Trails and Outdoor Recreation in BC - 2024 Ipsos Poll Results

According to a recent poll conducted for the Outdoor Recreation Council of BC (ORCBC), 56% of BC residents say access to trails and outdoor recreational amenities influenced their current choice of residence.

The new poll also shows that 89% of respondents are passionate about outdoor recreation and think that increased government investment in the development and maintenance of trails, parks and other recreation amenities will benefit them or their community.  

The top identified benefits included: improved physical and mental health (62%), protection of biodiversity and nature (50%), and support of the local economy, for example keeping residents spending locally rather than travelling (44%).

Community parks and trail networks (66%) emerged as the preferred recreational destination for BC residents who participated in outdoor recreation in the past 12 months, followed by beaches/coastal areas (48%), rivers/lakes (45%) and national/provincial parks (41%). 

Read more →

Destination BC Tourism Industry Dashboard: Year in Review

Full 2021 data is now available on the Destination BC Tourism Industry Dashboard, which includes key tourism statistics such as international visitor arrivals data, provincial room revenue, commercial restaurant receipts, provincial and regional occupancy rates and average daily room rates, and more.

View Dashboard →

---

Half of Canadians Anxious About the End of COVID-19 Mandates

With most COVID-related restrictions now lifted across Canada, a survey from Research Co. has 52% of Canadians admitting to being “very anxious” or “moderately anxious” about the end of public health mandates in their province, including 53% of BC respondents.

43% of British Columbians believe “recent protests and blockades related to the COVID-19 pandemic” can claim “a great deal” or “a fair amount” of the credit for pandemic restrictions being rolled back.

Nearly two-thirds (65%) of respondents across the country said they plan to continue wearing masks in indoor settings, but in BC only 59% plan to do so, the lowest percentage of provinces polled.

Read the complete summary →

Research Reveals 'Pandemic Effect' Could Tip Sustainable Travel Into Impactful Action

New research from Booking.com, containing insights gathered from more than 29,000 respondents across 30 countries, suggests that the COVID-19 pandemic appears to be a tipping point for global travelers to commit to sustainable travel. In fact, 72% of travelers surveyed indicated that they believe people have to act now to save the planet for future generations.

Key findings:

• 83% of global travelers think sustainable travel is vital, with 61% saying the pandemic has made them want to travel more sustainably in the future.

• Almost half (49%) still believe that in 2021, there aren’t enough sustainable travel options available, with 53% admitting they get annoyed if somewhere they are staying stops them from being sustainable, for example by not providing recycling facilities.

• 69% will go as far as avoiding popular destinations and attractions to ensure they aren’t contributing to overcrowding challenges and helping do their part to disperse the positive benefits of travel to less frequently visited destinations and communities.

• While 3 out of 4 accommodation providers say they have implemented at least some kind of sustainability practices at their property, only one-third actively communicate about their efforts proactively to potential guests.

To help boost the visibility of more sustainable stay options, Booking.com is now showing third-party sustainability certifications and details on a range of 30+ impactful practices in place at hundreds of thousands of properties around the world.

Accommodation operators can update their sustainability information on Booking.com, which includes 32 impactful practices across five key categories (waste, energy and greenhouse gases, water, supporting local communities and protecting nature), and can be viewed on the ‘Sustainability Initiatives’ banner on each property page.

---

Market Segmentation Insights

To support businesses and communities, we will be supplying visitor and market insights to support Experience and Market Development for your Recovery Strategy.

NEW data is now available through Environics Analytics and we will share highlights as our new baseline report series is released. The updated system now profiles 67 market clusters. These clusters are associated with Destination Canada’s 9 Explorer Quotient market segmentation types known as “EQ”.

No matter how you need your market research profiled, we can access this information by activity, social values, demographics, psychographics and location….anywhere in Canada or the USA.

We can access 67 market profiles to define the ideal target audiences for your marketing campaigns. Through custom reports we can assist you in targeting these markets.

Quick Facts:

For your Recovery Planning – target the right markets for your experience offering. With over 67 profiles, here are some highlights of 3.

Affluent families and couples will have the means to keep travelling.

Highlights of Urban Sanctuary - The- A-LIST

The most affluent households in Canada with a net worth just under $5 million make up 90,425 households or 281,999 of the population with an average household income of $545,511. For the luxury market these University educated homeowners are clustered in Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver, Edmonton and Montreal.

Highlights of Middle-aged Upscale Suburbanites - Turbo Burbs

The wealthiest suburban segment, Turbo Burbs is a haven for middle-aged families found in the outer-ring subdivisions of a handful of large cities representing 162,533 households with an average household income of $212,649 and children between the ages of 10 and 25. More than 90 percent of households live in recently built single-detached homes, with an average dwelling value of more than $700,000. Top BC locations for this segment are the Kelowna, West Kelowna, Lake Country and Prince George

Highlights of Suburban, upscale middle-aged families – Family Mode

Comprising more than a million people, Family Mode is one of the largest segments— and growing. Home to large, suburban families living in recently built houses, this lifestyle is rooted in midsize cities surrounding large metro areas. Its neighbourhoods are filled with maintainers between 35 and 54, and children over the age of 10. The members of Family Mode straddle two worlds: close enough to downtown for their work but far enough away to enjoy outdoorsy activities. These families like golfing, gardening, canoeing and power boating. Average household income $141,436 making up 337,797 households. Top BC locations for this segment are Kamloops and Chilliwack.

Source: Environics Analytics

For more information on Research or Fees for Services Contact:

Kelly Galaski, Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association, Managing Director for Symphony Tourism Services
Kelly@totabc.com
778-721-5448

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

See more posts in the same category: Research

New Publication - Friday Fast Facts

TOTA has launched a bi-monthly newsletter capturing the latest industry research, Entitled Friday Fast Facts to provide tourism stakeholders with information to make smart business decisions. This publication will provide a regular and timely snapshot of the current state of the regional tourism industry providing in-depth insights.

The Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association has been actively monitoring the impact of COVID-19 on the tourism industry through a variety of channels over the past several months. Business intelligence has been gathered from over 1,000 tourism stakeholders in the region via telephone and online surveys; data from our partnership with Environics Analytics received and analyzed weekly; and additional research has been sourced through the UN World Tourism Organization, Destination Canada, Destination BC, British Columbia Regional Tourism Secretariat. BC Hotel Association, go2HR, Community DMO Partners, just to name a few.

Expedia Presents: Generation Alpha and Family Travel Trends

How the world’s youngest generation is influencing family travel

Read the Full Article Here: Generation Alpha and Family Travel Trends

GETTING TO KNOW GEN ALPHA:

• BORN AFTER 2010 and known as the children of Millennials, the first generation born entirely within the 21st century

• DIGITAL NATIVES growing up with Instagram and the iPad (which both also debuted in 2010), this generation are already tech power-users

• WILL REACH NEARLY 2 BILLION by the time the last of this generation is born in 2025, with 2.5 million born around the world every week

• CULTURAL & ECONOMIC IMPACT of Alphas and Gen Z are expected to be equal to that of their parents or older siblings, the Millennials

• GREAT POTENTIAL as Alphas are expected to be the most formally-educated, longest-living and wealthiest generation

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

• On average globally, travellers with Gen Alphas are taking more than three family trips per year

• Most Trips are domestic for those with Gen Alphas, whether travelling as a family or without kids

• Family friendly fun for all, kid-friendly entertainment and safety drive family travel decisions

• When it comes to family travel, experience beats expense

• Entertainment when travelling also includes device time for Gen Alphas

• Plane and Car are preferred modes of transportation for family travel

For more research information by Expedia, visit: https://advertising.expedia.com/

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

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

Destination Canada: USA Global Tourism Watch

2017 United States Public Summary Report

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

Key Highlights Include:

Market Potential:

• The immediate potential market has increased from the previous year: 53.0 million travellers are definitely or very likely to visit Canada in the next 2 years (versus 47.6 million in 2016).

• The international outlook for US travellers continues to soften, while the outlook for domestic travel, both within and beyond state of residence, has seen significant increases.

Competitive Environment:

• Domestic destinations continue to dominate on an unaided basis, spurred by increases for California.

• Canada has jumped 2 spots to 7th in terms of aided mentions due to significant declines in mentions for New England and the Midwest.

• Travellers from New York are among the most likely to mention Canada on both an unaided and aided basis.

Path-to-Purchase:

• New Yorkers and travellers aged 25-44 are among the most likely to be actively planning a trip to Canada.

• Canada’s performance is no longer below average at converting US travellers between the creating a movie and itinerary planning stages.

• Additional focus could be placed on moving travellers from the consideration phase to creating a vacation movie, where conversion is weakest.

Destinations: 

• There are several significant downward shifts in likelihood to visit in 2017, including with BC’s Rocky Mountains, Edmonton, Fredericton, other PEI regions, and the Prairie provinces (including Churchill, Regina, and other regions within Saskatchewan).

• Montreal saw a significant decline in 2017 for most appealing destination

Vacation Activities:

• Natural attractions, Northern lights, historical sites, cruises, nature parks, trying local food and drink, and wildlife viewing are the top trip anchor activities for US travellers.

• Popular activities that Canada could better promote to US travellers: Northern lights, food and drink festivals, cruises, canoeing/kayaking/paddle boarding, amusement parks, and fall colours.

Barriers:

• Cost remains the primary deterrent to visiting Canada. Mentions of inclement weather have fallen significantly.

• Not enough time to take a vacation is the 2nd most frequently mentioned barrier among those at both the evaluation (gathering information or planning a visit) and consideration stages.

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

Expedia’s 2018 Year in Review Trends Report

Read the Full Report Here 

Based on Expedia flight data, the following cities all saw an increase in U.S. visitors of at least 40% in 2018, compared to the year prior.

• Barcelona, Spain

• Victoria, B.C., Canada

• Alexandria, Virginia, USA

• Valencia, Spain

• Vientiane, Laos

• George’s, Bermuda

• Mykonos, Greece

• Azores, Portugal

• Kenai, Alaska

• Inverness, Scotland

Novelty reigns supreme when it comes to accommodation type

Travelers are increasingly interested in staying somewhere novel or unique during their getaways. “Tentalows” (a cross between a tent and a bungalow, usually outfitted with plumbing and other modern-day comforts), agritourism properties (think farms, ranches, etc.), castles and chalets all saw increased demand this year.

For more research information by Expedia, visit: https://advertising.expedia.com/

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

Destination BC: Thompson Okanagan Regional Profile (2017)

Read the Full Profile Here: Thompson Okanagan Regional Profile (2017)

The Thompson Okanagan Regional Profile summarizes tourism indicators and provides a general overview of the area. The most recent annual data are presented including visitor volume, accommodation and transportation indicators, and information about seasonality and activities.

Top Markets for the Thompson Okanagan
BC residents make up the largest share of overnight visitation (61%) and spending (44%) in
the Thompson Okanagan region. Alberta residents make up the second largest share of overnight visitation (19%) and spending (28%).

Trip Characteristics by Origin

The Thompson Okanagan received 3,721,000 overnight visits in 2014 and generated over $1.4 billion in related spending. Domestic overnight travellers accounted for 85% of visitation and 83% of related spending. International travellers accounted for 15% and 17%, respectively.

On average, travellers to the Thompson Okanagan region stayed 3.6 nights and spent $105 per night. BC travellers stayed 3.0 nights and spent $90 per night during their trip. Other Canadian travellers stayed 4.9 nights and spent $123 per night.

Overnight vs. Same-Day Travel

Same-day travel encompasses travellers who enter and leave a destination (i.e. region) in less than 24 hours. Same-day travellers accounted for 56% of visitor volume and 19% of visitor expenditures in the Thompson Okanagan region.

For more research information by Destination BC, Visit: https://www.destinationbc.ca/Research.aspx

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