Promoting Nova Scotia to Travel Writers

Nova Scotia will showcase itself to travel journalists and industry representatives when it hosts the Travel Media Association of Canada Conference, Friday, Feb. 15 to Sunday, Feb. 17.

"We are very excited to have more than 200 travel media and industry representatives here in Nova Scotia," said Bill Dooks, Tourism, Culture and Heritage Minister. "Their continued coverage of Nova Scotia in print, TV, radio and online publications is invaluable to our tourism industry."

Travel media members write and provide photography for a variety of print publications, including many leading newspapers such as the Globe and Mail, Montreal Gazette, New York Times and periodicals such as Conde Nast Traveler, National Geographic, Traveler, Travel & Leisure, Canadian Geographic, Lonely Planet and Rough Guides. They also publish on hundreds of Internet sites, and broadcast via radio and television.

The theme for this year's event is Bon Appetite Halifax! During the conference, delegates will come together to learn more about the travel industry through professional development, group discussions and first-hand experiences.

Activities have been organized for delegates before and after the conference so they can experience the best of what Nova Scotia has to offer through food, culture and people.

"This annual conference is one of Canada's most important travel media and industry operator gatherings," said John Masters, president of the Travel Media Association of Canada.

"Not only does it let travel professionals from across the country get together to network, it also allows the destination hosting the conference a singular opportunity to showcase itself. That will translate into travel stories that will appear in newspapers and magazines, on radio, TV and the Internet, across Canada and aboard this year, next year and beyond."

Working with travel media is an important part of Nova Scotia's tourism marketing efforts throughout the year.

Each year, department staff help more than 300 travel media prepare stories about Nova Scotia by sending media kits to influential travel writers and hosting familiarization tours with reporters when they are here. The travel media section of www.novascotia.com provides story ideas, itineraries, information about the province, as well as a free image bank.

In 2007, Nova Scotia received an estimated $35 million worth of free publicity through articles in magazines, newspapers and websites.

"While we can't scientifically translate the free publicity, we get into numbers of visitors who come as a result and this is evidence that our efforts with travel media are paying off," said Randy Brooks, media relations manager for the Department of Tourism, Culture and Heritage. "It's common for visitors to arrive in Nova Scotia with a magazine in hand and their hearts set on following the itinerary listed in it to a tee."

The department has begun producing a quarterly update of articles published about Nova Scotia. For a copy, visit gov.ns.ca/dtc/tourism/media_monitor.asp . Media may subscribe by contacting Pam Wamback at wambackp@gov.ns.ca .