Thursday 24 March 2011

New Direction for Tourism in Richmond County

Charlene Marshall addresses tourism operators at the A MacDonald Country Inn
Tourism operators paid close attention to the new plan

Yesterday evening I attended an open house at the A MacDonald Country Inn in St. Peter's, hosted by the Municipality of the County of Richmond to unveil their new tourism plan. Richmond County's Chief Administrative Officer Warren Olsen, addressed those in attendance and gave some insight on the evenings agenda and expressed enthusiasm and support for the tourism project that the county intends to undertake. Olsen then introduced Richmond County's Economic Development Manager Jeff Stanley and Tourism Coordinator Charlene Marshall (former Partnership Coordinator for Destination Richmond Tourism Cooperative). Marshall and Stanley informed tourism operators from the area, as well as members of Destination Cape Breton Association and the media, of the new direction in which the County intends to take tourism. No longer will Richmond be associated with the brand of the Cape Breton Heritage Coast, which was the tourism brand for Destination Richmond. Tourism now will be looking to create a greater interest in the area's outdoor activities. To expand tourist's awareness of Richmond County's beautiful beaches and coastline to activities such as kayaking, paddling and golfing and to expand on the already very successful surf program at Point Michaud Beach. Stanley explaned to all in attendance that he hopes to extend the fall shoulder season in tourism, by developing new events for the period leading up to Celtic Colours and hopefully beyond. This would be done by developing events such as a more robust Surf Classic, and creating a brand new paddling competition, and an ATV Rally which would draw people in from outlying areas to take part. Combining these new ventures with a musical element could possibly extend these events from a two day stay in the area to three or four day stays, which would increase nightly room rentals and merchandise sales in the county. Stanley also spoke on the prospect of having tourism operators do more partnering to broaden the experience for the visitors. For example, an accommodation could partner with a sailing cruise to offer the visitor a greater experence during their stay. They are hoping to develop more experiential tourism in the county which will also offer the visitor an opportunity to take part in local activities, such as sheep shearing at a local sheep farm or take part in a tour and information session on Isle Madame's lighthouses and the rich history of the fishing industry. Marshall introduced a new marketing piece in the form of a DVD, presentating images of the beautiful scenery and activities from around Richmond, combined with the music of Richmond native Cyril MacPhee.
Stanley and Marshall drew attention to Nova Scotia's Department of Tourism's stats for nightly room rental of inspected accommodations, which indicated that Richmond's share of the tourism market had declined over the last few years. He indicated that with the new direction which they intended to take tourism, they hoped to increase these numbers by 2015 and extend the tourism season longer than it is at the present time, which would also increase revenue.
It was an interesting evening where members of Richmonds Tourism industry got a glimpse at where their industry is heading, as well as the opportunity to do some networking over a glass of wine.

No comments:

Post a Comment