Welcome to Tourism Insights
This is Tourism Insights, Nova Scotia Department of Tourism, Culture & Heritage’s tourism research website. This website is intended to keep you up to date about tourism trends – who’s coming to Nova Scotia, why they’re coming and what they’re doing while they’re here. You will also find overviews of regional tourism activity and information about such things as the importance of the tourism industry to Nova Scotia’s economy.
This information is intended for use by a variety of stakeholders – from tourism operators and associations to government organizations and the media. We welcome your feedback about this site and suggestions about how this site could be most useful to you. Please email tourisminsights@gov.ns.ca with any comments.
September 2009 Highlights
- For September, visits to Nova Scotia grew by five percent compared to 2008.
- To date in 2009, there were 1,676,800 visitors to the province, a one percent increase from this time last year.
- Visits from the rest of Canada are up two percent (+25,000 visitors), American visits declined two percent (- 3,000 visitors) and overseas visits decreased nine percent (-5,300) YTD.
- Activity in the accommodation sector saw a slight increase (+1%) provincially for the month of September; year-to-date room-nights sold are down four percent which is reflected across all the regions.
Tourism Activity Review - September 2009
From January to September the province welcomed more than 1.67 million visitors, a one percent increase in visits compared to this time last year. For the month of September, visitation reached close to 230,000; a strong five percent increase or about 11,000 more visitors compared to September 2008.
In September visitation trends reported throughout the summer persist; visits by road continued to grow (up 10% for the month and 8% YTD) while air visits continued to slide (down 4% in September, -13% YTD). Research indicates air visits declined this year due to a weakened business market. Business visits are down 48% YTD (about 107,000 visits) while pleasure visits are up by about 50% YTD (about 36,000 visits).
Domestic tourism performance to the end of September showed growth from all regions except for Western Canada and Quebec, which lagged by six and two percent respectively. Visits from Ontario improved by four percent (about 15,500 visitors), and those from other Atlantic Canadian provinces increased by two percent (or 19,000 visitors), YTD.
American visitation to Nova Scotia increased by three percent in September, although YTD results remain down two percent. Again the shift in mode of travel is reflected in our American visitation. To the end of September, 11% more US visitors arrived by motor vehicle (about 10,000 visits), while visitors arriving by air dipped 18% (or almost 13,000 visits), compared to this time last year.
While September visits from overseas markets broke even, visitation YTD remains down nine percent (about 5,300 visitors), due to the weak business market. Visits from the UK declined 19% YTD due to the 68% drop in business visits. Visitors from Germany are up slightly YTD (3% or 8,300 visits) while visits from the rest of Europe dropped, again due to less business travel. Visits from other overseas origins remained stable with those reported last year.
Activity in the accommodation sector saw an increase in room-nights sold in many of the regions for September. The Yarmouth and Acadian Shores (+13%), Fundy Shore & Annapolis Valley (+10%), Northumberland Shore (+14%), Cape Breton (+5%) and South Shore (+4%) regions reported increases in September. The remaining regions of Halifax Metro and Eastern Shore experienced declines of six and two percent, correspondingly. At the provincial level, room-nights sold were up one percent compared to September 2008, resulting in a four percent decrease YTD.
See the 2009 Key Tourism Indicators page for a complete list of tourism industry benchmarks for Nova Scotia.