Alberta could more than double tourism dollars spent: minister

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Alberta's tourism minister says doubling tourism spending in the province in more than a decade is achievable under the government's new tourism strategy.

Alberta tourism spending will reach $10.7 billion in 2022, up $600 million from 2019 levels, according to the province. The Alberta government has set a goal of increasing annual visitor spending to $25 billion by 2035 through its new strategy. The strategy focuses on five pillars: leadership and alignment, competitive product, people and careers, expanding access and local tourism.

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“As a government, we're putting this plan together to find a way to get to that $35 billion,” said Joseph Shaw, Alberta's minister of tourism and sport, in an interview with Postmedia on Tuesday. “It's not just going to happen on its own, so with a bit of support from the government and the five pillars and the strategy, we're going to get there, no doubt.”

Travel Alberta, which will change its mandate from marketing to destination management in 2021, will play a key role in increasing visitor spending in the province, Shaw said.

“The change in mandate and increased budget allowed them to look around the province for tourism products worth investing in, help business owners of those products with their business plans and marketing, really get those products off the ground. on the world stage and then allow us to go overseas to sell those products,” he said.

Alberta is already seeing the results of that work, with tourism spending recovering from the pandemic, Shaw said. Much of the tourism spending that helped Alberta reach pre-pandemic levels was from provincial and Canadian visitors, he added.

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“What we're missing right now is the European traveler, that's the high-spending traveler,” Alberta's tourism minister said. “The types of people who come to Alberta, they stay longer, spend more, stay in hotels, eat in restaurants, shop locally.”

Air travel is important for growing tourism

Air travel plays a key role in bringing those travelers to the province, and that has improved, Shaw said, with the addition of direct flights from places like France, Germany, Japan, Korea and Italy.

“With the air service, we're seeing more travelers coming here and it's been very successful for us so far,” he said.

Regional air travel, also important to the province's strategy, was mentioned in at least four of Premier Daniel Smith's mandate letters to ministers, Shaw said.

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“We all have a responsibility to help work with regional airports so access to them is consistent and sustainable and that's how our tourism strategy can be successful because we're paying people across the province, not just going to Banff, Jasper and Banff. Lake Louise,” he said.

Alberta Travel's roughly $80 million budget for 2024 includes $5 million to support air travel, Shaw said. This work will ensure working with airlines, ensuring that their routes are stable and that marketing is done properly to ensure there is demand, he said.

“As a result, since 2020, Travel Alberta has generated just under 600,000 additional air seats in the province,” Shaw said.

Through Travel Alberta, the province has developed 10 destination areas within about two hours of the airport and hopes to create “clusters” of tourist attractions that allow visitors to stay longer and spend more, Shaw said.

“Everybody has unique products to offer and Travel Alberta's job is to work with those areas, work with business owners, invest in those products that we think are valuable to the international traveler or the local traveler, and that helps. We have a lot of people in the province, not concentrated in just one area.”

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The tourism industry is a “destination”

To attract workers to specific roles in the industry, the province has created a tourism and hospitality stream under the Alberta Immigration Preference Program.

“We are also … working with post-graduates as we try to create more university places and attract students from their respective programs into the tourism sector,” Shaw said.

According to Shaw, there is a wide range of careers in the tourism sector, from accountants to chefs.

“It's also a great time – a place where the tourism sector can be,” said Alberta's tourism minister. “I think it's a win-win for the province to create demand and have students and new Canadians come to the province for tourism.”

Local tourism plays a big role in the increase of visitors

The potential to boost local tourism is “in the billions,” Shaw said.

“After coming to showcase Canada last November in Hamburg, Germany, we heard loud and clear that two-thirds of foreign visitors to Canada want an authentic local experience,” he said.

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Between 2021-26, the province will provide more than $8.5 million to Alberta's local tourism.

“We know that this investment, the highest investment in indigenous tourism in the country, will have a huge return on investment,” Shaw said.

Tourism is carried out in a “very sustainable” way

Shaw called the province's tourism strategy “a very responsible, measured way to promote tourism without significantly harming the environment and climate.”

“In fact, one of the best ways to manage the environment is to make sure that we're using it well and that we're having a good relationship with local communities and the environment there,” Shaw said. “It also depends on the types of products we're developing, but everything is done very sustainably.”

Minister 'all ears' about bringing sporting events to Alberta.

The province is always looking to bring sporting events to Alberta, Shaw said, sitting in his Edmonton office and looking at the Canada jersey for the 2027 World Junior Hockey Championship in Alberta.

“Sports and tourism go together really well, and when you have an opportunity to book something that's a good deal for the province of Alberta and fills hotel rooms, I'm all ears,” he said.

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