A second consecutive record breaking June at the Charlottetown Airport and increases at all other entry points are positive signs that the tourism industry is rebounding after a challenging winter and spring, says Minister of Economic Development and Tourism Heath MacDonald.
“It’s very reassuring to see all entry points up over last June as well as an increase in room nights sold,” said Minister MacDonald. “We’ve got a lot of ground to make up after the worst winter in the Island’s history and the negative effect it had on travel to the province, but we’re heading in the right direction. We are also very optimistic the July and August numbers will continue to make up for the slow start.”
The Island’s busiest entry point, the Confederation Bridge, saw an impressive 3.3 per cent increase over last June. The Charlottetown Airport set another June record after an increase of 1.4 per cent. Northumberland Ferries saw traffic increase by 2.3 per cent. Room nights sold also saw a modest increase of 0.9 per cent. Non member rounds at local golf courses increased by 5.7 per cent.
Poor June weather contributed to a 19.6 per cent decrease in site nights sold at local campgrounds. That figure was the major contributor to an overall 7 per cent decrease in overnight stays.
“It is good to see that June numbers indicate a positive direction,” said the Vice-President of the Tourism Industry Association Robert Jourdain. “We are very anxious to see the numbers for July and the rest of the season. Operators tell us it was quite busy in July. Hopefully these numbers will continue to move in a positive direction.”
The statistics are provided to the province by individual tourism operators and are compiled by staff in the Department of Economic Development and Tourism.
To see the full report visit http://www.gov.pe.ca/photos/original/current_tourism.pdf
Tourism is a vital industry in Prince Edward Island that provides over 7,000 full time equivalent jobs for Islanders. It accounts for approximately $400 million in economic activity each year and seven per cent of GDP, the highest percentage of any Canadian province.