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Tourism Strategy unveiled for PEI’s ’22 and ’23 seasons

Details have been unveiled for a new strategy to help guide PEI’s tourism industry through the 2022-2023 tourism seasons.

It’s called Charting the Course of Tourism in PEI for the Next Two Years, and the strategy outlines three objectives:

  • optimize recovery potential for 2022;
  • set in motion conditions to support higher revenues from tourism for the next two years; and
  • begin to fundamentally shift how tourism is developed and delivered in PEI beyond 2023.

Tourism Minister Matthew MacKay says this new strategy challenges the tourism industry to think differently, dream big, and consider all the possibilities of what tourism on the Island can be.  The strategy was created in collaboration with the Tourism Industry Association of PEI, Tourism PEI board members, Strategy Steering Committee members, Regional Tourism Associations, Destination Marketing Organizations, tourism partner organizations, and various business community members.

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Winter tourism strategy announced as Island operators mull how to move industry forward

Program giving grants for off-season tourism products being extended.

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The P.E.I. government unveiled the province's first-ever winter tourism strategy as Island operators met this week to plan for the future.

The government says the new strategy will help guide growth during the winter and shoulder season, and support year-round economic and business opportunities rather than just summer events.

In addition, the province is also extending its Tourism Seasonal Extension Program to February 2024. That program provides grants of between $2,500 and $50,000 for tourism operators to introduce new products outside the peak season.

"For 12 months of the year, we're going to be an active tourism destination across P.E.I.," said Brodie O'Keefe, director of operations and industry investment for Tourism P.E.I.

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"This model will help reduce seasonality in our labour force. So we're looking for more year-round employment, which is great for operators."

The announcement came as the Tourism Industry Association of P.E.I. (TIAPEI) wrapped up its two-day annual general meeting and conference Thursday.

A man outdoors

More than 175 people in the industry attended the convention in Charlottetown. The goal was to learn what's important to people in the industry — and brainstorm on how to improve it moving forward. 

"This is our opportunity to create a new vision and a new strategy encompassing all of these things that we've learned," said Corryn Clemence, TIAPEI's chief executive officer.

'Really, really strong season'

First, there was the pandemic. Travel was limited and COVID-19 restrictions completely shut down businesses like Tranquility Cove Adventures in Georgetown, which offers deep-sea fishing adventures as well as clam digs and starfish hunts. 

Then came a 180.

"They started coming back slow and then all of a sudden somebody just opened the floodgates," said Tranquility Cove owner Perry Gotell.

It all meant 2022 saw record-breaking tourism numbers on the Island. In some cases, it was so busy that businesses struggled to find enough workers to keep up. 

  • P.E.I. tourism has record-breaking June thanks to 2022 rebound

This year was much more conventional — despite the record-breaking rain. 

"We heard some concerns early on in the season, but overall it was a really, really strong season and we're really excited to move that forward," said Clemence.

Perry Gotell sit on a boat in the water smiling holding two clams

"We would have been down a little bit, I believe, compared to last year, but really based on our 2019 numbers, we're still pacing ahead. We want to work with industry as much as we can," said Clemence.

Extending the season

The province's action plan was developed in partnership with TIAPEI and other industry players. Its goals include:

  • Growing tourism activity between November and April without cannibalizing the peak season.
  • Making P.E.I. a competitive destination by prioritizing funding in non-summer months. The strategy also calls for developing new food and drink products and helping create new visitor experiences, including Island-exclusive ones.
  • Increasing awareness on target markets. That includes the launch of the Island's first-ever winter marketing campaign in December.
  • Cultivating tourism ambassadors, and engaging residents so that they spend money locally instead of off-Island.

"As Islanders, we need to embrace the season, embrace winter as well, and go out and support our tourism products and let that word of mouth spread," O'Keefe said. "We got first-class trails for hiking and snowshoeing and cross-country skiing and fat biking.

"And we're Canada's Food Island. So we're a culinary destination."

Corryn Clemence smiles at computer with hand on the mouse.

The need to extend the season was one of the concerns operators told CBC News about before Thursday's announcement.

Darlene Harris, who operates a year-round business, said it would certainly help if others in the industry were still open, too. 

 'It would help,' operators say

"There is definitely a market for P.E.I. outside of the summertime," said Harris, the owner of Stones Throw Bed and Breakfast in Georgetown. 

Darlene Harris stands by a brick wall smiling in a burgundy shirt.

"I need the restaurants to be open, I need the shops to be open. We have a beautiful area on the east side of the Island to explore the beaches you can walk. There's a lot of things that aren't seasonal."

  • COVID-19's effect on P.E.I. tourism in one word: 'devastation'
  • Extending P.E.I.'s shoulder season will be 'priority' of new 5-year tourism strategy

But some still say it is just not busy enough. Derrick Hoare, proprietor of The Table Culinary Studio in New London, is open from about May until the end of September. 

"Obviously it would help if [the tourism season] was longer," he said, before adding: "Guests that are coming to us tend to slow down about mid-September. So October, really we haven't found it's enough traffic for us."

Derrick Hoare stands at a table smiling in an orange shirt as a chef works behind him in the kitchen.

Gotell is interested in what's going on with advertising. He said most of his clients come from Ontario, so he wants to see the "dollars be directed in that direction" for a while. 

"I think we just have to get people's eyes opened a little bit more to see how special this place is," he said.  

With files from Arturo Chang

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  1. Tourism Strategy 2022-2023

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  2. About PEI

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  3. PEI Tourism Strategy & Marketing

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  4. Tourism Strategy Tracker

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  5. PEI Tourism Strategy & Marketing

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  6. Tourism PEI Advertising Opportunities for Operators

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COMMENTS

  1. Prince Edward Island Tourism Strategic Plan

    In 2022, an Implementation Committee made up of industry and government representatives was established to oversee and guide Prince Edward Island's tourism strategy. This Committee aims to facilitate strategic alignment, collaboration and communication. Co-chairs. Kent MacDonald, CEO, Tourism PEI; Corryn Clemence, CEO, Tourism Industry ...

  2. Tourism Strategy 2022-2023

    Tourism PEI 3rd Floor Shaw North 105 Rochford Street PO Box 2000 Charlottetown, PE C1A 7N8. Industry Support Line: 1-866-213-7521. Follow us on X (formerly Twitter)

  3. PDF Charting the Course of Tourism in Pei for The Next Two Years

    TOURISM STRATEGY Tourism Prince Edward Island (TPEI) first commissioned a five year strategy in late fall 2019. Tourism across Canada and around the globe had been thriving and for PEI, it would be its best tourism year ever. The conditions for the commission of a new five year strategy were premised

  4. PDF Tourism PEI ANNUAL REPORT

    PEI's tourism strategy, Charting the Course of Tourism in PEI, is an all-of-industry tourism strategy that was adopted by both Tourism PEI and the Tourism Industry Association of PEI's Board of Directors. The strategy was launched in March of 2022 and marked a pivotal moment for PEI tourism as we moved from crisis mitigation, where a short ...

  5. Prince Edward Island Tourism Industry Resources

    A Seasonal Expansion Strategy to grow tourism activity in Prince Edward Island from the November to April period. Download. Charting the Course The Tourism Strategy provides a strategic framework and action plan to guide PEI's tourism industry in 2022 and 2023. Learn More.

  6. New strategy for tourism industry

    A new strategy is available to help guide the tourism industry through the 2022-2023 tourism seasons. The strategy, Charting the Course of Tourism in PEI for the Next Two Years, outlines three objectives: optimize recovery potential for 2022; set in motion conditions to support higher revenues from tourism for the next two years; begin to fundamentally shift how tourism is

  7. PDF PEI Tourism Tactical Action Plan

    2021. At that time, the PEI tourism steering committee and ACOA, led by TPEI leadership, will determine whether a longer-term tourism strategy ought to be developed to ensure continuity of PEI's tourism potential.

  8. PDF PEI [S 2021 TOURISM SEASON TACTICAL ACTION PLAN

    season. As the tourism industry prepares for upcoming tourism season, and additional information about the future impact of the virus emerges along with plans for managing it, the TPEI leadership along with industry stakeholders, will focus on a longer-term tourism strategy required to guide PEI's tourism future for 2022 and beyond. 5

  9. New strategy to grow Island tourism

    Prince Edward Island's tourism industry, in partnership with the Department of Economic Growth, Tourism and Culture, is developing a new 5-year growth strategy for the province. Charting the Future: A Strategy to Accelerate Prince Edward Island Tourism Growth to 2025 will help grow tourism businesses and new visitor destinations by attracting more private sector investment and

  10. Tourism Strategy Initiative 22

    Identify inbound markets with the highest potential to support tourism in medium and long-term. 1-12 months. Complete. Markets identified through the development of an Air Recovery Strategy. Develop and execute a plan to seek, engage and land air routes from the highest potential inbound markets. 1-12 months. Complete. Two-year strategy developed.

  11. Tourism Strategy Initiative 20

    Identify potential tourism investment opportunities and tourism investors. 1-12 months. On Schedule. Innovation PEI engaged in April 2022 to discuss initiatives within the PEI Tourism Strategy that require their support. Develop and launch a strategy and plan to connect investors with tourism investment opportunities: 1-12 months. On Schedule

  12. Tourism Strategy unveiled for PEI's '22 and '23 seasons

    Tourism Minister Matthew MacKay says this new strategy challenges the tourism industry to think differently, dream big, and consider all the possibilities of what tourism on the Island can be. The strategy was created in collaboration with the Tourism Industry Association of PEI, Tourism PEI board members, Strategy Steering Committee members ...

  13. PEI Tourism Strategy & Marketing

    Embrace the Seasons Tourism Vision for PEI. The Tourism Strategy (2021) formalized a commitment to a four-season approach focused on driving tourism value. This report is an overarching guide to facilitate tourism growth between November and April.

  14. Five-year tourism industry strategy released

    Unprecedented consultation and feedback has led to a proposed five-year tourism strategy for Prince Edward Island. Released by the Tourism Industry Association of Prince Edward Island (TIAPEI), Vision 2021 explores new opportunities and product offerings like expanding the tourism season, an enhanced coastal drive offering, improved aboriginal tourism, and further developing

  15. P.E.I.'s new $5 million tourism campaign aimed at COVID-weary ...

    The province is spending $5 million on tourism marketing this year — about $1 million more than usual — to attract as many of those visitors as possible. P.E.I. launched a new tourism strategy ...

  16. Winter tourism strategy announced as Island operators mull how to move

    About 175 people took part in the 2023 TIAPEI Annual Tourism Conference this week. (Sheehan Desjardins/CBC) The P.E.I. government unveiled the province's first-ever winter tourism strategy as ...

  17. Tourism PEI

    September 22, 2022. Tourism PEI is focused on continuing to promote Prince Edward Island as one of the world's best tourist destinations with a mandate to: promote continued growth in the tourism sector and ultimately "drive" tourism demand; work with other partners, including Destination Canada, the Atlantic Canadian Opportunities Agency ...

  18. PEI Tourism Industry Economic Performance

    For any questions about tourism research, contact: Keith A. Hansen. Director, Tourism Intelligence & Stakeholder Investment. Tourism PEI. [email protected] 902.368.4237. The tourism industry is a key contributor to the economic success of PEI. Tourism PEI generates, gathers & reports tourism performance data on behalf of the industry.

  19. PEI Tourism Funding & Supports

    Fall & Winter Tourism Product Development Fund. This program supports PEI tourism operators in creating and developing inspired ideas and new product offerings in 2023/24 to grow Prince Edward Island as a multi-season tourism destination.

  20. Tourism PEI

    Tourism PEI 3rd Floor Shaw North 105 Rochford Street PO Box 2000 Charlottetown, PE C1A 7N8. Industry Support Line: 1-866-213-7521. Follow us on X (formerly Twitter)

  21. Tourism Strategy Initiative 19

    Create a tourism entrepreneurship program that identifies and matches entrepreneurs with opportunities. Enable pitches for funding to encourage and stimulate ideas. 1-12 months. On Schedule. Innovation PEI engaged in April 2022 to discuss initiatives within the PEI Tourism Strategy that require their support.

  22. Tourism Strategy Initiative 21

    Action: Time Trigger / Status: Notes: Work with Meetings & Conventions PEI to understand the strategy and plan for the province. 1-12 months. Complete. Meetings & Conventions PEI ("M&C PEI") submitted a strategy and plan to Tourism PEI and the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency ("ACOA") as part of their annual funding submission.

  23. Welcome to Prince Edward Island

    A Place for Everyone. Yes, Prince Edward Island is small in size, but you'll be surprised by the abundance of adventure and activity that awaits. Explore our fishing villages, charming small towns, sprawling farming communities and thriving urban centres.