Canada Day turnout heralds good summer for Kelowna, B.C. tourism – Okanagan
The primary Canada Day with none COVID-19 restrictions turned out to be the biggest occasion Kelowna, B.C. has seen in years, boosting the outlook for the tourism business.
“By all accounts, I feel this was an amazing begin to the tourism season and I feel this may in all probability be the busiest summer season we now have ever seen,” mentioned Colin Basran, Mayor of Kelowna.
“I feel the message to anybody visiting our metropolis is we wish you right here, we wish you to have enjoyable, however come and act accordingly.”
Statistics Canada stories the nation’s tourism business GDP was down near 50 per cent in 2020. Now, forward of a restriction-free summer season, vacationer sights are already getting busier and Canada Day was proof of that.
READ MORE: Nice begin to Kelowna tourism season
“We began proper off the leap. We sometimes had anyplace between a 30 [minute] to 2-hour wait-time all through the entire day,” Jared Lee Central Kitchen + Bar Co-Proprietor. “Nevertheless it was regular, folks popping out. It’s good to see folks having enjoyable.”
Smile Cycle Excursions in Kelowna, which presents a option to get across the metropolis to go to all of your favorite eating places, noticed an identical pattern.
“We had much more excursions occurring, we had back-to-back all day yesterday and that’s tremendous thrilling for us as a result of all of us love being right here, we love that COVID restrictions are lifted,” mentioned Sonja Ruevekamp, Smile Cycle Tour Information.
Ruevekamp added that many individuals on Friday’s excursions got here from all throughout Canada, and he or she’s seeing extra of that because the summer season progresses.
In accordance with Statistics Canada, this yr already noticed an uptick in worldwide guests. Near 800,000 People visited Canada this April, eight occasions greater than in April of 2021.
