1. opinion
  2. Op-Ed

Opinion: If British Columbia’s tourism industry is to be positioned for long-term success, it must act to address its weaknesses.

Author of the article:

Jock Finlayson, Ed Mansfield

Release date:

March 08, 2021 • • 48 minutes ago • • 3 minutes read • • Join the conversation Extended border closings, cruise season cancellations, widespread public reluctance to travel and the introduction of new public health protocols are just some of the features of the new reality in tourism. Extended border closings, cruise season cancellations, widespread public reluctance to travel and the introduction of new public health protocols are just some of the features of the new reality in tourism. Photo by Jason Payne /.PNG

To say the province’s tourism sector has been hard hit by COVID-19 would be an understatement.

From April 2020 through late fall, the number of international visitors to BC dropped 96 percent year over year, while the average hotel occupancy dropped 70 percent and average room rates dropped nearly in half. Employment in the food and beverage service declined 37 percent year-over-year, housing employment declined 46 percent, and arts, entertainment and leisure employment declined 48 percent.

The pandemic has changed global tourism in profound and likely long-lasting ways.

Prior to 2020, tourism in BC, as in much of the world, had a long history of increasing visitor numbers and steadily growing revenues. But the pandemic changed the landscape in ways previously unimaginable. Extended border closings, cruise season cancellations, widespread public reluctance to travel, and the introduction of new public health protocols are just some of the features of the new reality in tourism.

This ad hasn’t loaded yet, but your article continues below.

Even optimistic projections do not assume that Canada’s domestic tourism market will return to pre-2020 levels before 2022 or 2023, while the recovery in international markets will take much longer, possibly until 2026 or 2027.

Vacation travel is expected to recover faster than business travel. In fact, some analysts believe business travel will be permanently affected, with 20 percent never returning.

Since the pandemic began, British Columbia’s tourism companies and their workers have been seeking financial support from governments. Some have been appropriately deployed but cannot continue indefinitely given the size of the current government deficits.

In addition, clever and better-funded marketing campaigns alone cannot restore visitor demand. If the BC industry is to be positioned for long-term success, it must act to address its weaknesses, encourage innovation, and develop new tourism resources and experiences.

In short, we believe the time has come to break some of the sector’s traditional reliance on marketing and work towards developing an industry strategy following COVID-19.

Developing an industrial strategy for tourism in British Columbia would require long-term thinking and planning, drawing on successful practices from other industries such as advanced technology, film and television, food and energy. It would identify the role government can play and the tools available to it, such as tax regimes, investment incentives, and infrastructure programs, to encourage the growth of the sector.

This ad hasn’t loaded yet, but your article continues below.

An industrial strategy would address the many key issues that will shape the prospects for tourism in BC. Four are highlighted here:

• Develop guidelines that enable the maintenance and improvement of cult attractions that attract visitors to a region and in return support smaller allied tourism companies.

• Development of a new tourism infrastructure – especially one that connects tourism with other sectors. For example, BC is a major global film and TV production center and is home to the world’s largest VFX (visual effects) cluster. The province could consider establishing a new museum or screen-based media center that will be a world-class tourist attraction, a springboard for regional film tourism and display BC expertise.

• Introduction of strategies to use and cope with the upcoming onslaught of automation and AI tools, which are intended to improve the efficiency of tourism operators, but also to trigger significant adjustments in the workforce.

• Implement policies that encourage the growth of larger British Columbia-based tourism companies that are more shock resistant and better equipped to expand after the pandemic. The pandemic has highlighted the economic fragility of sectors such as tourism, where the vast majority of businesses are small or micro.

We believe that British Columbia’s tourism industry can emerge from the pandemic with renewed dynamism and regain its place as a major player in the provincial economy. However, this requires sector and province policymakers to work together and act with foresight.

Developing a future-oriented tourism industry strategy would be a good first step.

Jock Finlayson is a Senior Advisor to BC’s Business Council. Ed Mansfield is President of Mansfield Consulting.

Vancouver Sun Headlines

By clicking the “Subscribe” button, you agree to receive the above-mentioned newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link at the bottom of our emails. Postmedia Network Inc. | 365 Bloor Street East, Toronto, Ontario, M4W 3L4 | 416-383-2300

Remarks

Postmedia strives to maintain a lively but civil discussion forum and to encourage all readers to share their views on our articles. It can take up to an hour for comments to be moderated before they appear on the website. We ask that you keep your comments relevant and respectful. We have turned on email notifications. You will now receive an email when you get a reply to your comment, when a comment thread you’re following is updated, or when a user follows comments. Visit our Community guidelines More information and details on customizing your E-mail the settings.

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR