People line up before entering the security zone at Pearson International Airport in Toronto on Friday, August 5, 2022. A full tourism recovery is not expected until next year, Destination Canada says. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
A new report from Destination Canada says the country’s tourism industry won’t fully recover until next year.
The Crown corporation says the number of overnight leisure and business visits in the country will fall just short of 2019 levels by the end of 2023, while projections show it beating pre-pandemic figures by a whisker in 2024.
Destination Canada, which promotes tourism across the country, says nominal spending in the sector will exceed 2019 levels this year, but that was largely driven by inflation.
The organization’s chief executive Marsha Walden says attracting wealthier tourists, building out the workforce and attracting more visitors outside of peak season are all key to industry growth.
Destination Canada says that while the projected annual tourism growth rate of nearly six per cent through 2030 is expected to exceed overall economic growth in Canada, that pace looks sluggish next to global tourism revenues that are forecasted to climb by more than seven per cent each year.
The Crown corporation says that leisure comprised the main driver of travel over the past two years and hit pre-pandemic levels in 2022 with $72.4 billion in revenue, but that business travel is now picking up at last.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 12, 2023.
