Peter Shokeir | [email protected]
Jasper鈥檚 tourism sector is showing signs of recovery and resiliency in the face of the pandemic with strong visitation and occupancy numbers.
Visitation was down 200,000 from 1.7 million in 2019 to 1.5 million this year, but that only covers the peak season May through September.
鈥淭otal visitation, I think, was very strong,鈥� said James Jackson, president and CEO of Tourism Jasper.
鈥淥ddly enough, September of 2021 outperformed September of 2019, so that bodes very, very well in terms of the demand of the destination.鈥�
Occupancy was also strong, with Jasper at 66 per cent occupancy between May and September, which is up 12 per cent from 2020.
The latter half of this year鈥檚 season saw a higher occupancy rate of over 80 per cent between July and September.
Jackson attributed these positive trends to multiple variables including vaccines, changes to lockdown measures, the easing of border restrictions, the reopening of Whistlers Campground and a concerted effort of local businesses to market to the regional audience.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been very reassuring to see how much the Jasper brand is in demand,鈥� he said.
鈥淚n the end, I think Jasper has done disproportionally better than most destinations as it relates to COVID recovery.鈥�
Although not 鈥渁 walk in the park,鈥� Jackson emphasized how locals should be proud of how recovery has gone and how everyone came together as a community.
Proof of vaccination likely contributed to the improvement in the tourism sector too.
鈥淚t really helped with peace of mind with ensuring professionally managed environments 鈥� bars, restaurants, attractions 鈥� can be extremely safe,鈥� Jackson said.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 definitely a contributing factor, and we continue to be supportive of the program.鈥�
Tourism Jasper did have to cancel its outdoor concert series after the government announced additional restrictions in early September.
鈥淚t was unfortunate we had to cancel the concert,鈥� Jackson said.
鈥淭hat would have been a really nice celebration and a special thank-you to the community after a really challenging year.鈥�
A new concert is expected to occur sometime next year.
Jackson anticipated further improvement in tourism for 2022, noting the 鈥減ositive signals鈥� from the federal government regarding border restrictions.
鈥淲e鈥檙e not quite to the 2019 rate, but we鈥檙e getting there, and so that tells us that there is significant demand for Jasper鈥檚 experience,鈥� he said.
鈥淎s we look forward to 2022, we know that we have lost of international business on the books. We鈥檝e been rebooking tons of groups all over this last summer and past winter in anticipation of opening up.鈥�
