County ready for tourists
Canada 150 celebrations expected to make a difference
Canada’s 150th birthday is going to add to what looks like a promising tourism season according to the warden of Victoria County.
“We are very fortunate to have two national sites within our county and from what I understand, both the Bell Museum and the Cape Breton Highlands National Park are anticipating an increase in traffic,” said Bruce Morrison.
“This follows on the heels of a banner tourism season last year. One of the best we’ve experienced in the last 20 years, there’s no question about that for sure. It is going to be busy, particularly with Parks Canada’s free entry passes to national sites.”
Nova Scotia’s tourism industry had its best year in history in 2016 and its third consecutive year of growth. In all, 2.2 million visitors came to the province last year, an increase of eight per cent, about 170,000 more visitors, over 2015.
The province also saw strong growth in room nights sold to 2.6 million, up four per cent from 2015. Cape Breton had the biggest jump, up 16 per cent.
“Traditionally in Victoria County, it starts to get busy with the Cabot Trail Relay Race weekend in May. We are hoping the free entry pass will give us momentum to keep that growth trend going as we move forward into what we expect to be a very busy tourism season.”
Officials at the Bell Museum estimate a 30 per cent increase in visitor traffic this year.
Signature events at the Cape Breton Highlands Park for Canada’s 150th include Landmarks 2017, Learn to Camp, Bioblitz 150 and Outreach 150.
“Tourism was improving on its own due to a strong American dollar and good gas prices. This addition of the 150th anniversary events and free admission is going to bode well for the upcoming tourism season,” Morrison said. “It’s my understanding that the bus tours are on the increase as well.”
Parks Canada’s regular fees will still apply for other experiences and services.