News release

Another 'Best Ever' Year in Store for Tourism

Tourism and Culture (Aug. 1999 - Dec. 2003)

Nova Scotia's tourism industry is on track for another year of record growth.

The latest statistics from the Department of Tourism and Culture show traffic, occupancy rates, literature requests and visitor counselling tracking well ahead of 1998.

For the first eight months of 1999, road traffic was up 13 per cent over the same period last year, with more than 1.3 million vehicles entering Nova Scotia. Automobile traffic jumped 13 per cent over the same period last year, while motorcoach traffic increased by 12 per cent. The number of recreational vehicles on the road also climbed nine per cent over the January-to-August 1998 period.

More than 175,000 visitors also arrived by air between January and July, up 14 per cent in 1999 over the same period in 1998.

The statistics appear in Tourism Insights, a monthly publication produced by the department. Staff count the number of vehicles at entry points throughout the province and gather information on the number of visitors who arrive by plane. In addition, staff track monthly occupancy reports from operators throughout the province.

On the accommodation side, properties report selling more than 1,770,000 room nights from January to the end of August. This represents an eight per cent gain over the same period in 1998. Campground activity was also strong, with a 13 per cent increase in site nights sold for the May-to-July period over 1998.

"Communities throughout the province are enjoying the benefits of a strong tourism industry this year," said Rodney MacDonald, Minister of Tourism and Culture. "In the months ahead, we'll be working with all sectors of the industry on aggressive promotional campaigns and development initiatives that will build on Nova Scotia's reputation as a year-round, world-class tourism destination."

Besides jumps in traffic and accommodation, staff are reporting increases in literature requests, the number of visitors seeking counselling at visitor information centres, the number of people who book reservations through the province's Check In service, and museum and park attendance.

From January to the end of August, counsellors at visitor information centres across the province helped more than 690,000 people, an 18 per cent increase over the same period last year. Reservations through Check In were also up 26 per cent over last year for a total of 66,000 reservations booked between January and August.

Attendance at provincial museums is keeping pace with last year's phenomenal growth, which was attributed in part to the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic's Titanic exhibit. While a dip was reported in the first few months of the year, museum attendance between April and August were up three per cent over the same period in 1998.

"The strong showing in July and August shows the importance of the tourism market to our museums and reinforces the links between tourism and culture," said Candace Stevenson, executive director with the new department.

National parks and historic sites report overall increases for the January-to-August period, with Fortress of Louisbourg up five per cent, Cape Breton Highlands up 12 per cent and Halifax Citadel up five per cent over the same period last year. However, Kejimkujik National Park reports a three per cent decrease for the first eight months of this year over the same period in 1998.

The province's 1999 marketing program is also achieving impressive results with a 54 per cent jump in tourism literature requests over the same period last year. The marketing program is a co-operative effort between government and industry through the Nova Scotia Tourism Partnership Council.

"Given the industry's performance to date, we're confident we'll exceed our goal of five per cent annual growth over 1998 industry revenues," said council chair Doug Fawthrop, managing director of White Point Beach Resort. "Our fall campaign is now under way, and planning has begun for the 2000 provincial marketing strategy."

The Nova Scotia tourism industry, which topped $1.1 billion in revenues in 1998, employs more than 33,000 Nova Scotians with a payroll of about $430 million. Tourism is a significant Nova Scotian export, with more than half its billion-dollar revenue from outside the province.