TORONTO The urgent need for a clear roadmap for Canada’s recovery coming out of the pandemic, especially where travel is concerned, was underlined by a panel of travel industry executives including Air Canada’s President and CEO Michael Rousseau and WestJet’s VP Government Relations & Regulatory Affairs Andy Gibbons at a webinar yesterday presented by the Canadian Airports Council (CAC).
Rousseau and Gibbons were joined on the panel by airport executives Tamara Vrooman (YVR) and Philippe Rainville (YUL), plus David Goldstein (Travel Alberta) and Patrick Doyle (American Express GBT). The panel was hosted by Perrin Beatty with the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and was part of the CAC’s 90-minute webinar on Air Travel Recovery in Canada.
Tourism Week: Statement from Minister Schweitzer
Minister of Jobs, Economy and Innovation Doug Schweitzer issued the following statement to mark Tourism Week, May 23-30:
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“Alberta’s tourism industry is a major part of our economy. Tourism businesses are mostly local small businesses that provide good jobs in our communities and inject billions of dollars a year into our economy.
“2020 was a year like no other, and the tourism sector and tourism operators and businesses continue to face challenges. Before the pandemic, the sector employed 68,800 full-time employees and visitor expenditures in Alberta reached $8.2 billion.
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Drumheller and District Chamber of Commerce members hosted a virtual conference with Minister of Jobs, Economy, and Innovation Doug Schweitzer on Wednesday, May 12.
Minister Schweitzer discussed Alberta’s recovery plan and economic diversification through growth and expansion of existing and new industries, as well as taking questions from participants.
“I love taking my family to Drumheller, you’ve got the Royal Tyrrell with the dinosaurs; there’s everything there,” Minister Schweitzer said during the Zoom meeting.
One industry which the ministry would like to see enhanced and grow in the province is film and television.
Oscar winning films have already been filmed in Drumheller and surrounding areas, including the villages of Delia and Rockyford. Minister Schweitzer notes Calgary will be a “hub” for film production, similar to Vancouver, B.C., due to its proximity to the mountains, the prairies, and the Canadian Badlands.
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Canadians under travel restrictions took to the outdoors in force last year. With another long winter over and COVID still very much affecting our way of life, many folks are looking for an adventure-filled summer on the trails. Excited as we are to explore the great outdoors, care must be taken to do so responsibly.
Mountain trails in the Kananaskis region have been particularly well-trodden as of late. Visitors to Kananaskis Country increased an estimated 30 per cent in 2020. This made things busy for Kananaskis public safety teams, who responded to an additional 150 calls in 2020 a 53 per cent rise from 2019.