[CHARLOTTETOWN, PE] – Meetings being held today in Charlottetown provide an excellent opportunity for industry representatives and government to review the successes of the past tourism season with an eye on 2013, says Minister of Tourism and Culture Robert Henderson.
"Every year in October, officials from the Department of Tourism and Culture meet with industry members of the Tourism Advisory Council (TAC) to look back at the past year and determine successes and areas in need of improvement," says Minister Henderson. "It is very important that industry and government work together to provide the best possible tourism product to potential visitors and to take better advantage of our strengths as a destination from a marketing perspective."
While the final numbers will not be known for a few months, current statistics and anecdotal evidence suggest the 2012 tourism season will be close to par with 2011. Among the major successes were the Fall Flavours Festival, which saw record attendance at events all over the Island in September, the Cavendish Beach Music Festival, which drew huge crowds to what is now the Island's biggest annual concert event, and Atlanticade, which saw thousands of motorcycle riders descend on Summerside during the Canada Day long weekend.
"This is a valuable step in the annual planning process and it allows the volunteer industry council to provide practical insights on the season performance and outlook for 2013," said John-Anthony Langdale, TAC Chair. "TAC's role is to work with Tourism PEI on their annual plan to ensure it aligns with Strategy 2015 and furthers our shared industry and government objectives for provincial tourism growth."
