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Research, Planning & Evaluation Barkerville Historic Town Visitor Study RESEARCH, PLANNING & EVALUATION BARKERVILLE HISTORIC TOWN VISITOR STUDY 2009 RESULTS October 6th, 2010 Research, Planning & Evaluation Tourism British Columbia Ministry of Tourism, Culture and the Arts 300-1803 Douglas St. Box 9830 Stn. Prov. Gov’t. Victoria, BC V8W 9W5 Web: http://www.tca.gov.bc.ca/research/index.htm Email: [email protected] Phone: 250-387-1567 Barkerville Historic Town Visitor Study - Summer 2009 Acknowledgements The 2009 Barkerville Historic Site Visitor Study was a comprehensive survey of travellers to Barkerville and Quesnel between June and September 2009. The Barkerville Historic Town Visitor Study was a partnership between Tourism British Columbia and Barkerville Historic Town. Partial funding for the data collection was provided by the Federal, Provincial, Territorial Culture/Heritage and Tourism Initiative (FPTTI). Tourism British Columbia and partners would like to gratefully acknowledge the Quesnel Visitor Centre that assisted with the project by providing access for on-site interviews of their visitors. Tourism British Columbia would like to acknowledge and thank the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and the Arts – Heritage Branch, for their continued commitment to and support of heritage tourism research and development programs. Research and Planning, Tourism British Columbia i Barkerville Historic Town Visitor Study - Summer 2009 Executive Summary Thousands of tourists and local residents attend cultural and arts festivals, fairs and attractions across Canada every year. They leave these sites with new experiences, new knowledge and with valuable impressions that can help organizers make more informed design, planning and marketing decisions. If they are tourists, these visitors inject money into the local community, adding to its economic well- being. A consortium of national, provincial and territorial organizations1 produced a series of publications known as The Guidelines for Survey Procedures designed to generate credible and consistent inputs for estimating the tourism economic impact of festivals, events and attractions. The Guidelines can also be easily adapted for a variety of visitor studies depending on the information needs and research objectives of individual festivals, events and attractions. Specifically, the Guidelines: Survey Procedures for Tourism Economic Impact Assessments at Permanent, Gated Attractions was used in this study. Due to increasing funding needs as well as product development and marketing needs of heritage attractions in communities around the province, Tourism British Columbia (Research, Planning & Evaluation), a part of the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and the Arts, in partnership with Barkerville Historic Town identified the need to explore the impact and benefit of Barkerville Historic Town and to better understand the positioning of the site as a unique British Columbia attraction. Specifically, the study objectives were: 1. To profile travellers to Barkerville Historic Town and the Quesnel area in terms of traveller and trip characteristics in order to support market and product development; 2. To collect and provide expenditure data to the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and the Arts for their estimation of the economic analysis of Barkerville Historic Town. A two-location, two-stage survey design was used to achieve the study objectives. Travellers were interviewed at two locations: Barkerville Historic Town and a Reference Site (Quesnel Visitor Centre). The purpose of collecting information from the Reference Site was to obtain information about the typical traveller to the Quesnel area for comparison with travellers who visited Barkerville Historic Town. On-site interviews collected information from travellers during their trip and a follow-up questionnaire collected information from travellers after their trip. The purpose of the follow-up questionnaire was to gather information about trip motivation, planning, experiences and activities, and to understand travellers’ perceptions of the Quesnel area and British Columbia upon trip completion. 1 Sponsors of the original and/or subsequent Guideline projects: Alberta Tourism, Parks, Recreation and Culture; British Columbia Ministry of Tourism, Culture and the Arts; Canadian Tourism Commission; Federal-Provincial-Territorial Culture/Heritage and Tourism Initiative; Government of the Northwest Territories – Department of Resources, Wildlife, & Economic Development; Government of Yukon – Department of Tourism and Culture; Nova Scotia Department of Tourism, Culture and Heritage; Ontario Ministry of Tourism; Tourism British Columbia; Tourism Prince Edward Island. Research and Planning, Tourism British Columbia ii Barkerville Historic Town Visitor Study - Summer 2009 Between June 2 and September 26, 2009, a total of 2,616 people were approached either at Barkerville Historic Town or the Quesnel Visitor Centre Reference Site. Of those, 2,026 agreed to complete the interview. However, 35 of these individuals had previously completed the survey and were not invited to participate a second time; an additional seven were excluded as they did not meet the definition of a tourist. Among those intercepted at the Reference Site, 161 were excluded as they were from the local area, and an additional seven were excluded who were part of an organized tour group resulting in 1,777 useable surveys. Seventy-six percent of travellers intercepted at one of the two survey locations agreed to complete a follow-up survey (mailback or online) and 61% of these completed the surveys by February 22 2010, resulting in 668 useable surveys for analysis. Overall, almost three-quarter (74%) of Barkerville visitors were from British Columbia (including those from the local area), and almost an eighth of all visitors intercepted at Barkerville were from the Quesnel area (13%). Over two-thirds (70%) of independent, non-resident travellers to Barkerville were from British Columbia. Similarly, almost two-thirds (58%) of visitors interviewed at the Reference Site were from British Columbia. 1 With respect to age, practical differences were found between independent travellers 2at Barkerville and the Reference Site among those 65 years of age or older. Independent travellers at Barkerville were less likely to be 65 years of age or older compared to independent travellers at the Reference Site (16% Barkerville; 27% Reference Site). With respect to education, there were no practical differences between the two groups of respondents. However, the largest observed differences were found amongst those whose highest education attainment was high school (25% Barkerville; 18% Reference Site) or a Masters/PhD degree (8% Barkerville; 14% Reference Site). There were noticeable differences in travel party size between independent visitors to Barkerville and the Reference Site (3.2 Barkerville; 2.4 Reference Site). Travel parties with children were more prevalent amongst independent visitors to Barkerville compared to those interviewed at the Reference Site (36%Barkerville; 21%Reference Site). The largest proportion of all travellers at both Barkerville and the Reference Site indicated that the primary purpose of their trip was for leisure. This number was noticeably higher among independent travellers to Barkerville compared to the Reference Site (77%Barkerville; 65%Reference Site). 1 For comparative purposes, travellers interviewed at Barkerville who were residents of the Quesnel area or who were part of a tour group were not included in the group identified as Barkerville Independent Travellers. Unless otherwise noted, comparative figures provided in the brackets were made between Barkerville Independent Travellers and those interviewed at the Quesnel Visitor Centre Reference Site. Research and Planning, Tourism British Columbia iii Barkerville Historic Town Visitor Study - Summer 2009 Overall, two thirds of all travellers used cars, trucks, or motorcycles as their primary mode of transportation (68% Barkerville; 67% Reference Site). Almost a third reported using a recreational vehicle (31% Barkerville; 31% Reference Site). Over half of all overnight travellers reported using a campground or RV park as their primary accommodation (Barkerville 51%; Reference Site 51%). Almost a third of travellers at both locations (30% Barkerville; 29% Reference Site) stayed at a resort/hotel/motel and still fewer were staying with friends or relatives (14% Barkerville; 15% Reference Site). Almost a fifth of Independent travellers to Barkerville (19%) and over a quarter (26%) of Reference Site travellers indicated they were touring with no specific destination. Independent travellers to Barkerville were more likely to select a destination in Canada (78% Barkerville; 62% Reference Site) and in particular a destination in the Cariboo Chilcotin Coast region (55% Barkerville; 33% Reference Site) and in the Quesnel area (45% Barkerville; 13% Reference Site). Travellers who were interviewed at the Reference Site were asked if they had been to the Quesnel area in the past. Overall, 61% indicated they had. Respondents were also asked about the number of trips they had taken in the past two years. Almost a third (30%) reported taking between one and three trips while a smaller proportion (6%) reported taking 10 or more trips to/in the region in the past two years. Almost a half indicated that they had not taken a leisure trip to the region in the past two years (50%). Follow-up survey respondents were asked whether they considered other destinations or routes when
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