the US to Manitoba are expected to drop by about 4.5 per cent in 2007, according to forecasts released by The Conference Board of Canada.
Strong sector performance was demonstrated by attendance at Manitoba's major festivals in 2007, with events such as the 20th annual Winnipeg Fringe Festival attracting record crowds of 71, 921, compared to 69,320 in 2006, and the 18th annual Dauphin Countryfest attracting a record 48,000 attendees, compared to 44,000 in 2006. The 34th annual Winnipeg Folk Festival recorded near-record crowds and had a record 6,331 visitors camp on-site. Folklorama attracted a record 111 group tours and welcomed the highest number of visitors seen at the event in five years.
While final numbers on July and August's performance will not be available until later this fall, the Conference Board of Canada predicts that overall visits to Manitoba will increase by 2.3% in 2007 and 3.5% in 2008. Accordingly, tourism revenues are expected to increase by 3.4% in 2007 and 4.3% in 2008.
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