Alberta's $25 billion visitor economy by 2035
Episode Stats
Words per Minute
152.12233
Summary
Learn English with Alberta s Premier Rachel Notley. In this episode, Rachel talks about Alberta s new Tourism Strategy, which focuses on the future of the province's tourism industry, including all-season resort development, expanding air and road access, and easing labour shortages.
Transcript
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Jasper and Banff, a little further south, are the most visited national parks in Canada
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and two of the world's most celebrated wilderness destinations.
00:00:09.920
They're the face of a tourism industry that has helped drive Alberta's economy for many decades.
00:00:16.060
Since our earliest days, when the railways opened, the Canadian interior to visitors,
00:00:20.440
Alberta has drawn people in huge numbers to see what makes our province so special.
00:00:24.260
And those who do come here quickly find out that the attractions in Alberta go far beyond our famous mountain parks.
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They include UNESCO World Heritage Sites that preserve millennia of First Nations history,
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Edmonton's many festivals, and the summer fun of the greatest outdoor show on earth, the Calgary Stampede,
00:00:42.360
the world-class Royal Terrell Museum and Drumheller Badlands,
00:00:45.680
and the countless acres of backcountry waiting to be explored for incomparable fishing and hunting,
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In every corner of Alberta and in all four seasons, visitors can discover welcoming communities
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And Alberta's visibility is higher than ever, thanks to the Film and Television Tax Credit,
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which has drawn major productions like The Last of Us in Prey, which is putting our province on screens worldwide.
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With such incredible landscapes and an equally impressive range of cultural attractions right in our backyard,
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Alberta already has the assets that we need to sustain a strong tourism industry for decades to come.
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But our government has a far more ambitious vision for the future of Alberta's tourism.
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Today I'm pleased to announce Alberta's new tourism strategy.
00:01:33.280
The strategy takes a whole-of-government approach to sustainably growing our province's visitor economy.
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This includes growing into rural communities, expanding and diversifying our tourism product offerings,
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increasing air and road access, and easing labour shortages.
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Our aim is to build on our existing strengths and more than double Alberta's visitor economy,
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from $10 billion currently to $25 billion by 2035.
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We're already on our way to those ambitious numbers.
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In 2022, tourism spending in our province was up $600 million over 2019 levels,
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But we believe we can grow the industry even more.
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We're going to do this by prioritizing sustainable and responsible development,
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such as all-season resorts, which will give Alberta tourism operators even more of a competitive edge.
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And over the years, we've increased funding for Travel Alberta to support increased air access.
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In the last three years, Travel Alberta has expanded the number of airline seats into the province
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from key destinations across the United States, Europe, and Asia.
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With this increased funding, they will be able to continue generating and driving visitor demand to our incredible province.
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They'll also expand their efforts to develop and promote our province's amazing destinations,
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with a focus on expanding tourism growth across communities in rural Alberta,
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from the peace country to the Badlands to the southern Rockies.
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The strategy also includes measures to continue growing indigenous tourism opportunities across the province
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and make it easier for indigenous operators to access capital for large-scale projects.
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And finally, the tourism strategy also includes measures to ease the labor shortages
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that have for too long challenged the tourism industry's growth.
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Our strategy will build on the industry's current successes,
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delivering economic growth and good jobs across Alberta