Campers flocking to NWT parks
Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment targeting Albertans by mailing out more than 30,000 camping guides
John McFadden
Northern News Services
Wednesday, May 25, 2016
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Camping season in the NWT now has two weekends in the books and the Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment is kicking off its marketing initiative with a specific focus on Alberta.
Pam, who didn't give her last name, and her daughter Sadie, 8, calm their excited dog, Midnight, while packing up after a Victoria Day weekend of camping at Fred Henne. - Robin Grant/NNSL photo |
The department earlier this month mailed out more than 30,000 pocket-sized NWT parks and campgrounds guides to Alberta recreational vehicle owners and campers.
Due to a relatively weak Alberta economy and a low Canadian dollar, the department is anticipating that many Albertans will opt for road holidays within Canada this summer. Indeed, campgrounds in the NWT opened for online reservations on April 7 and saw 1,062 bookings in just two days, amounting to more than $138,000 in expenditures from would-be campers - more than $15,000 higher than last year, according to a GNWT news release.
Drew Williams, department spokesperson, said that they have connected with potential Alberta tourists in a number of ways.
"We've got contacts of folks who have expressed an interest in coming up here through our website - NWT Tourism - or have been here in the past and left a bread crumb (trail) if you will of being here," Williams said. "Whether that be an e-mail address or they filled out one of our surveys or simply signed a guest book saying great place - hope to be back. We're working with physical addresses."
Williams said that the mailing campaign has focused on Alberta but that doesn't mean the department is ignoring other areas of the country or visitors from the U.S. and abroad.
"We're dealing with visitor centres in B.C., Saskatchewan and Yukon but our numbers and our research show that a really good portion of our visitors come from Alberta." he said. "We've got interest from as far away as the U.S., the East Coast provinces, Germany - but at the end of the day the big chunk of the tourists that come up and bring new dollars into our economy are coming up from Alberta."
Williams said the guide is not brand new but has been updated. It is designed to encourage visitation with a thorough, concise outline of how to get to camping destinations, suggestions on where to camp and what tourist attractions are nearby other than the campgrounds.
Elijah Forget, spokesperson for the Northern Frontier Visitors Centre, said they have received requests from campers for the pocket guide. He agrees it is a useful tool, especially for people from outside the NWT.
"In the summer a large portion of people who come up are campers and it's just a really good resource," Forget said. "It contains information on all the campsites in the NWT including what services they have. It also has write-ups on all the communities so it has basically everything you need for a road trip up here all in one book."
Forget agreed that targeting Alberta is a good idea because he sees more campers from that province than any other.
Campers Dennis and Anita Rau from Kelowna, B.C. were flipping through the booklet as they stopped in at the visitors centre earlier this month. They said they are on a three-month trip with their truck and camping trailer that will eventually see them travelling to Alaska. They don't have Internet access in their trailer so they feel the camping guidebook is invaluable.
"I always try to gather as much information as I can beforehand so yes, this book is good to have before we head out across the territory," Dennis said.
"I like the fact that it tells you what's available in each park - no guesswork," Anita said. Because they have a huge RV she added, it is important to know what services are available at each campsite. The department is spending $3.5 million in fiscal 2016-17 upgrading parks across the territory, according to a news release. That includes improvements to a kitchen shelter and a new children's playground at Fred Henne Territorial Park as well as an expanded day-use area and improved accessibility for people with disabilities at Yellowknife River Territorial Park.
