Queen of North sinking had an impact on Prince George Tourism

Tourism Prince George has gone through the summer numbers of May to September and determined that tourist vists to that city were down 6% from the same period of time in 2005.

A high Canadian dollar, high fuel costs and reduction in VIA rail frequency were considered part of the cause to the downturn, but the sinking of the BC Ferry in March seems to be the main reason that the numbers dropped by that six percent amount. The reduction in the Ferry service in Prince rupert resulted in reduced circle tour opportunities and less hotel stays in Prince Geroge for west and east bound travelers.

While six percent is a good chunk of missing traffic, Tourism Prince George is happy with that number considering the challenges that 2006 provided for them. The full story was found in the PG Free Press of October 25.

Numbers down, but expected
By Bill Phillips
PGFree Press
Oct 25 2006

The bad news is there were fewer tourists in town this season. The good news is that numbers were expected to be down and weren’t as bad as expected.

“We did a comparison from May to September,“ said Deborah Kulchiski, Manager of Tourism Prince George. “We were down six per cent compared to 2005.“

From May to September 2006, the Prince George Visitor Centres welcomed approximately 21,000 visitors. This same period in 2005 experienced approximately 22,500 visitors. Overall, this reflects a decrease of approximately six per cent in visitation this season. Highlights demonstrate the strongest market was from those visitors traveling within our province, with the U.S. visitor ranked second, and European market third. Visitation from Europeans was especially strong during the month of September, when typical travel trends depict their down swing from Alaska and Yukon destinations.

The loss of the Queen of the North, decrease in Via Rail frequency, high fuel costs, and strong Canadian dollar were a few of the challenges northern communities were faced with this season.
“The community doesn’t realize the impact (the Queen of the North sinking) has on Prince George,” she said. “People coming through going to the ferry stop and stay here.”

The Queen of the North sinking also limited circle tour opportunities through the area.
However, the challenges were met with good marketing programs that helped bring tourists to the area.

Two of the programs that proved successful to enhancing awareness of both Prince George and visitor services were the Northern BC Summer Series program, and HOST

“We take pride in the fact that our counsellors are very well informed about the product and services we have to offer the visitor. When we have the opportunity to exceed our visitor’s expectations, they often make the decision to stay in our community an extra day.”
Kulchiski also credits the professional approach taken by this summer’s seasonal staff, boasting their achievements on a provincial level.

“Each season, Visitor Centres across the province prepare for their Quality Service reports, based on their score received from Tourism BC’s secret shopper. Both Visitor Centres’ staff welcomed the challenge, with Hwy. 16 and 97 scoring 91 per cent, and the downtown Visitor Centre scoring 93 per cent - well above the provincial average.“

Looking forward to 2007, Kulchiski says they will be focusing on the independent traveller, or the rubber tire traffic. They tend to spend more time in an area, she said, and they are often return visitors. The Prince George Visitor Centres will also be working with groups trying to get more events to the community. Events like the recent West of the Rockies rodeo and even the Bonnie Raitt concert draw people to the community.

Kulchiski said they saw people from Calgary travel to Prince George to attend the Raitt concert.
“Events are one of the reasons why people come to communities,” she said.

Also in 2007 communities throughout the north will be working more together on attracting tourists to the area. There is a common good to getting tourists into northern B.C.