Destination Canada Launches Interactive Incentive Map

Destination Canada’s Business Events website now features an interactive map of incentive experiences across Canada. Potential clients are invited to explore awe-inspiring experiences in unique destinations from coast to coast to coast, with filters including Experience Type and Economic Sector.

Read the Destination Canada Sustainability Storybook

Destination Canada has released a national program to improve the economic, socio-cultural, and environmental sustainability practices of business events hosted in Canada.

Through its sustainability commitment Destination Canada invites you to read the Sustainability Storybook which presents practical solutions to implement sustainable changes to business events across Canada.

TED@Destination Canada | Apply by August 14, 2022

Destination Canada and TED are collaborating to create TED@DestinationCanada, producing 14 TED Talks from the brightest speakers, best storytellers and biggest changemakers connected to Canada. They are looking for fresh ideas across a breadth of industries, from the creative economy, to academia, culture, business innovation, climate, tech, tourism and more.

These ideas will reflect how the people, places and perspectives of our country naturally inspire and support thinking as expansive as our land. Given a world stage, these ideas will impact how global minds view our country and drive the next wave of changemakers in Canada to reach beyond the parameters of today, to imagine the potential of tomorrow.

The Talks will be filmed on February 23, 2023 at the TED World Theater in New York City, an intimate venue at TED headquarters. Once recorded, the Talks will be published on TED.com and beyond, and be available for viewing for years to come.

In forming a partnership with TED, renowned for bringing together the biggest thinkers with inspiring ideas that lead to action, Destination Canada will refresh and elevate the perception of Canada as an ideal place to travel, and by extension, study, work, invest and live.

If you (or someone you know) have an idea worth spreading, please apply. Deadline for application is August 14, 2022.

The theme of the event is:

O P E N

When we come together with open hearts and open minds, anything is possible. We see connections everywhere. We welcome all ideas, experiences, and ways of life—because this is how we learn, grow, and change.

How it Works:

1. Candidates apply online to speak by submitting the TED@DestinationCanada application, which includes completing a questionnaire and submitting a 1-minute selfie-video describing their idea. The deadline to apply is Sunday, August 14, 2022 (11:59pm ET).

2. From the submissions, TED will select the most interesting and surprising ideas that will be relevant to a curious, educated global audience and invite applicants to discuss their ideas via a 30-minute Zoom call.

3. TED selects the final speakers, and they develop their Talks with a speaker coach. The speaker lineup will be confirmed in October.

4. TED@DestinationCanada takes place February 23, 2023!

Note: The team at TED will be reviewing the applicants. The videos cannot exceed 1 minute. If you submit a video longer than 60 seconds, it will not be viewed, and your application will not be considered. Please be attentive to the duration of your submission video.

Learn More →

Apply →

Destination Canada Releases Tourism Outlook Findings From Spring 2022

Destination Canada has published its Spring 2022 Tourism Outlook outlining the forecast for tourism recovery. The study was conducted between late March and May and the assumptions reflect the operating context of that time.

Key Takeaways:

• Travel demand is high and domestic travel will continue to lead recovery, with US following closely behind.

• Our other international markets have been slower to recover; international arrivals from DC long-haul markets have only recovered to 35% of the equivalent September to April period in 2018/19. 

• While recovery is uneven among our markets, momentum is building and we are forecasting that leisure travel will return to 2019 levels by 2025, with an upside to 2024 as our best-case scenario.

Read the full report to learn about travel demand, key recovery drivers and several forecast scenarios.

Learn More →

Watch Recording of Destination Canada’s Annual Public Meeting

On June 23, 2022, Destination Canada hosted their Annual Public Meeting, where the executive team reflected on the challenges and learnings of the past year and shared our forward-looking strategy, which focuses on the best opportunities to support the recovery and resilience of the tourism sector.

Watch Now →

Destination Canada Corporate Strategy: Canada’s Tourism Renaissance

Destination Canada published a new corporate strategy and 3-year plan for recovery entitled Canada’s Tourism Renaissance. This summary highlights Destination Canada’s work to support the 225,000 small and medium-sized tourism businesses across Canada and their communities by driving sector recovery from the pandemic, as well as taking action towards a better future.

View Strategy →

Destination Canada Key Market Highlights 2022

Destination Canada has released its key market highlights for 2022, sharing a brief summary of key facts on travellers by each market.

Learn about the travel habits of each market and what to expect through these reports:

• Australia | Jan 2022 - Dec 2022

• Germany | Jan 2022 - Dec 2022

• Mexico | Jan 2022 - Dec 2022 

• Japan | Jan 2022 - Dec 2022 

• China | Jan 2022 - Dec 2022 

• South Korea | Jan 2022 - Dec 2022 

• United Kingdom | Jan 2022 - Dec 2022 

• United States | Jan 2022 - Dec 2022 

• Canada | Jan 2022 - Dec 2022 

• France | Jan 2022 - Dec 2022

Learn More →

Get a Free Listing on Canada's Garden Route & Directory

Destination Canada is a sponsor of the Year of the Garden 2022, which encourages the public to get out, explore, and enjoy Canada’s beautiful gardens and garden experiences again.

The Canadian Garden Council invites Canadians to connect with plants and communities by discovering new experiences and inspirations offered by garden destinations.

A Canadian Garden Route digital marketing and social media campaign stretching from June through August will encourage Canadians to travel.

Tourism and hospitality businesses that embrace gardens as part of their venue or thematically in service offerings, can register their business for free on the Live the Garden Life Directory.

• To be featured on Canada’s Garden Route, please contact: partnerships@GardenCouncil.ca for details.

• Enhance your social media activity by tagging posts with: #YearOfTheGarden #LivetheGardenLife 

View Website →

View Garden Route Directory →

Showcase Your Travel Package on Destination Canada Portal

Last year, Destination Canada launched a travel packages portal, where tour operators can upload travel packages to the Destination Canada consumer website.

The portal provides tour operators access to an engaged audience, which has resulted in conversions and bookings to destinations across the country. Since its launch in June 2021, the website has received more than 2.6M page views and generated over 230k leads to tour operators. Today, there is now a portal available for the US market.

If you have a travel package that you would like to share with domestic and US travellers, contact traveltrade@destinationcanada.com.

View Travel Package Listings →

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New Report Tracks Americans’ Perception and Demand for Travel to Canada

As international travel resumes, American travellers will be key to driving revenue recovery for Canadian tourism businesses. Destination Canada is tracking Americans’ travel demand for Canada and sentiment towards travel to Canada to provide our industry with a better understanding of the trends and behaviours we are seeing in this key market. Destination Canada's first edition of the new report, US Sentiment for Travel to Canada, was published recently and the included metrics will continue to be tracked on a monthly basis moving forward.

Learn More →

Destination Canada Launches Spring Summer Domestic Campaign

Destination Canada's domestic spring and summer campaign is designed to reframe what Canadians think they know about Canada by showing a different perspective on travel icons found across the country. The target audience is encouraged to look at long-haul domestic regions the same way they consider travelling abroad.

View Website →

Newly Launched Destination Canada Marketing Campaigns Capture US and Domestic Opportunities

As border measures ease, Destination Canada is focused on driving revenue back into tourism businesses across the country. It is expected US visitors to Canada will lead recovery efforts with over 5 million visitors to Canada expected in 2022, contributing $4 billion to Canadian businesses, destinations and communities.

The US Campaign comes to life through the “Refresh Your View” concept, leaning into American travellers’ need for self-enrichment. The campaign puts Canada’s most iconic destinations at the forefront to reclaim interest and consideration for Canada, and to expand American travellers' knowledge of the wealth of experiences available in the regions surrounding these icons.

Learn More →

Entrée Destinations Stories of Canada: B.C. & Thompson Okanagan Itinerary

Entrée Canada signed an historic agreement with Destination Canada to create the Stories of Canada™, a collection of 20 new travel itineraries covering all 13 provinces and territories. These itineraries dig deep on Canada’s landmarks, cultures and people, and aim to facilitate authentic, memorable connections between visitors and the communities where they travel.

The Stories of Canada British Columbia is an eight-night itinerary with 3 nights in Kelowna, featuring the Eldorado Resort, a walk on Ancestral Paths and welcoming Smudge Ceremony with Moccasin Trails, lunch at two wineries, an orchard tour, a day trip to Penticton, paddling on Okanagan Lake, and biking on the Kettle Valley Railway.

View B.C. Itinerary →

New Destination Canada Report Identifies Top Drivers & Recovery Trends for Tourism Sector

Destination Canada released a new report, Tourism’s Big Shift: Key Trends Shaping the Future of Canada’s Tourism Industry. The report identifies the key trends that will have the greatest impact on the travel and tourism industry in Canada in the next one to three years and beyond.

With more than 20 months of the COVID-19 pandemic behind us, some of the potential long-term effects are becoming clearer while others are still emerging. Developing a collective understanding of these changes in the tourism industry and in consumer behaviours, as well as their potential implications, is key to the industry’s recovery. This new analysis of trends will help Destination Canada, and the wider tourism industry, adjust strategic areas of focus, mitigate risk, and maximize market opportunities helping our sector emerge stronger and more resilient.

For industry partners, tourism businesses and operators across the country, this trends analysis will also help inform their strategies and understand the key immediate changes anticipated as well as, the longer-term implications.

In short, in the next couple of years, travel and tourism will be more local and domestic, focusing principally on leisure travellers, facing increased competition, adapting to a digitalized society and continuously evolving.

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Destination BC Launches Winter Campaign

After nearly two years out of market in line with COVID-19 health orders and recommendations, Destination BC launched its BC ski campaign into Washington and California.

To help build back awareness for the myriad ski experiences that await families and thrill-seekers alike in all corners of the province, Destination BC is focusing its efforts on travellers from Washington and California, who have historically represented a large portion of US ski visitation to BC.

New this winter, Destination BC is also partnering with Destination Canada, Travel Alberta and Tourism Quebec on a pilot initiative to drive Canada winter and ski awareness in key US states. For BC, the campaign will double-down on ski experience marketing efforts into Washington and California, supported by Destination Canada funding and the ongoing partnership with BC ski co-op partners.

Through Destination Canada’s Our Winter is Deeper campaign, Destination BC will leverage the creative concept ‘Two Deep’, which tells the story of Canada’s favourite skiing couple, Stan Rey & Kelsey Serwa, as they set off on a road trip to explore BC’s most iconic ski destinations.

Starting December 1st, creative will be transitioned to a new ‘Go Deeper’ concept for the remainder of the campaign. The shift will target passionate skiers with an adventurous spirit, showcasing BC ski destinations as the ideal place for discovering new terrain, fresh powder, and vibrant ski towns.

Destination Canada Attracting U.S. Market by Matching Travel Perks on Air Canada

Canada is using the lure of travel perks to convince America’s frequent flying elite to fly north on Air Canada as the country steps up efforts to revive crucial traffic from the United States.

Destination Canada, has partnered with Air Canada and StatusMatch to launch a new status match program to encourage frequent American travellers to visit Canada. Destination Canada is offering to match the tier of Air Canada's Aeroplan members that are US residents and have a tier with an eligible US airline listed.

This limited-time offer marks the first time a tourism organization has used status-matching to entice visitors to travel to their destination.

COVID-19 has battered travel from Canada’s largest tourism market. During the first half of 2021, Canada had about 178,000 overnight arrivals from the United States, compared with 6.8 million during the same period in 2019, according to government data.

To help reverse that decline, government tourism body, Destination Canada has rolled out its first campaign targeting U.S. frequent fliers.

It is part of broader $14 million effort by the tourism commission to boost traffic after Canada recently opened its borders to vaccinated travellers. It comes as countries ease restrictions on international travel, with the United States set to reopen in November to vaccinated air travellers from 33 countries.

New Border Measures Resources & Tools

On August 9, 2021, the Government of Canada introduced new border measures. Some of the key changes include: 

1. Fully vaccinated U.S. citizens and permanent residents who are currently residing in the U.S. may travel to Canada for non-essential reasons; 

2. The removal of the requirement to stay at a government-authorized hotel for all travellers; and 

3. The removal of the requirement for all fully vaccinated travellers to take a post-arrival test, unless they are randomly selected to take one. 

The Public Health Agency of Canada has developed several products/tools to help you and your clients/customers better understand the full scope of these changes and what travellers will need to know before, during, and after their entry to Canada.  

1. Travel Toolkit: A quick guide to help other government departments understand the latest changes to travel rules, and to help them quickly find online resources with more in-depth details. This toolkit is available here.  

2. Marketing Toolkit: A resource for travel/tourism industry partners with pre-written social media, blogs, fact sheets, and newsletter content that can be used to inform their audiences. This toolkit is available on Google Drive. 

All travellers arriving or returning to Canada must continue to use ArriveCAN to submit their travel information. See travel.gc.ca/travel-covid for more details. 

We encourage you to use these products to answer questions your clients and customers may have, and to use them to develop content for your websites and social media to help travellers understand the new travel requirements.  

These resources will be updated as new rules and processes are implemented, and Destination Canada will be sure to share updated copies with industry as they are available.  

COVID-19 Situation Update – Business Events

Chantal Sturk-Nadeau
Executive Director, Business Events, Destination Canada

Amidst the uncertainty surrounding the COVID‑19 pandemic we remained heartened by Canada’s business community and the stories of people, institutions, businesses and governments coming together to support each other. Normally in springtime we are on the road, sharing the message of why Canada is the best place to host business events, but this year, like you, we are staying home to flatten the curve. While we maintain our physical distance we continue to work on recovery scenarios, reschedule postponed events and marketing campaigns, conduct important economic impact research, and make plans for the future. Our industry has been impacted in ways we have yet to even imagine, but understand this: we are all in this together. Here’s what we are working on to make that happen:

Update on recovery planning

As our partners are retooling their 2020 sales and marketing plans in light of COVID‑19’s impact, we are taking measures to ensure the Canada brand will be represented in key international markets where partners may no longer be able to participate, to increase brand reach and generate high quality leads when sales activities resume. Working with key partners we have developed a focused international sales and marketing strategy based on recovery scenarios that are dependent upon when travel bans may be lifted.

The recovery marketing campaigns will create awareness of Canada, tell the world that Canada is open for business, will stimulate interest and motivate buyers to book Canada. Once the travel ban is lifted, these campaigns will be staggered by market, or sector, and sensitive to the international markets’ readiness to travel. We will first target the corporate meetings segment to help with short-term business recovery, followed by the association market aligned with the key priority sectors to help build longer term businesses and help   We will then move into the global economic sector strategy once global markets show signs of recovery.

We continue to focus on market research and intelligence which will allow the Business Event team to hone in on target markets: geographically, by segment, and by sector, when sales resume. This data and key market Intel will be shared with our partners to assist with re-building sales strategies, when their resources are available to do so.

Signature events

After much consultation and consideration, we have made the decision to cancel Incentive Canada 2020 and will look forward to showcasing Canada’s incentive experiences, destinations and expert providers at Fox Harb’r Resort and the Westin Halifax in summer 2021. As with our other sales activations, we will be in touch in the coming days with affected co-invested partners.

As of this writing, Innovate Canada 2020 is currently on pause. We will revisit this in 30 days and will notify partners whether we’ll go forward, or if Innovate Canada will be rescheduled for 2021. We appreciate everyone’s patience in awaiting this update.

2020 marketing campaigns

Over the past number of days, we have been working with our third-party publishers to pause and reschedule our spring marketing campaigns. Once the timing of our recovery messaging is known, we will reach out to co‑invested partners with details and timing for new content development. We have also paused our social media channels and are looking forward to the day when it is once again appropriate to share our love for and from Canada.

Data and intelligence

While the long-term impacts of COVID‑19 are not fully known at this time, understanding the economic impact of lost business, events and group visitors is critical as we work with others to support the sector. Last week, we announced Destination Canada Business Events’ commitment to collecting and confidentially sharing aggregate data and intelligence on the impact COVID‑19 has, and will continue to have, on Canada’s business events industry. Working together with Meetings Mean Business Canada (MMBC), the Convention Centres of Canada (CCOC), local Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs), and other industry bodies, we are taking an all business events approach to defining the economic impact of COVID‑19 and will be sharing a national situational analysis with you shortly to inform your own recovery plans.

In order for us to have the most complete picture possible, we need to ensure all jurisdictions are represented. To that end, if you have not already done so, we are kindly asking you to please submit a report from your CRM. Details of how and what to submit are found here. If you have any questions, please contact Angela Trunzo.

Destination Canada update on COVID‑19

Update (March 30, 2020): The government of Canada has updated its public-facing language on travel restrictions, please see the Public Health Agency of Canada for official government information.

Due to the uncertainty and quick moving nature of the COVID‑19 pandemic, please note that any end date for international travel bans published by the government may change as the situation requires. We understand that this lack of certainty is not ideal for industry who are anxious to resume recovery efforts. We have reached out to the responsible federal departments for clarity and can confirm that, due to the unpredictable nature of this global epidemic, and the fact that health considerations remain the driving force for decisions - the end dates for the travel ban may be updated at any time. This means the travel ban might be lifted sooner or later than the published date.

As tourism industry professionals, our best advice is to treat these published end dates as “to be confirmed”. Please check the following government of Canada websites: Travel and Tourism and Public Health Agency of Canada for the most up to date information. Rest assured that Destination Canada will relay any change in travel restriction dates as soon as the information becomes available.

Now more than ever, we will leverage the power of Team Canada to align and support us through the times ahead, and will direct you to resources available to support your businesses.

Webinar with The Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages

For those who were unable to attend this week’s webinar with Minister Joly, you can access a recording of the event here.

Support for small businesses

On March 27, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced new measures to support small businesses dealing with the economic impacts of the COVID‑19 pandemic. Read more here.

Sales activations

We continue to monitor all Business Events-led sales activations, and are advising affected partners and processing event refunds as changes occur. We appreciate your ongoing patience as we work through this process.

Postponed or cancelled events (as of March 27)

March 31-April 4, Accor's Global Meeting Exchange (postponed TBA)

April 15-17, Association World Congress (postponed Dec. 2020)

April 28-30, Seattle Sales Mission (postponed fall TBA)

May 12-14, IMEX Frankfurt (cancelled)

May 27-31, Incentive Research Foundation (cancelled)

June 2-4, DC Sales Mission (postponed TBA)

June 8-12, London Tech Week | AI Summit (postponed to Sept. 1-4)

June 17-19, ASAE ELF (postponed June 2021)

June 22-25, Collision Conference (cancelled)

July 16-17. IEEE Convene (cancelled)

July 26-28, Northstar Incentive Live (postponed TBA)

Global Meetings Industry Day (GMID)

Unprecedented times call for unprecedented measures. This year, GMID  is going virtual. Join hosts Meetings Mean Business Canada, India and the United States to set a record for the largest virtual meeting ever, then stay to discuss COVID‑19 and its impact on our communities, work and families with panelists that include Chantal Sturk-Nadeau and others.

Date: April 14, 2020
Time: Starting at 9am PDT/12pm EDT/1pm ADT.
This FREE event will be webcast and open to all.
The webcast will be recorded and shared following the event.

Registration at: https://gmidgoesvirtual.com/

Rising to the challenge

It’s easy to get bogged down in the devastating impact COVID‑19 is having on our industry, our friends and our family, but we have found some relief in the stories that are emerging daily of Canadian industry and individuals stepping into do whatever they can to support our front lines in the battle against the COVID‑19 pandemic.

• Canada Goose is retooling their Winnipeg manufacturing facilities to manufacture personal protective equipment (PPE) for healthcare workers.

• Bauer, makers of hockey equipment, are doing the same to make masks for healthcare workers.

• Toronto-based BlueDot, who first detected the pattern of viral spread of COVID‑19 outbreak in Dec. 2019, days ahead of the World Health Organization is now working with the Public Health Agency of Canada and using their disease analytics platform to model & monitor the spread of COVID‑19.

• As colleges and universities move to virtual classes Canadian education software company Top Hat — active in more than 750 of North America’s top post-secondary institutions — is providing its platform free of charge.

And perhaps best of all, Canadians now have a new term to describe how we are all taking care of each other: caremongering.

Wishing you all a hefty dose of caremongering as we move toward recovery together.

Chantal Sturk-Nadeau
Executive Director, Business Events

Destination Canada’s Business Events team is charged with growing Canada’s share of international business events by promoting the country’s unique meeting, convention, and incentive event possibilities. The Business Events team is the first point of contact for planners seeking inspiration, impartial insights, introductions and bid assistance for global events.

Destination Canada: Australia Global Tourism Watch

2017 Australia Public Summary Report

Read the Full Report Here: 2017 Destination Canada Australia Public Summary Report

Key Highlights Include:

Market Potential:

• The immediate potential market increased significantly from the previous year: 2.67 million travellers are definitely or very likely to visit Canada in the next 2 years (versus 1.95 million in 2016).

Competitive Environment:

• Although results are consistent to 2016, Canada’s ranking on unaided consideration moved from 6th to 4th in 2017. The US remains in 1st position, followed by the UK and Japan.

• Knowledge of Canada has improved, resulting in a move up from 12th spot in 2016 to 7th place.

Path-to-Purchase:

• Younger travellers aged 25-34 are more likely to be actively planning a trip to Canada.

• Canada is a top performer when it comes to converting awareness into dreaming, but only average at converting travellers further along the purchase cycle.

• Additional focus could be placed on moving travellers from creating a vacation movie to itinerary planning, where Canada performs much weaker than the US.

Destinations: 

• There are several significant shifts in likelihood to visit in 2017, with the Prairies, Regina, Mont Tremblant, and Fredericton trending downwards year-over-year.

• St. John’s saw a significant increase as the most appealing destination.

Vacation Activities:

• Natural attractions, Northern lights, cruises, historical sites, and local food and drink are the top trip anchor activities Australian travellers.

• Popular activities that Canada could better promote to Australian travellers: historical sites, Northern lights, food and drink festivals, breweries/wineries, exploring places most tourists won’t go, fall colours, and spring blossoms.

Barriers:

• Cost remains the key barrier to visiting Canada, followed by distance to travel.

• Concerns about safety and delays/hassles at airports and borders are up significantly in 2017.

• For younger travellers aged 25-34, concerns about lack of vacation time and language barriers are higher.

• Older travellers 55+, have fewer barriers to visiting and are most likely to say nothing will prevent them from travelling to Canada.

For more research information by TOTA, Visit us online at: https://totabc.org/research/

For more research information by Destination Canada, Visit: https://www.destinationcanada.com/en/research

Rebuilding the Visitor Economy- FAQ

As the national organization responsible for sustaining a vibrant and profitable Canadian tourism industry through marketing, research, destination development and partnerships, we are committed to working with industry to rebuild confidence and help travellers navigate the new landscape.

What are the most important elements for the recovery of the industry besides human resources and sanitary measures?

There are many important elements for recovery of the industry but the number one thing we need is for Canadians to keep their holiday dollars in Canada this year to speed up our sector’s recovery. We encourage you to do whatever you can to channel domestic demand to your business and DC is doing the same.

To help do this, we need to do the following:

1. Increase Canadians’ understanding of the importance of Canada’s tourism industry.

2. Inspire confidence and desire to travel domestically – this includes showcasing all of the extensive health and hygiene protocols you’ve put into place and also reminding Canadians what a beautiful country we live in!

3. Re-ignite the welcoming spirit of Canadian communities – to ensure they feel ready to welcome visitors back again.

Learn More

For more research information by TOTA, Visit us online at: https://totabc.org/research/

For more research information by Destination Canada, Visit: https://www.destinationcanada.com/en/research