Tourism bolstered by visitors exploring their own neck of the woods
Our area’s tourism hot spots appear to be in line with Stats Canada figures showing a near 10 per cent jump in visitation in Saskatchewan.
Visits to and within the province by Canadians increased by 9.4 per cent from 2016. According to the provincial government this placed Saskatchewan “well ahead of the nation’s overall growth rate of 2.1 per cent.” Visitor expenditures jumped 10.4 per cent, with Canadian visitors, including those travelling within the province, spending $1.88 billion in 2017. The province said the growth in the tourism sector was in part down to Canadians “discovering what we in Saskatchewan have always known” about the abundance of attractions and diverse scenery.
While she didn’t have official visitation figures year-over-year Judy Hanke, the manager at the tourism centre in La Ronge said she’d noticed a clear uptick.
“I’m seeing more tourists in and around the area than I’ve certainly ever seen,” she told paNOW. Hanke attributed the increase to signs the economy was improving, the weaker Canadian dollar versus the US currency, and a desire by people to explore further afield from the more established attractions.