With about 214 millimetres of precipitation, last month was the third-rainiest June on record in the Halifax area.
As weather conditions dampened and postponed various outdoor gatherings and events, it’s also had a profound impact on certain businesses.
Atlantic Splash Adventure, an outdoor water park located in Hammonds Plains, is one of several organizations that have been affected by the persistent rainfall. Kirsten Godbout, the park’s general manager, said the less-desirable conditions have led to a smaller number of people travelling to the location than in previous years.
“We’ve seen slow sales, slow entry into the park, so it’s had a pretty big impact to us,” she said.
“People don’t seem to want to come out when it’s a cloudy, foggy day.”
Godbout said although the park usually manages to remain open in damp conditions, a 25-millimetre downpour forced the business to close for the entire day on Monday.
“We just knew we wouldn’t be able to open the park and have it operate the way we want it to operate,” she said.
The destination, which is Nova Scotia’s only park of its kind since the 2019 closing of Upper Clements Park, offers amenities like waterslides, go-karts and laser tag experiences. It opened for the season on June 30.
Godbout said the rain is also beginning to impact the park’s ability to provide employees with consistent work.
“We’re having to reduce our number of staff on-site when it’s particularly slow,” she said.
She said although most people are likely postponing their trips to Atlantic Splash Adventure until the skies clear, the few who’ve decided to embrace a trip in the wet conditions have enjoyed the perks of the park’s low attendance.
“Fortunately for those people who have come out, it’s been a great experience for them because there are no lines. But from a business perspective, it’s definitely been really challenging when we have such a short season,” she said.
She said even with the park ramping up its promotional material prior to its annual opening last week, the turnout is “lagging well behind last year.”
“People are just looking at that long-term forecast and seeing clouds and rain and thinking they’re going to save it for later in summer,” Godbout said, adding that although she’s confident the park will make up the lost business on a later date, the delayed attendance could pose another challenge.
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“That means we may end up with days where we have too many people wanting to enter the park and maybe we’ll have capacity issues,” she said. “The longer this prolongs, and the longer the weather stays the way it is, the more we might see the potential for that to arise.”
Brighter days ahead
Ambassatours Gray Line, which operates a variety of sightseeing experiences such as the popular Harbour Hopper tour, is another business that’s experienced some recent weather-related setbacks.
Dennis Campbell, the company’s president, said the conditions produced a “tricky” June.
He’s hopeful some upcoming clearer, warmer conditions will offer a helping hand to businesses in the tourism sector while they continue recovering after two years of financial losses due to the pandemic.
“All of a sudden you see rainy times and it’s disheartening, but the good news is … the pent-up demand is so strong that even with the weather, we’re actually still pacing over 10 per cent ahead of last year,” he said, referring to an increased interest from people looking to make up time lost during periods of COVID-19 restrictions.
During a brief moment of clearer skies on Tuesday afternoon, Campbell said his company experienced an immediate influx of calls from people looking to schedule tours.
“It was like a light switch, numbers of phone calls started to pour in, and tours have filled up for the next several days,” he said, adding that some tours have already sold out in anticipation of the sunny weather expected later this week.
Environment Canada is forecasting a mix of sun and clouds on Thursday with a high of 28 C, with conditions improving for the weekend. Friday is slated to be a sunny day with a high of 31 C.
“We just keep hoping for the sunshine,” Campbell said.
He said that even in damp weather conditions, he believes there’s no better place to be than the Halifax waterfront area.
“Put on your rain suit, come out and have fun…. There are so many great new restaurants, bars, pubs, attractions,” he said. “And of course, great tours to enjoy too.”
As Godbout and staff at Atlantic Splash Adventure eagerly await brighter days ahead, suggestions from park-goers on what activities they’d like to see provided during periods of poor weather conditions are being welcomed.
“We’ll definitely keep listening and honing what we want to do in the future to keep developing what the park has to offer and what we might be able to do to make those rainy days better,” Godbout said.
“We’re just going to hope the weather turns … so people can come out and enjoy the park for what it is,” she said.
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