Rendez-vous Canada Taking Tourism To New Heights

This country’s tourist trade is giving international tourism buyers an impressive history lesson.

Rendez-vous Canada 2023 kicked off in Quebec City Tuesday, with delegates getting a close-up look at a city famed for its many historical structures, reports Press Today’s Ian Stalker, who is attending the show.

“We are thrilled to welcome you here … It’s really, really thrilling to see everyone again,” Destination Quebec head Robert Mercure told show attendees Tuesday morning.

The show — which has attracted people from 29 countries — comes at a time when many tourism firms say they are still struggling with the fallout from the pandemic.

But former TIAC head David Goldstein told Press Today that tourism is seeing a number of welcome developments.

“We’re not just renewing the industry. We’ve refreshed it,” said Goldstein, now the CEO of Travel Alberta.

Goldstein noted that $6 million has been spent in the past 3 years enhancing Indigenous travel experiences in Alberta and labelled Indigenous travel “key to experiential travel, regenerative travel and the diversity the world is looking for.”

Indigenous travel in Alberta encompasses the likes of culinary experiences, boutique accommodations and glamping that enables participants to see the Northern Lights, he noted.

Meanwhile, Destination Canada president Marsha Walden praised her industry’s contribution to Canada’s economic well-being.

“Tourism is the heart of Canada’s economic and social fabric — benefitting more regions than any other industry. The outcomes of Rendez-vous Canada ultimately enrich the lives of our guests and generate wealth and well-being for all Canadians,” she said.

In the photo 

Indigenous tourism was in the spotlight at Rendez-vous Canada and seen here, from l to r, are Tamara Littlelight, director of marketing at the Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada, and ITAC president Keith Henry.