Tourism Best Practice Missions Spring 2016
March 2, 2016
We are excited to offer three missions this spring:
(1) Mission Title: Creative Tourism – Showcasing Cultural Destinations
Dates : April 30 – May 4, 2016
Location: Prince Edward County, ON
Atlantic Canada is renowned for its cultural heritage and is home to very talented artisans, actors, musicians, distillers, vintners and chefs who love to share their craft with the world. However visitors to our region want more from their cultural experience – they want to engage those artisans in real and authentic ways. Here in lies the opportunity for our creative community – creating easier paths for visitors to find and interact with artisans will support the growth and development of this sector of our economy. One area of the country that has excelled at this is the Prince Edward County Region of Ontario. Join us on a four-day learning experience where you will be exposed to how a region has embraced their cultural assets and maximized them through well themed trails and experiences. Prince Edward County offers a unique opportunity to experience and learn about cultural destination development and how to engage your creative community in unique ways.
(2) Mission Title: Adventure Tourism
Dates: May 1 -6, 2016
Location: Vancouver Island, BC
The opportunity to experience our incredible natural assets in unique and fun ways is one of the key travel motivators for visitors to Atlantic Canada. A large proportion of visitors seek out adventure tour operators who can connect them with everything from wildlife right through to food and music. Whether it be in a boat, hiking, biking or zipping down a cable the opportunities to grow the industry in Atlantic Canada are vast. In order to meet this demand we must ensure that we deliver high quality, safe and authentic experiences for our visitors to enjoy. Join us from May 1 -6 as we visit one of the most popular adventure tourism destinations in North America – Vancouver Island, BC. During this mission we will visit and experience some of the islands finest adventure companies. We will meet with the owners, operations staff and local development and marketing professionals who will share their business insights all while we enjoy the fun aspects of this sector!
(3) Mission Title: The Business of Trails
Dates: May 1 – 6, 2016
Location: C&O Canal Towpath, Appalachian Trail, and Great Allegheny Passage Mid-Atlantic Region, USA (Washington, D.C., West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania)
Atlantic Canada is blessed with a wealth of unspoiled natural attributes, affording a tremendous opportunity to provide world-class nature-based tourism products. Trail-based tourism is one of the fastest growth sectors within the tourism industry, encompassing all tourism products involving trails; from hard adventure hiking to birding to resort getaways.
On this mission we will be exploring community and economic development efforts along three long distance biking and hiking trails in the Mid-Atlantic Region of the United States, including:
- C&O Canal Towpath (185-mile multiuse trail) and the Canal Towns Partnership
- Appalachian Trail (2,180-mile hiking trail) and the Appalachian Trail Community Program
- Great Allegheny Passage (150-mile multiuse trail) and the Trail Town Program® (launched in 2007, the Trail Town Program® was the model for the others)