Summer 2007 lights up Toronto

(Originally published in TOURISM)

At sunset on June 2, 2007, the Royal Ontario Museum will hold its official Architectural Opening & Building Dedication to celebrate the construction completion of the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal. Those in attendance will experience A World of Possibilities, a 75-minute live concert event, with star performances on three stages climaxing in the illumination of the building’s impressive façade. (The event will be filmed for television broadcast.) After this unique performance, the doors of the new Michael Lee-Chin Crystal will open to the public for the first time, with free public admission by timed tickets until 6 pm on Sunday, June 3.

For a special period until June 10, enthusiasts of contemporary design have a once‑in‑a-lifetime chance to enjoy Daniel Libeskind’s architectural design in its purest form throughout the building. During this period only, most of the building’s unique spaces will be empty and open to the public before installation of permanent exhibits, along with the rest of the building.

As this unfolds (June 1–10, 2007), Luminato, Toronto’s inaugural Festival of Arts and Creativity will also take place with a wide‑ranging line‑up of events, special celebrations, world premieres and international artistic collaborations that will inspire and excite the City of Toronto..

“Luminato is a remarkable collaboration between the city’s arts organizations, artists and supporters who have created an unparalleled program highlighting Toronto’s premier arts assets,” said Janice Price, Luminato CEO. “At the same time, as a creative renaissance unfolds in our city, we have united to produce what is certainly a festival of global scale and distinction.”

ROM Crystal instils renewed luminescence to Toronto

(Originally published in TOURISM)

What better gift for a city than to turn one of its most venerable cultural institutions into the equivalent of a hip and hopefully well-trodden 21st Century public square. That is how director and CEO of the Royal Ontario Museum William Thorsell envisions the aptly-named Renaissance ROM initiative.

“This institution is mandated to be a universal museum of culture, reaching into places like Africa, Asia and into the traditions of Canada’s First Peoples. It also remains one the leading museums of natural history in North America, where the structure of the earth and its minerals can be explored and visitors may journey from the days of the dinosaurs to the fascinating realm of modern bio‑diversity.

"This project is about completely remaking both mandates, by renovating the original wings of the Museum (built in 1914 and 1933), and then creating a whole new, very dramatic architectural statement. This brings the museum right into the city and takes a facility – built almost like a fortress – into a whole new domain, establishing new galleries, restaurants, and retail components. These are places where music, dining and enhanced social activities become possible; we see it very much as an act of city‑building," says Thorsell.

The new Michel Lee‑Chin Crystal, scheduled to open on June 2, will feature great openings of glass that will allow visitors and passers‑by to look through the walls of the museum into the Dinosaur Gallery at night. “As their eyes scan the wall from outside, they will be able to look into the Africa gallery; and above into the costumes and textiles gallery. So it is a very open, urban, transparent kind of gesture to the city.”

On the roof, in one of the crystals, Thorsell describes how visitors in the new Crystal Five Restaurant Lounge will be able to look out over the city: “You can have a "ROMtini" on the roof, have dinner there, or go downstairs to watch a film. The ROM will now have five crystalline shapes locked together in different relationships.

The experience the ROM wishes to convey is one of awe at both culture and nature. “If you look at our minerals collection," Thorsell continues, "we will put out 1,500 samples of different minerals from all over the world. We hope visitors will marvel at how the earth creates these minerals, this jewellery of the earth. You might go from there to the fabulous collection of Chinese temple paintings of the Buddha, then find yourself a little later walking among the 63‑million‑year‑old remains of dinosaurs from Alberta’s fossil beds. You might then take a look at some of the fabulous fashion from the 1950s, all the way back to the work of Marie‑Antoinette’s dressmaker.”

The Renaissance ROM campaign has raised nearly $250 million so far. In all, there will be 27 new and renovated galleries, 10 of which have opened since December 2005. By the time the new ones are completed in 2008‑2009, the ROM will have come closer to realizing the vision of inclusiveness to which it aspires.

“Our cities are becoming very diverse places, with different groups of people moving into them from all over the world," points out Thorsell. He feels that museums have the capacity to become what the churches used to be – a "common ground" reaching into music, arts and science. "Museums should not turn their backs on cities; rather, they should open themselves up and engage them!”

Great Lakes cruise sector more promising than ever

Photo:Great Lakes Cruising Coalition

(Originally published in TOURISM)

It may not be the first destination that comes to mind when one thinks of cruises, but the Great Lakes are enjoying renewed appeal among seasoned cruise consumers these days. This bodes well for this underrated sector of the industry, according to Stephen Burnett, executive director of the Great Lakes Cruising Coalition in Kingston:

“The Great Lakes industry is a small, intimate ship industry. We worked with Lloyds of London to establish that there are about 140 small ships around the world which can fit into the St. Lawrence Seaway. Of those, probably 60 are desirable in terms of running a quality operation, and they are of a size that creates a significant economic impact.”

Burnett knows the challenge is supplying the owners and operators of these ships with a strong business case showing they can make money in the Great Lakes. He guided an exhaustive study that looked at how seven small ships (100, 200, 400‑passengers in size) could perform. “We realized there is about $50 million worth of delivery in a 155‑day season that can come from a small cruise ship fleet. If we grew the fleet to 20 cruise ships, the Great Lakes could have $100‑million industry in the blink of an eye.”

This research also confirmed that – as with most cruising operations – there are two revenue streams in the Great Lakes. One, of course, is made‑up of tourists on board, spending money on shore excursions and visiting shops. And, there is the marine operation side, where the ship has to be fuelled and serviced, and crew has to be paid. “At the end of the day, when we stick that into a big pot, what it does is it delivers an economic footprint into the Great Lakes region and influences every port the ships touch.”

To better take advantage of these opportunities, many ports and regions have taken a leap of faith and invested in facilities that can handle those ships, explains Burnett: “Our mission, when we talk to the ports, is to advise them not to rush in and build sophisticated custom terminals that will bring with them a debt to service. We encourage them to use the resources they have already, especially if they have access to a heritage building or a lovely old warehouse.”

In the case of some destinations, investments on a larger scale may be considered, he adds: “Toronto has built a beautiful multi‑use terminal on the east end of the harbour. Little Current, on Manitoulin Island, has the most visited port on the entire Great Lakes and is improving its mooring facilities so that ships can actually come and moor right downtown, as they do in Scandinavia in the Fjords.”

To prepare for future growth, the Government of Ontario funded an initiative that basically teaches a community how to handle a cruise ship when it arrives, according to Burnett. “This helped tremendously in communities that didn’t have a full grasp of the industry.”

Bruce O’Hare is one of these people who – like Burnett – sees the potential for the region. He owns and operates the largest hotel operation in Little Current (the Anchor Inn) built in 1888, and Lakeshore Excursions, a business which caters to passengers from visiting ships: “We are very much like Alaska was 30 years ago,” he believes, “a destination in its infancy but with very committed among member ports.”

This small port regularly welcomes ships bearing 100 passengers, and it is currently in the midst of a $4 million waterfront development. “Typically, passengers are American, older and affluent, and taking higher‑end cruises than mass‑market Caribbean cruise lines offer. These smaller vessels warrant higher per diems and people who visit our ports tend to have traveled significantly. They have been to the Mediterranean twice; they have done Alaska, the Caribbean, the Bahamas, and South East Asia and are looking for new destinations. Therein lays the opportunity.”

He believes there is a rebirth of cruising on the Great Lakes at the moment. “What is old is new. There was a time when there were more people cruising on the Great Lakes than on any ocean in the world, and that is slowly returning. The Great Lakes have many advantages. They are very safe and the English language makes the destination accessible. There are many of the conveniences here not found in other parts of the world. ‘Homeland cruising,’ a term coined after 9/11, is the reason why places like Jacksonville, New Orleans, Charlotte and all of these other ports on the eastern seaboard and north of Mexico are now playing host to large cruise ships,” he adds.

Great Lakes attractions are numerous, from film festivals to Grand Prix racing—things that might be also associated with European destinations. The Great Lakes Cruising Coalition, a bi‑national marketing agency, is not shy about making the cruise trade aware of this, notes Stephen Burnett: “We go to Seatrade in Miami to make sure the Great Lakes region takes its place alongside the great destinations in the world, particularly in Germany and South East Asia. What we do see is a huge recognition by the small ship cruise industry that we have a wonderful experience to offer in these freshwater inland seas.”

To make sure the destination gets the attention it deserves, Burnett’s group launched a series of inspections with the help of the Government of Ontario, targeting cruise ship firms from overseas, as well as reputed tour operators that use cruise ships. “We realized that these people are very busy. We brought them to Canada and rented a high‑performance amphibious aircraft to demonstrate to them the creative itinerary planning you can do with small cruise ships in areas like the Georgian Bay and the North Channel.

“So we were able to take off on wheels, land on floats in Parry Sound right in the harbour, and in Little Current, land on wheels in Sault Ste. Marie where we exchanged aircraft for a fast twin‑engine Beechcraft to fly up to the lake head in Thunder Bay, to Duluth, Detroit, Erie, Toledo and back to Toronto. We wanted to showcase the Great Lakes as a magnificent freshwater cruise destination.

“At the end of this, our guests were shaking their heads. They were stunned at not only the physical beauty of our Great Lakes, but also at the amount of culture in the region. They were brainstorming itineraries and concepts – to see just what the economic opportunity was – as they were touring! We are reaping the rewards of this now.”

To do that, a few issues must be addressed. One involves compliance with security regulations. The complexity of clearing a ship after it has been to Canada or the US is daunting and there are some cruise lines that said outright it is too difficult to contemplate.

“We are just going to run an all‑Canadian itinerary or an all‑US itinerary,” they said according to Burnett. “That is not the best way to approach it, unfortunately, as the best itineraries are those that feature both countries because both have a lot to give; for example, one of the most exciting cruises is going from Toronto to Chicago.

"We have been executing this business plan for the last seven years. It is a tremendous challenge because the Great Lakes doesn’t really have a home‑grown cruise industry (cruise ships generally follow the sun). However, there is real growth in the works, suggesting the best is yet to come."

Boom in youth tourism expected

(Originally published in TOURISM)

Young travellers aged 16-24 are the travel industry’s fastest growing sector, according to new statistics from the World Youth Student & Educational Travel Confederation (WYSE) reported in TravelVideo.TV (February 27,07). Representing over 20% of all international visitors, WYSE said “adventurous young backpackers stay longer, spend more, seek out alternative destinations and enjoy a wider mix of travel experiences” compared with average tourists. “Not surprisingly they are increasingly being viewed as the future of global tourism by the travel industry.”

According to Amsterdam‑based WYSE, it has recently launched a partnership with the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). Together they hope to promote and develop this multi‑billion pound industry by encouraging governments to actively support and develop youth tourism products and services.

Canada’s success at ITB bodes well for the German market

(Originally published in TOURISM)

With 10,000 exhibitors from 180 countries and regions, ITB (originally known as Internationale Tourismus-Börse and held annually in Berlin) represents the full spectrum of global tourism at all levels of the value-added chain. It is therefore encouraging from Canada’s perspective to find out that the March 2007 edition of ITB – the largest marketplace in the world – yielded auspicious signs for Canada in the German market for this year.

CTC managing director in Dusseldorf, Karl‑Heinz Limberg, put it this way: “There is a definite improvement in the air. We have seen a great winter season with an increase of 14% in December and 8% in January, which bodes well. This renewed interest for our destination was reflected at ITB also, where Canada was featured in a newly‑branded pavilion that received many positive comments from both partners and visitors. We had 50 exhibitors from all over Canada, including representatives from every Canadian province and territory and some new exhibitors.”

In Limberg’s assessment, the Canadian industry can expect a slight increase from Germany after a what was a rather bad year in 2006, largely because of the World Cup of Soccer and the high Canadian dollar.

To add a “Wow” element to Canada’s participation, the Canadian Embassy hosted (for the third time) a dramatic reception in Berlin under the theme Keep Exploring. Explains Limberg: “The Canadian Embassy building in Berlin is a very eye‑catching piece of architecture, located right downtown. All the materials used to build it are Canadian. It is a rather fitting venue for an evening celebration that must compete with an array of other events around the city. Needless to say, we were proud to have 225 guests at our event, which is more or less the maximum number of people we can host at the embassy.”

Guest speakers included Canadian ambassador Paul Dubois, The Honorable Stan Hagen, BC Minister of Tourism, Sport and the Arts, and CTC president and CEO Michele McKenzie. Among attendees were some 70 Canadian exhibitors, along with German and Swiss members of the media and trade representatives from the industry as a whole – including tour operators, travel agents and incentives companies.

Limberg notes a celebrity athlete and media personality as well: “Gunda Niemann‑Stirnemann, Germany’s most celebrated speed skater, who won eight Olympic gold medals and several world championship titles between 1989 and 2001, attended the event," he notes. "Today she is a popular sports commentator on TV.” The entertainment component for the event was looked after by Chamaeleon Theatre Berlin (a German‑Canadian variety theatre company best described as a hybrid between comical chaos and Le Cirque du Soleil).

From Mexico to Canada!

(Originally published in TOURISM)

There is no shortage of reasons why the Mexican market is very promising for Canada, according the CTC’s latest segmentation study. Outbound travel from there is growing with over 12 million outbound overnight travellers leaving Mexico each year, and Mexico’s importance to Canada as a source of visitors is increasing, explains Europe/Latin America executive director Sylvie Lafleur:

“After dipping in 2003, overnight trips to Canada rebounded in 2004 and grew by 9% in 2005. There were over 173,000 visitors from Mexico to Canada in 2005. Air capacity is growing and new direct flights are being added on a regular basis.”

To understand how the market is shaping up, the CTC has commissioned research based on three phases:

* Phase 1 (Secondary Desk Research) provided an in‑depth understanding of the Mexican outbound market;
* Phase 2 (Qualitative Survey of Travel Trade) involved 20 in‑depth interviews with key people in the Mexican travel trade, which provided valuable perspectives from key people who influence travellers;
* Phase 3 (Quantitative Telephone Survey) involved 2,500 interviews in total in the three largest cities in Mexico (50% in Mexico City and 25% in each of Monterrey and Guadalajara), targeting higher social strata (A/B or C+) and travellers (in the last three years) or intenders (in next two years).

This is a timely initiative because of emerging conditions that make Canada a good fit for Mexico, Lafleur points out: “Mexico is home to a growing segment of sophisticated, high‑spending independent travellers, and current knowledge suggests there is a strong match between Canada’s tourism products and Mexican travellers’ preferences, especially with shopping, sightseeing, activities relating to history and culture, national park visits and participation in winter sports.”

Moreover, economic signs coming out of Mexico are also encouraging, The country’s economy is expected to grow solidly over the next three years and consumer demand continues to rise at a healthy 4%. Add to this the stability of the current rate of exchange which is anticipated to endure over the coming months.

Mexican travellers tend to travel frequently, with interview respondents in the study report taking an average of 3.1 international leisure trips in the past 3 years. They clearly represent significant potential for international destinations, including Canada and our competitors. Interestingly enough, the propensity for leisure travel appears to increase slightly as travellers/intenders age.

While 70% of travellers have taken a leisure trip to US destinations in the past three years, Canada has attracted 18% of Mexican travellers. This is nearly as many as all European destinations (24%), of which Spain is the most popular (14%). A few Mexicans also travel to destinations in South America (8%) and the Caribbean (5%). It is worth knowing that other parts of the world attract very few travellers from Mexico. Canada attracts proportionately more visitors from the highest socio‑economic level and from Mexico City. Research shows that Ontario is the most frequently visited province among Mexican travellers to Canada. Quebec is a close second, attracting one‑half of Mexican visitors. BC attracts well over one‑third, followed by Alberta at 12%.

The Mexican market shines particularly when one looks at future intentions for international travel. Almost two‑thirds (65%) of respondents state they will definitely – or very likely – take a pleasure trip outside of Mexico and Central America within the next two years. This finding underscores the vibrancy of the market potential among affluent Mexicans.

Travel to Canada is more appealing among younger travellers (20 to 54 years of age) and among those who reside in Mexico City. European destinations tend to be more direct competitors in this age bracket; travellers report longer average durations for trips to Canada and to other parts of the world than they do for trips to the US. Family members tend to travel together when visiting international destinations, especially when visiting the US. There are also large segments of travellers from Mexico who travel alone (17%) or with friends (14%).

Many Mexican travellers take advantage of travel packages that include accommodation and airfare. This is more likely to be the case among those who have visited Canada (37%) or other parts of the world (31%), as compared to those who went to the US (25%). This reinforces the continued marketing of Canada using packages to make the destinations within Canada easier for Mexicans to select and book.

Respondents tend to prefer to stay in mid‑priced hotels (33%) or with a friend or relative (33%), luxury (21%) or resort (11%) hotels. A sizeable segment of the market is clearly willing to pay more for accommodations. Mexican travellers report spending an average of $5,072 CAD on trips for themselves and members of their immediate travel parties. Higher trip spending levels are reported for trips to Canada ($5,929) and to other parts of the world ($5,843) than for trips to the US.

“This is something that works in Canada’s favour,” according to Lafleur. “The US is not perceived as positively as other destinations for providing value for the money spent. Both Canada and other parts of the world, while less affordable to visit, are more positively perceived as providing value. Canada has an opportunity to strongly position itself against the US.”

Add to this the fact Mexican travellers associate Canada with enjoying downhill skiing or snowboarding (the US is a strong competitor), Canada evokes feeling safe and secure (Europe is the closest competitor), and Canada is viewed as a good place to educate children (Europe competes at this). Canada is also perceived as well endowed with places to experience beautiful, unspoiled nature (South America is the closest competitor).

The activities in Canada which generate the most interest are:

* Visiting major cities
* Seeing Niagara Falls
* World heritage sites
* Aurora viewing
* Seeing the Canadian Rockies

And, experiencing French Canadian culture is also a unique offering that appeals to many Mexicans.

On the marketing front, internet penetration among Mexican international travellers is very high at 84%, which supports the belief there is a high level of usage of the internet to research and book travel.

To capitalize on the Mexican market, the study points out that Canada needs a strong online in‑language presence, well‑developed relations with the travel trade sector, and a major influencer on destination selection. It will be important to strengthen Canada's image and awareness so that Canada is part of the consideration set early in the trip planning process.

For the common good

(Originally published in TOURISM)

An icreasing number of people are opting to use their holiday time for the purpose of "altruistic travel", according to new poll results from online travel specialist Opodo. In a report by by Phil Davies in TravelMole March 9, 2007, the poll shows a 67% rise in travellers taking Opodo's "meaningful travel" programs over the last year.

Almost three quarters are female and one in ten are aged over 40, with one in three aged between 25 to 40. This shows that the older generation are now more likely than ever to take up the opportunity of a career break in order to "give something back", according to Opodo.

In partnership with volunteer travel specialists i‑to‑i, the company offers projects ranging from community work with children in Mombassa, to painting favellas in Rio de Janeiro and undertaking conservation projects in the UK. Africa has proved the most popular continent with the conscientious traveller over the past year, with Kenya and South Africa topping the list of most visited destinations for Opodo's meaningful travel projects in 2006. A substantial rise in the number of people taking on projects in Asia is predicted over the coming year.

"Babymoon" pregnant with possibility

(Originally published in TOURISM)

Many expectant couples are packing their bags and taking one last vacation before the baby arrives. More than half of expectant couples take 'pre-baby' vacations for rest and relaxation, according to an article in USA Today. The travel industry is paying attention. Leading names in travel and parenting now offer the first "Babymoon" vacation packages.

According to a recent survey by Liberty Travel (a large US travel agency) and BabyCenter®, the most popular online resource for new and expectant parents, 59% of new parents have taken a special vacation, or "Babymoon," that included an overnight stay away from home.

"Like Honeymoons, Babymoons have become another special vacation couples take and remember forever," noted Lisa Vachna, a Liberty Travel vacation specialist. "The survey confirmed how important this trip is for expectant couples, and also gave us insights on the special touches that are essential for a perfect Babymoon."

More than two million babymoons are taken by US parents‑to‑be each year, and 43% of couples are looking for rest and relaxation, while 41% take this trip as 'one final getaway for just us'. The survey also shows that 62% of Babymooners opt to do nothing or just relax, 59% prefer to shop, and 48% prefer sightseeing. The average Babymoon takes place during the second trimester. Typically, the Babymoon is from two to four nights long. More information can be found at www.babycenter.com.

GITF hosts 90 Canadian delegates

(Originally published in TOURISM)

The Guangzhou International Travel Fair 2007 (GITF) played host to 90 Canadian delegates from 45 partner organizations, including representatives from Tourism BC, Travel Alberta International, Ontario Tourism, and Tourism Montréal, as well as from airline companies, travel agencies, attractions and others from the travel trade industry.

GITF is the largest and most influential travel fair in the South China region and the CTC (which planned and arranged all activities) considers the Southern China market to be a key factor in building visitor numbers to Canada. This year, the CTC made its debut at GITF as the largest exhibitor, displaying the new brand image and visuals alongside Canada’s abundant travel products in its 470 square meter pavilion.

Following its participation in GITF, the CTC delegation continued its Chinese promotional activities with a creative tour that traveled up the Yangtze River on the Viking Century Sky cruise ship. Together with the Canadian delegates, 45 of the leading travel agencies from across China were onboard for three days of intensive business‑to‑business discussions and networking.

Activities at GITF included a sellers' briefing for all the delegates, hosted by CTC’s managing director – China, Derek Galpin, who provided an economic overview of the Chinese market, an update on some of the activities with which the CTC was involved in 2006, and plans for the coming year. Following Galpin's presentation, Albert Guo, of CYTS Beijing, gave an overview of the incentive travel market in China which has seen very fast growth since 2002. He followed with profiles of corporate clients interested in incentives, and concluded by introducing the advantages and disadvantages of Canada as a Chinese incentive destination, leaving delegates with a lot to think about.

Other activities included a lunch for VIP media, co‑sponsored by Tourism British Columbia and the Ontario Tourism Marketing Partnership Corporation (OTMPC), with Ontario’s Deputy Minister of Tourism, David L. Lindsay. That evening the OTMPC co‑hosted an evening reception with the CTC to highlight the unique wonders of Ontario and Canada; over 200 guests from the travel trade and media were treated to live entertainment from a local jazz band and the Le‑La‑La dancers, and left the event with goodie bags and warm impressions of Canadian hospitality.

"We believe events like GITF and Showcase provide the perfect opportunity for our partner organizations to illustrate to the media, travel trade and Chinese public why they should want to come to Canada," concludes Galpin, "and we will certainly be taking part in similar events in the future.”

Creating the "buzz" for long‑lasting effect

(Originally published in TOURISM)

When selling Canada in key markets, the need to sustain momentum for 12 months of the year is what inspires the Canadian Tourism Commission's (CTC) UK team. Managing director Maggie Davison has high hopes for how this approach will impact Canada’s perception.

“We have been aggressive in anticipation of 2007. We are aiming to shed new light on Canada and certainly to intrigue the consumer with our marketing efforts. I love the radio ads; imagine somebody sitting in traffic, parked on the M25 and trying to get to work on a dull, overcast, rainy morning punctuated by the rants of other drivers wrestling with road rage. Imagine that setting – which is quite common here in the UK – and a radio announcer inviting this person to picture a soothing walk through a fresh pine forest while grabbing the air freshener, bringing it within range of one’s nostril with instructions to inhale deeply to feel like you have just entered a Canadian pine forest!”

This play on British humour is just one of the tactics the CTC‑UK has come up with to grow Canada’s appeal in a country where sustained presence is the only sure way to build awareness.

“We are on radio and on the Underground (subway). We just did a USB drop on the heels of our ice rink campaign at Canary Wharf, where 5,000 USB memory sticks featuring Canada were handed out to staff in office towers overlooking the ice rink. On the ice, we displayed the Canada Keep Exploring logo so they could see from their windows.”

Davison views the whole concept of nurturing familiarity with the Canada, in potentially high‑yield consumer clusters, as extremely powerful. “We imagine the first thing people did that morning at work was to plug the USB stick in their computer and just play the content. This might have provided some welcome relief and something to think about on a Monday after the weekend, when they really don’t want to be at work.”

Another tactic is expected to do very well is the gym poster campaign running nationally at selected health and fitness locations, a concept with a clever twist borrowed from the CTC‑Germany:

“These posters are a play on the muscle charts that are usually posted on exercise machines, except that in this case, if you see the tummy muscles being worked highlighted in red, it’ll indicate that these muscles are exercised while attending a comedy festival in Canada. If the biceps or lower calf muscles are highlighted, those might be targeted while engaging in shopping activities. We put a bit of a different spin on this concept to tie in with all the things Brits like to do when they are away on vacation. As they perspire doing their 15‑minute workout on the treadmill, they can enjoy the humour and realize they can do all these wonderful things in Canada.”

Add to this that Spotlight 2007 was totally revamped this year, and that Canada Day at Trafalgar Square on June 29 is now in the works:

“In conjunction with the Canada Media awards which happen the day before, we are really packing a lot into Canada's birthday weekend. We are hoping to secure a relatively well‑known line‑up, culminating in a big name here in the UK. We have added things like food and beverages promoting Canadian products with the pavilion concept – the idea being that people are attending the celebrations to experience Canada for the day.”

Davison hopes they will get so excited, they will ultimately get on a plane and come to Canada knowing the destination is a really cool place to spend time. “In the fall we’ll be running our Canada Specialist conference which took on a new format last year. Then we will open for the winter with the ice rink again.”

As we move closer to the Vancouver Olympics, that theme will be introduced in marketing activities. “Canada Day and the Ice Rink lend themselves as excellent platforms for that,” Davison notes. “Without the collaboration of all the CTC’s partners, the magnitude of these efforts would not be the same. The goal is to impart a Canada buzz to the UK, and I think we really are doing that. There are just not enough hours in the day to do all the things we’d love to do.”

About hunters, fishers, and bush planes

(Originally published in TOURISM)

The 65-year-old owner of Club Chambeaux, Air Saguenay, Labrador Air Safari (and co-owner of Nolinor Aviation) just doesn't include the words "slowing down" in his vocabulary. Nowadays, he spends a lot of his time travelling around the world to hunt, fish, meet friends and find out for himself how world market trends will influence the business he has built over four decades.

Jean-Claude Tremblay is not only one of the most successful hunting and fishing outfitters in Canada, he also built the largest bush air carrier organization in North America. What is striking about his story is how this Jonquière‑based entrepreneur grew his business through a series of clever air carrier and outfitting allocation deals that leave you wondering how he managed to weather so much risk, so naturally!

Tremblay had his first taste of the hospitality business in the much‑celebrated Saguenay “brasseries” sector (the Quebec equivalent of English pubs). The man had always loved hunting and fishing, and he bought his first small aircraft in 1967, flying enthusiastically all across northern Quebec. His outdoor advertising business (Enseignes Neon Otis) allowed him to dream of one day owning outposts in exotic places with names like “Croissant Vermeil” and “Lac Margane”; his first stake in the outfitting business (in 1973) involved exclusive access over a 324,000 hectare territory, about 150 km north from Chicoutimi at Homamo Lake.

“It was the ultimate destination at the time for indigenous trout in Quebec,” he notes. “The company was in business with Air Saguenay, and we were getting 1,000 to 1,200 guests a year, 80% of whom were Americans. Air Saguenay looked after their transportation needs.”

In 1980, Tremblay bought Air Saguenay.

As he sifted through his new acquisition’s books, he came across a lease covering the Muguet and Delorme Lake areas, where a large hydro electric project meant the Caniapiscau River would be flooded and a huge reservoir created over much of the area. “We realized this territory would soon be under water, and I opted to hold on to the relocation rights until an opportunity came along.” The wisdom of this risky‑appearing venture became apparent much later.

Meanwhile, Tremblay acquired a Fermont‑based air carrier which opened a corridor to northern Québec and gave him the rights to Club Chambeaux Outfitters, which was then mostly undeveloped. “That’s how we got into hunting. We opened 6 lodges there in 1984, welcoming between 800 and 1,000 clients a year, most of whom flew in from Montréal, on now‑defunct Québécair. By 1987, there were already two or three caribou hunting outfitters in Schefferville.”

But the client volume did not justify a direct Montréal to Schefferville air connection, so Tremblay entered into discussions about moving his Fermont operations to Schefferville in order to increase the local client pool. So, with 1,500 clients, the opportunity to lure a carrier for the Montréal leg looked much more attractive; indeed, City Express eventually agreed to 50 regularly scheduled flights from Montréal to Schefferville.

Other outfitters soon came on board. “We ended up collectively bringing 3,000 hunters to Schefferville on a yearly basis. Air Saguenay opened a base there (and ended up keeping Fermont). We acquired another carrier from Wabush (Labrador), and grew the Air Saguenay fleet rapidly, ending up with eight more aircraft."

The company also owned Manicouagan Outfitters and 10 or 12 camps with 400 to 500 American and Canadian annual clients coming through Baie‑Comeau. “As a result, when the fishing season ended in the fall, we were able to assign 4 or 5 of their aircraft to our increasing demand from the growing caribou hunting market. At that point, other outfitters moved to Lake Pau at the Caniapiscau reservoir. So we opened an air base there.”

Remember that risky‑sounding option to hold onto relocation rights? This is where Tremblay exercised his right to relocate, acquiring the village of Caniapiscau for a nominal fee. (The village had been used by hydro project developers in the 1970’s and later been abandoned.)

“Air Saguenay grew again after this with the acquisition of three other carriers and more aircraft as far away as Havre St. Pierre on the Lower North Shore. Today our fleet works out of 12 airbases in Quebec.” When City Express eventually went bankrupt, he and partner Jacques Prud’homme created Nolinor Aviation with a fleet of passenger and cargo aircraft, a main base at Mirabel, and facilities at Dorval (both Montréal area airports).

“We now look after all caribou hunters for Schefferville and Lake Pau regions; we look after 90% of white‑tail deer hunters on Anticosti Island. We carry passengers for Frontiers North Adventures for polar bear watching. We carry salmon fishing clients to the north of the Winnipeg area and we carry many anglers to western Canadian outfitter destinations. We needed an entry point for hunters; Nolinor gave us the hub presence with transfers to Air Saguenay for Club Chambeaux, Club Montagnais, and Nordic Camps where we are one of the partners.”

Every move Tremblay made in his career seems to have had one common ingredient: opportunity to deliver guests to his lodges and outposts in one seamless logistical solution. The control he had over his carrier resources gave him the latitude to assign carrier aircraft according to demand.

“When guests arrive in Montréal, they are welcomed by one of our representatives; when they land in Schefferville, they are greeted again by one of our people. We’re always there supporting our clients at all levels of the hunting experience from when they buy their license, through the service provided by our guides, to the quality of our boats, our engines, our food and lodges. Plus, everything always unfolds on schedule.”

Tremblay claims his organization has welcomed more than 22,000 Canadian and American hunters and more than 6,000 angling guests over the years. “We manage our natural resources in a sustainable manner, therefore our harvest is far from astronomical. We have marketed intensively through FAM trips and we advertise in the best hunting magazines in the US and Canada. We attend more than 40 US and Canada sport shows a year. And while in the past we have focused traditionally on baby boomers, they are now getting older, so we offer enticing rebates for children to bring renewal.”

Increasingly, Tremblay sees fathers bringing their children along: “The baby boomer client numbers went from 3,500 hunters, to between 2,000 and 2,500. We don’t want the numbers to go down further because our infrastructure is there and facility maintenance requirements need to be justified by adequate user levels. That is why our number of aircraft has grown and the number of our lodges decreased (from 6 to 3), so we can better focus on quality. We cover more territory and attractions with our clients, and they feel they are in good hands.”

Jean‑Claude Tremblay has a gift for seeing – and building – opportunities, and he shows no signs of slowing down!

Lunenburg railway a model museum

(Originally published in TOURISM)

Every small Canadian community has a museum dedicated to preserving its past, and just about anyone can have a model railroad these days; but when your museum features a model railroad, something special has to happen. Duane Porter is curator and owner of the Halifax & Southwestern Railway Museum, where he is working to recreate the line built by Canadian railway barons William Mackenzie and Donald Mann at the turn of the twentieth century, which was intended to be the final link of their grand scheme to build a third national transcontinental railway.

Based in the historic Nova Scotia town of Lunenburg, a community designated as a world heritage site by the United Nations, Porter knows how important even the smallest detail will be. "The people in this community know every inch of (the old) tracks, even though they are long gone, and they’ll point out any inaccuracy to you. And, people come from around the world to see the home of the Bluenose,” he says of the famous fishing schooner featured on the Canadian dime, “so we can’t afford to be seen as a second rate side‑show.”

The museum relocated to Lunenburg from nearby Bridgewater in May of 2003 after the shopping mall in which the museum was housed announced it was expanding its commercial space. The move obliged the museum to close for almost a full year, re‑opening in April of 2004.

“In one sense we lost some of our historical validity, because Bridgewater had always been the division point for the railway,” Porter recalls, “and we lost a lot of our traffic since so much of it was a spin‑off from the mall.” Porter and his band of volunteer modellers and tour guides rose to the challenge, and Lunenburg has become a perfect location by virtue of its own unique historic status.

The new location, in a 3,500 square foot warehouse setting, houses the 750 lineal feet of HO (1:87 scale) and S scale (1:64 scale) railway, which in turn is situated above cabinets that hold hundreds of exhibits from the Halifax and Southwestern and the two railways with which it interchanged, the fabled Dominion Atlantic, and the Intercolonial (later Canadian National) Railway. With space to expand, Porter has many plans for new development, including interactive displays for younger patrons, a meeting facility and kitchen, and one day perhaps even some outdoor exhibits of rolling stock.

Like most heritage sites, including publicly funded museums, the Halifax and Southwestern finds a lack of money to be a challenge. So closely linked to the tourist traffic, the success of a single year can hinge upon something as remote as the price of gasoline, a war in the Middle East, or any number of economic factors that oblige people to stay at home for a vacation. “The challenge is to find something fresh each year to bring old visitors back,” Porter said, “and we are finding many who return are pleased to see how our reconstruction of the line in miniature is advancing.”

Sometimes they may have to look very closely, for the towns of Lunenburg, Bridgewater, Liverpool, and Mahone Bay are being rebuilt to painstaking detail. It’s only part of the attraction of the museum, which hopes to bring to life the human drama of a railway that was built with high expectations of wealth by two men who were accustomed to business success. The same two men were devastated when their transcontinental railway plan came crashing down around them, only to be absorbed by the federal government into Canadian National Railways in the 1920s.

“We want to be able so show why this railway, which at 581 kilometres (361 miles) wasn’t very long, should not be overlooked in Canadian history," Porter emphasizes. “For example, it was built through difficult terrain largely dominated by solid granite, and was hand carved by men with dynamite, picks and shovels; and moved by mule and wagon as it inched closer and closer toward Halifax.”

The line also has a strong tie to the community’s fishing heritage. “Moving fish to market was of prime importance to the fishermen in Lunenburg,” Porter continues, “and when the H&SW offered refrigerated box car service, new markets opened up almost overnight.”


Jay Underwood is an author and former newspaper editor and publisher living in Elmsdale, NS. He is president of the Nova Scotia Railway Heritage Society.