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tourIsm fAces the future

AN INdustry Gets GrowING


Newfoundland and Labrador is taking tourism seriously. If you have seen the ads, you already know they are some of the best in the world. Travelled on Marine Atlantic recently? You were likely on one of the two new ferries added to its fleet. The statistics tell us that tourism increased in this province by more than seven per cent in 2010. It is all related. While the industry can be proud of its recent accomplishments, most tourism operators in this province know that they cannot rest on last seasons success. Tourism is a business where competition is everywhere. As travellers tastes change, this years tourism hot spot can become pass over just one season. The key to ensuring the future success of tourism throughout the province is partnership. Driven by that insight, the provincial government and industry joined forces in 2009 to create a new vision for the future of tourism in this province, titled Uncommon Potential: A Vision for Newfoundland and Labrador Tourism (Vision 2020). This joint Issue 1 strategy comes with a bold set of directions that touches on every facet of the tourism business and sets a higher goal to double tourism revenues by the year 2020. To achieve that goal, government and industry have come together to work on ways to maximize the economic, social and cultural value of tourism. The Newfoundland and Labrador Tourism Board was formed to implement the strategy and provide guidance for tourism investment and development in the province. The boards key priorities are to strengthen the linkages between government, tourism organizations, communities, and industry operators. Both industry and government agreed that before we could start working on specific strategic directions in Vision 2020, we needed to get ourselves organized and work in tandem, said Carol-Ann Gilliard, CEO of Hospitality Newfoundland and Labrador, the industry association that speaks for the tourism sector. One of the biggest challenges in trying to implement a tourism strategy is organizing the large number of diverse organizations that make up the industry. Newfoundland and Labrador has thousands of private, non-profit, government and community organizations all working to tap into tourisms potential. It can be extremely difficult to focus everyones efforts in the same direction. The Newfoundland and Labrador Tourism Board, a private-public board, became the foundation of our collaboration, bringing together the key organizations that collectively agreed on the priorities and defined their roles in the process, said Stan Cook, chair of the board. Without this formalized structure, Hospitality Newfoundland and Labrador and our other partners on the board would have continued to work on our own individual priorities, eliminating the benefits and leverage gained by a collective effort. Other strategic directions outlined in the Vision 2020 document include a set of action items to provide a sustainable transportation network, develop new market intelligence and research strategies, build on our successful marketing campaigns, and improve on the use of tourism technology to enhance the visitor experience.
See Growing Tourism on back page

Volume 17

www.theambassador.ca

TourIsm deVelopmenT

tourIsm & trANsportAtIoN

GettING IN ANd ArouNd hAs Never beeN eAsIer

are well understood and frequently discussed among industry stakeholders. In short, travel to, from, and around the province, whether by sea, air, or road is constrained by issues of affordability, capacity, infrastructure, and quality. Then again, venturing off the beaten path is a major selling feature of the provincial tourism sector. As residents know, the provinces population is small. For an area of more than 400,000 square kilometres; it has the lowest population density of the 10 Canadian provinces. The remoteness can be a challenge. However, the Newfoundland and Labrador Tourism Board is playing a key role on several fronts to improve the travel experience for residents and visitors alike. Ferry access to the island of Newfoundland has been improved in recent months with the addition of two new Marine Atlantic ferries that provide a vital link between the island and the mainland. A key goal of the board is to strengthen ties between transportation companies and other industry stakeholders to meet the future demand for affordable, accessible, and quality transportation. There are core activities in the tourism industry, such as marketing, product development, and human resource development, and there are core enablers. Transportation is one of our most critical enablers, said Carol-Ann Gilliard, CEO of Hospitality Newfoundland and Labrador. The tourism industrys strategy in helping to build an effective transportation system is working with the leaders of our partner transportation organizations. Our association has worked hard to forge positive relationships based on

the transportation challenges facing tourism in Newfoundland and Labrador

collective goals with many transportation providers and stakeholders in the province. When we started this approach, it did not take long to realize that our priorities were already closely aligned. Working together on the priorities from that point was easier. In addition, the Newfoundland and Labrador Tourism Board is consulting with key industry stakeholders to implement the recent air access strategy recommendations, outlined in Taking Flight: An Air Access Strategy for Newfoundland and Labrador, with the aim to improve service and build frequency and capacity to Newfoundland and Labrador. So getting to Newfoundland and Labrador is becoming easier. When the visitor arrives, getting around can still be an adventure in a sizeable province. Gilliard explained that the industry is already working with government to implement a tourism-oriented signage system called Tourism Oriented Directional Signage (TODS), a universally-accepted and widely-used approach for integrating public and private tourist services and attractions signage into the highway system. We are fortunate to be experiencing significant milestones in transportation in Newfoundland and Labrador. With Marine Atlantics new strategy, increased road access in Labrador and the new TODS system, we are starting to see improvements in the way people access and travel around our province. Gilliard said. With a renewed focus on transportation by both industry and government, we are also seeing some positive steps happening in air access and car rental availability, which are closely linked in the transportation supply chain. The provincial ferry system is also an important enabler of the tourism industry and Hospitality

Newfoundland and Labrador is working with a number of government departments to bring the tourism perspective into their planning. The overall approach to improving infrastructure and transportation is essential to enhancing the visitor experience. Coupled with a tourist education program that educates the traveller about the size and complexities of movement in and around Newfoundland and Labrador, this will help the provincial government meet its goal as set out in the Vision 2020 blueprint to increase the value of the tourism sector.

www.tcr.gov.nl.ca

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dId you KNow?


cruise ship visitors to Newfoundland and Labrador numbered almost 33,000 in 2010, an increase of 33 per cent over 2009. Almost 1.2 million visits to the provinces official tourism website in 2010 represents a 10 per cent increase over 2009.

tourIsm tech vAcAtIoN pLANNING beGINs At home


Like just about every other industry sector, the tourism industry has changed

significantly in the last 20 years due to the emergence of technology and the Internet. Whether it is responding to clients email inquiries or building the perfect reservationtaking, attention-grabbing website, technology has introduced the tourism industry to a new kind of travelling public who require a new level of customer service and technological sophistication. Many in the industry must adapt to grow. For operators, it is not whether the campground has free wi-fi, but rather at what point in the travellers decision-making process can you make them aware of your product or service. The arrival of the 21st century traveller, one who uses the Internet to research, book, and document their travels, is quickly becoming the norm. Tourists book their travel and accommodations online, look for things to do, look for places to eat and often post their travel photos and comments on blogs, review websites and Facebook, said Craig Foley of Hospitality Newfoundland and Labrador. Foley is tasked with mentoring the tourism industry in Newfoundland and Labrador to understand and use technology as a competitive tool. Technology is an enabler for tourism more than for other industries, he said. The more operators know, the more likely they can leverage the potential it offers to achieve their business goals. Tourism operators who embrace technology and use the Internet to their advantage do so because they know most travel decisions are made before the traveller even leaves their home. This means instant access to information. Upto-date websites and a user-friendly way to complete tasks like making reservations are no longer added-value. If tourism operators dont provide those tools, they often lose customers without even knowing it.

Barry Rogers, owner of Iceberg Quest, a boattour operator in St. Johns and Twillingate, Notre Dame Bay, knows from experience how important it is to use technology. In the past, we would have relied on print advertising, 1-800 numbers, and vacation guides to get the word out. Those tools are still important, but using technology to interact with our customers has not only improved our bottom line, but has also made running our day-today operations a lot easier, he said. Accommodating the emergence of a more sophisticated traveller is one of the identified

priorities of the Vision 2020 plan for the future of Newfoundland and Labrador tourism. Vision 2020 includes support for operators to be ready with online technology and digital marketing tools including quality websites, online brochures and online reservation systems. The Newfoundland and Labrador Tourism Board also believes that access to broadband Internet service is essential for both urban and rural operators.
www.tourismtechnology.com

mArKetING the product


Newfoundland and Labradors tourism marketing program has been very

tourIsm cAmpAIGN boAsts coNtINuING success

successful in positioning the province as a unique and exotic destination. To date, the Find Yourself Here television and print ads, as well as the website, have won over a hundred industry and marketing awards, and has earned the distinction of being one of the most unique and effective tourism marketing campaigns in Canada. In 2010, Newfoundland and Labrador welcomed more than half a million visitors, marking the first time the number of tourists in a year exceeded the provinces population. A number of factors have played a role in this success, from the provinces economic strength to our unique and desirable lifestyle all tied together by a marketing campaign that tourism experts have called a branding best-practice.

Achievements of the provinces tourism marketing campaign are tied directly to the goals set out in Uncommon Potential - A Vision for Newfoundland and Labrador Tourism (Vision 2020), said the Honourable Terry French, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Recreation. The goal of the marketing program is to build awareness of our destination and to increase visitation to the province. Building partnerships and improving products and services is also a goal of Vision 2020. While the marketing campaign is the main engine in selling the province, tourism operators and communities have a major role to play in the overall visitor experience. Destination management organizations (DMOs) have been established in five regions of the province.

The DMOs are our tourism partners within the regions and are engaging industry operators in a variety of tourism programs including our marketing efforts, said Minister French. Most importantly the DMOs are supporting the industry to improve tourism products and services so that visitors have a great experience. By building a solid and desirable tourism brand, and by reinforcing that brand at all levels from the advertising to the visitor experience the work that has gone into years of planning and marketing excellence translate into a Newfoundland and Labrador that is continually improving and growing as a vacation destination.
www.uncommonpotential.com

more thAN pretty pIctures product deveLopmeNt Is the future of tourIsm


As Newfoundland and Labrador continues to strengthen its position

in the national and international tourism marketplace, it is important for all tourism industry stakeholders to be aware of and focus on future growth. This is why product development is one of seven strategic directions of the Vision 2020 strategy for the future of tourism development in the province. If you look at the province as a product, every tourism related business, natural landscape, highway, road sign, and rest stop make up a part of the total experience. To ensure the development of strategic and sustainable products and experiences, the industry and government has identified a roadmap for product development in the Vision 2020 plan for tourism in the province. Several goals have been identified as key to maintaining the momentum generated by the industry in the past couple of years. Research and development of best practices and more market-driven products and services are essential to attracting greater numbers of visitors. Mike Clewer is the executive director for the western regions destination management organization, Go Western Newfoundland. He says the region has been developing a series of festivals in the spring that combine the natural and cultural heritage of the entire region with the aim of extending the travel season. The goal is to increase the number of visitors outside the peak summer months of July and August. Product development concentrating on season extension is an opportunity for growth in many regions of the province, Clewer said. Over the last three years weve been building on the success of the Trails, Tales and Tunes festival in Gros Morne, this year celebrating its fifth anniversary, with the addition of three new events that celebrate spring in the western region from the Codroy Valley to the tip of the Northern Peninsula, he added. The series, known as Springfest, starts with Trails, Tales and Tunes in mid-May. The festival features daily walks, workshops with artists and photographers, and evening entertainment by local musicians and storytellers with the spectacular Gros Morne National Park as the backdrop. To highlight spring on the Southwest coast and the Codroy Valley, the Feather and Folk festival features a program of presentations by birding experts and interpretive walks to provide answers about the 200 species of migratory birds that visit the area each year. The evenings merge the best of local entertainment and cuisine.

Celebrating the Humber Valley, A Spring in your Step features a weekend of enjoyable walks and hikes complete with interpretive activities from geo-caching to boat tours in the Bay of Islands. The Springfest season rounds off with The Iceberg Festival, in mid-June, allowing visitors to enjoy guided nature walks, hikes, boat tours, cultural exhibitions, traditional music and cuisine in addition to the fabulous sights of iceberg alley, the annual spectacle promoted as ten thousand years in the making. The challenge of providing a critical mass of authentic experiences, improving multiseason demand, and the need to protect our environment is providing opportunities for the tourism industry in the short and long-term. These goals are essential as the province seeks to provide balance through effective product development for the tourism industry.
www.springfest.ca

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dId you KNow?


the system of provincial historic sites received 48,821 visitors between may and october 2010, an increase of 8 per cent over 2009. In 2010, the number of large conventions increased from 81 to 95, with the number of delegates increasing by 31 per cent, to 22,900.

GrowING tourIsm

Continued from front page

new outdoor activities, like Ziplining, are improving the overall tourism experience throughout newfoundland and labrador

Over the next decade, industry and government will partner to improve and develop new tourism experiences, products, and services like never before. In addition, a particular focus on developing a trained and sustainable workforce is in place to make sure the travellers stay in Newfoundland and Labrador is a pleasant and memorable one. This is an exciting time for tourism in Newfoundland and Labrador, Gilliard said. Our province is now viewed as a competitive force in Canadian tourism. Our unparalleled marketing efforts have certainly contributed to our progress but, ultimately, it is our rare and outstanding cultural and natural experiences offered up with genuine hospitality that will be our competitive advantage in the long run. The vision has focused all of us on sustaining Newfoundland and Labradors competitive advantage and seizing the economic, cultural and social opportunities that our marketing efforts have enabled. It has concentrated our efforts on ensuring we deliver on our brand promise every single time someone travels to Newfoundland and Labrador. That is our ultimate goal. In this issue of the Ambassador, we look at some of the initiatives currently underway and plans to achieve the Vision 2020 goal of doubling tourism revenues in Newfoundland and Labrador in the next decade.
www.hnl.ca

coNtAct us
e t m

ambassador@gov.nl.ca 709.729.1326 1.800.562.2299 Ambassador Program Department of Innovation, Trade and Rural Development P Box 8700, St. Johns, NL A1B 4J6 .O. www.theambassador.ca

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