Some tourism officials in Nova Scotia say while the peak season may be behind us, it’s been a great year, with more visitors coming to the province than in pre-pandemic levels.
Ross Jefferson, president and CEO of Discover Halifax, says the number of visitors is up 8.5 per cent compared with pre-pandemic levels.
“It’s really important for the economies here in Atlantic Canada and here in Halifax,” Jefferson says. “On the average year, we will welcome about 5.3 million overnight stays. They’ll spend about $1.3 billion in all of the shops and the activities here.”
He says this year’s boost can be attributed to several large events, including the World Junior Hockey Championship, the North American Indigenous Games, and many conferences.
Meanwhile, the Port of Halifax is constantly welcoming visitors. If all goes according to plan, there will be about 190 cruise ships that have called on the Port by the end of the season.
“Pre-COVID, our busy season was 2019, where we had over 323,000 guests in the single year,” says Lane Farguson, director of communications and marketing for the Port.
“This year, potentially, we could cross that. We won’t know until the end, but certainly, it’s just been a good, steady year for everybody involved in the cruise team here, as well as the different service providers.”
But it hasn’t been rainbows and sunshine for all. Some businesses took a hit from several significant weather events over the past few months.
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And then there are other pressures, including for some regulars who pre-booked at the Glenghorm Beach Resort in Ingonish, N.S.
“A lot of those people had their cottages booked. They booked them as they leave the year before and they had to cancel and they were brutally honest with the cost of living,” says Kathy Graham-MacKinnon, a manager at the resort.
“They couldn’t afford it with the cost of gas. They couldn’t afford it. They were using that vacation money to live.”
Graham-MacKinnon says it’s not just her Cabot Trail business that’s suffering.
“Everybody is down,” she says. “The gas stations, the grocery stores — some people have had to do layoffs.”
So while lots of visitors are here, some businesses are still struggling, even in the most iconic places.
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