Okanagan tourism groups are reporting this past B.C. Day long weekend has been a record-breaking one.
At LocoLanding Amusement Park in Penticton, owner Diana Stirling said the park continues to be filled with visitors who have stayed past the three-day weekend.
Stirling said more international tourists are exploring the Okanagan.
“We had people from Thailand, Shanghai, Germany and France…and just a lot of people from the Lower Mainland and Alberta,” she said.
Tourism Penticton echoed that sentiment, saying the low loonie is bringing people to the valley.
Kelly Hopkins said the number of people dropping by the visitors’ centre jumped by about 20 per cent compared to last year’s August long weekend.
“We know that with the rise of the U.S. dollar, lots of people are doing the B.C. staycation and obviously we’re benefiting from that,” she said.
Tourism numbers are up throughout the valley. In the central Okanagan, Tourism Kelowna estimated visitors spent nearly $280 million each year in the city.
“It has been a tremendous year. Destination BC has released research that says occupancy for hotels in Kelowna and area were up two per cent and traffic at the airport was up about six per cent,” said Chris Shauf with Tourism Kelowna.
Despite the unseasonably cool weather this summer, a Vernon tourism group said more people are visiting other sights and spending money.
Ange Chew with Tourism Vernon said that was definitely the case this long weekend, which saw people scrambling to find accommodations.
“I think this one has been really good for not only our hotels, but for our retail partners, like our wineries, breweries and orchards,” Chew said. “A little bit cooler weather means that people were out doing more than just the beach.”
Tourism groups will have a better tally of visitors and dollars spent in the coming weeks.
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