November 7th, 2022 – As the tourism industry and tourism related businesses continue their recovery from the dramatic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, we are working hard to understand resident attitudes and perceptions regarding the value of tourism in our communities. To that end, we are launching a “Value of Tourism” survey designed to help us understand at both a regional and community level how the tourism economy is valued by local businesses and residents throughout Northwest BC, as well as how we can better support the needs of our tourism sector stakeholders. 

 

In June of 2022, we partnered with Northern BC Tourism to conduct a broader study, in which residents of eight communities across Northern BC were surveyed regarding their opinions on the value tourism and tourism related marketing activities in their region. Participants were asked questions regarding the impact that tourism has on their daily lives and the value that it brings to their community. The survey also strived to better understand resident’s level of comfort around encouraging tourism in their region and their own comfort traveling. 

Result highlights included:

 

While this study provided us with good regional data for Northern BC, we are seeking to better understand at the individual community level how local business owners and residents perceive the value of tourism in the Northwest. This data will help inform our marketing and destination development for 2023. 

 

The survey will be open from November 7th through to November 25th and can be accessed via the link below.