Cat Ferry Welcomes New Englanders

More than 14,000 New Englanders experienced Nova Scotia culture and got a host of vacation ideas when they boarded the Cat ferry in Boston Harbour over the weekend.

North America's fastest car ferry was in Boston to host a floating trade show May 19-21. The event promoted tourism in Nova Scotia and the Cat's new route from Portland, ME to Yarmouth.

"We had a wonderful, warm reception in Boston with thousands of people visiting us on the Cat, talking to our tourism operators, and enjoying our entertainers," said Kelliann Dean, deputy minister of Tourism, Culture and Heritage. "We also got some good New England media coverage to further spread the word about the unique experience of a Nova Scotia vacation."

Tourism operators demonstrated the professionalism of Nova Scotia's tourism industry to potential tourists, as well as travel media and travel trade operators such as travel agencies and motorcoach companies.

"This event was very well organized and presented, and gave us an opportunity to speak face to face with a great many potential tourists from the Boston area," said Ken Petrie, manager of tour and travel marketing for Oak Island Resort and Spa. "I've never heard so many people saying they're coming to Nova Scotia this year, so we're pleased with that reaction."

Visitors to the Cat were treated to Nova Scotia entertainers, including some of the province's best musicians. On Saturday evening, Bostonians tapped their toes as local musicians joined the Barra MacNeils, J.P. Cormier, Dave MacIsaac and Troy MacGillivray for a jam session on the dock.

The Boston promotion was one of many consumer-focused initiatives in Nova Scotia's marketing campaign. The campaign also includes promotions in Calgary earlier in May, the Milwaukee Celtic Festival, WI, in August, and numerous travel shows.

The marketing campaign is based on the annual tourism plan, which is developed by the joint industry-government Tourism Partnership Council. The plan is based on extensive research and designed to expand the tourism industry in Nova Scotia. It is available at www.gov.ns.ca/dtc .