CANADIAN IMMIGRATION NEWS

Nova Scotia (Canada) steals tourism limelight

Monday, 14 January 2008

Nova Scotia may be the second smallest and fourth least populous province in Canada, but its humble size sure didn't stop it from being noticed by the competitive tourism industry.

According to the Canadian Department of Tourism, Culture and Heritage, it has experienced a growth in tourism every month from June through the end of November.

It has welcomed more than two million visitors from January to the end of November, which is 34,700 more than during the same period in 2006. The number of room nights also enjoyed an increase of 2%, and a preliminary revenue estimate for 2007 was $1.33 billion, a 2% increase over 2006.

“We’re pleased with our tourism industry’s performance in 2007, with increases in visitor numbers and revenues,” said Canada's Minister of Tourism, Culture and Heritage, Bill Dooks. He further indicated that this is only the beginning, as Canada would like to attract and welcome even more visitors in 2008.

The numbers were also slightly up in Cape Breton Island, which forms part of Nova Scotia. There was a 1% increase in occupancy rates and 5% in room nights sold.

Sandra MacDonald, general manager of Destination Cape Breton, said that while the Celtic Colours International Festival normally signals the end of the Cape Breton tourism season, good weather extended the 2007 season even further into the fall. “All in all, we’ve seen a pretty good season, a strong season here in Cape Breton.”

Even though the number American visitors was down by 18,600 because of the ever-strengthening Canadian dollar during 2007, there has been an increase of a whopping 57,300 visitors from other parts of Canada.

While pleased with the overall numbers from 2007, MacDonald said she does hope to see even better numbers in 2008, with Cape Breton playing host to a number of events.

“We’re looking forward to a wonderful year this year with all the activities that are planned, and hopefully we can set the bar for the rest of the province,” MacDonald added.

Events said to be scheduled for Cape Breton, are the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League draft, the Louisbourg encampment, the Cape Breton Dragon Boat Festival and the Canadian Little League Championship.

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