MAPPING ’S TOURISM FUTURE A Five-Year Look Back on the Ontario Tourism Competitiveness Study

APRIL 2014

Tourism Industry Association of Ontario A Look Back at the Ontario Tourism Competitiveness Study April 2014

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION ...... 2 2. THE TOURISM STUDY MANDATE, PROCESS & FINDINGS ...... 4 3. THEN AND NOW ...... 8 4. THE STAKEHOLDER INPUT PROCESS ...... 9

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1. Introduction The tourism industry is essential to Ontario’s economy and labour markets. In recognition of the potential for tourism to be a larger contributor to the provincial economy, and to help determine a future focus for tourism in Ontario, the Ontario government commissioned a Tourism Competitiveness Study in 2008 (the “Tourism Study”). The Tourism Study was chaired by former finance minister Greg Sorbara and included consultation with a wide range of Ontario's traditional and non-traditional tourism stakeholders, including a broad cross section of provincial ministries. In February 2009, the Ontario government released the Tourism Competitiveness Study Report, Discovering Ontario: A Report on the Future of Tourism (the “Report”). In the Report four key strategies, supported by twenty recommendations, were proposed to increase tourism and economic activity and to make Ontario a top tourism destination. The twenty recommendations outlined in the Report were provided as advice to government. Since 2009, the Ministry and industry partners have focused on implementing key recommendations from the Report. Achievements and progress to-date are a result of the combined efforts of the Ministry and tourism industry partners. The five-year anniversary of the Report’s completion is an appropriate time to re-engage the industry to: • assess the implementation status from tourism partners' perspective; • validate the relevance of the recommendations today and in the future; • collect information to support future planning; and • build on the successes to date by continuing to work with our industry partners to identify priorities that address current needs and advance the tourism sector. The Tourism Industry Association of Ontario (TIAO) has been charged with the responsibility of leading a province-wide consultation designed to: • Engage the Ontario tourism industry to assess the implementation status of the twenty recommendations from the Report. • Engage tourism industry partners to identify priority recommendations, and to address the current needs and goals of the sector, in order to grow the tourism industry in Ontario over the next three to five years. • Engage tourism industry partners to discuss how each of government and industry—together and/or individually—can best advance these priorities by clearly establishing responsibilities and timelines. • Support recognition of the tourism industry for its contribution to Ontario’s economy and workforce. TIAO, working with HLT Advisory Inc. (“HLT”), is seeking to complete the active consultation process over the spring of 2014. Following the collection and review of submissions, HLT will work with TIAO leadership and selected industry stakeholders (e.g., sector groups, senior staff within selected ministries, RTO council, outside experts) to prepare a final report containing:

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• priority action recommendations; • responsibilities and timelines associated with each recommendation; and • guidelines and suggestions related to the recommendations. The final report and findings will be presented at the Ontario Tourism Summit on November 12 – 13, 2014 at Blue Mountain Resort. The comments, thoughts, insights and suggestions of Ontario’s tourism industry and related sectors are welcomed through the multiple channels and opportunities described in this document.

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2. The Tourism Study Mandate, Process & Findings This chapter provides a framework for the Tourism Study completed in 2009, outlines key process features of the Study and summarizes key findings and recommendations.

MANDATE OF THE TOURISM STUDY The Tourism Study was undertaken with a view to “setting a future path for tourism in Ontario.” The mandate was straight forward: “To develop a plan — including specific steps for the public and private sectors — to support the growth and long-term viability of tourism in Ontario. The Study’s ambition is to demonstrably strengthen Ontario’s tourism sector over the next decade and beyond.” The impetus of the study, which enjoyed widespread industry support, was to determine the competitiveness of the Ontario tourism across various elements including marketing, product development, organization structure and delivery. The Tourism Study recommendations were meant to ensure greater competitiveness in the future.

TOURISM STUDY PROCESS The process commenced with the release of a discussion paper in June 2008 (Mapping Ontario’s Tourism Future: A Starting Point for Discussion). The purpose of the discussion paper was to launch a province-wide conversation about tourism from across not only the tourism industry but a broader cross-section of the Ontario economy. The conversation involved thirteen formal consultation sessions held in 12 cities across the province in the fall of 2008. Over 500 people attended these sessions in Windsor, (two sessions), London, Orillia, Sudbury, , Kingston, , Kenora, Hamilton, and North Bay. In addition, a total of 189 written submissions were received. Recognizing the breadth of the tourism industry, input was also sought via consultation and collaboration within government including: Transportation; Northern Development & Mines; Natural Resources; Agriculture, Food & Rural Affairs; Health Promotion; Energy & Infrastructure; Education; Training, Colleges & Universities; Small Business & Consumer Services; Municipal Affairs & Housing; Economic Development; International Trade and Investment; Culture; Citizenship & Immigration; Labour; Cabinet Office/Intergovernmental Affairs; Finance; and Government Services.

KEY GOAL IDENTIFIED IN THE REPORT The Report identified the primary goal as ambitious but necessary to ensure a stronger tourism industry for Ontario. The Report opens with the following statement: “We have set out one overarching goal: Ontario will become one of the world’s preferred places to visit. Ontario has the potential and all the necessary elements to be a leading tourism destination. To get there, Ontario will aim to double tourism receipts by 2020.”

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The balance of the Report sets out four key strategies and twenty specific recommendations designed to achieve the goal of building a stronger Ontario tourism industry.

THE RECOMMENDATIONS The four key strategies and twenty recommendations contained in the Report are reprinted verbatim below1: To fully realize the opportunities that tourism can provide to Ontario, the final report of the Ontario Tourism Competitiveness Study, released in February 2009, makes four broad strategic proposals and 20 specific recommendations to achieve the goal of having Ontario become one of the world's preferred places to visit. I: Change how government and industry work together to develop tourism and foster economic growth. 1. Set targets: Ontario should set its sights on becoming one of the world's preferred destinations. It has the potential and all the necessary elements it needs to be a leading global destination. By 2020, Ontario will aim to increase the economic contribution of the sector by doubling tourism receipts. 2. Establish regions: Ontario should establish tourism regions to better coordinate tourism marketing and management across the province. Each region should work towards creating a unique brand and a stellar experience within a provincial brand. There should be one Destination Marketing and Management Organization for each region. 3. Regularize destination marketing fees: To help support expanded regional tourism marketing and management efforts, Ontario should standardize Destination Marketing Fees (a fee on the room portion of a guest bill) across the province. 4. Encourage a single tourism industry association: The tourism industry should establish one effective and adequately resourced umbrella association to represent the needs of the entire industry. It should reflect the diversity of the industry across the province. 5. Open our doors: Ontario should advocate for the federal government to improve access to international markets, reduce barriers for entry into the province and overall, make it easier for tourists to get here. II: Set new standards for success to become more internationally competitive. 1. Encourage leadership: For Ontario's tourism industry to fulfill its potential as a destination, and as a contributor to the economy, it needs a highly visible and sustained commitment from the Premier and Cabinet. 2. Modernize regulations: To encourage economic development, the ministry should work with industry to identify, reduce or eliminate key impediments.

1 http://www.mtc.gov.on.ca/en/regions/discovering_ontario_recommendations.shtml

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3. Establish service and quality standards: In order to encourage a service culture in Ontario, the industry should adopt a service quality strategy to meet tourists' expectations for high service standards. 4. Develop the tourism workforce: Ontario should work to become an international leader in tourism training and education. III: Maximize the impact of private and public tourism investments on new and revitalized product across Ontario. 1. Invest in transportation infrastructure: Ontario should improve access to existing attractions focusing on the links that make it easier to get from one region to the next. Tourism transportation funding should focus on movement in and out of key gateways or high-draw areas. 2. Actively attract investment: The Ontario government should identify its high- potential destinations for investment. It should undertake a campaign to target investors, provide selective incentives and make it easier to work with governments. 3. Help operators access capital: Ontario should help support loans and/or loan guarantees to small- and medium-sized tourism operators by working with existing lenders. 4. Transform our attractions: Ontario should continue to invest in its own tourism and cultural attractions, provincial parks and trails to bring them up to leading global standards. 5. Revitalize Ontario Place: Ontario should revitalize Ontario Place as the flagship of a new era in Ontario tourism by opening it all year, developing a master plan that includes the surrounding area and investing in local infrastructure. 6. Cultivate festivals and events: Ontario should strategically invest in major festivals and events with the highest potential for growth in terms of total tourist expenditures. This would help to raise the profile of Ontario and capitalize on the province's strong product offering and natural assets, culture and the arts, key economic clusters and sports infrastructure. IV: Welcome consumers before they arrive, when they get here and during their visit in Ontario. 1. Redesign marketing role: Recast Ontario's approach to tourism marketing so that one agency becomes the provincial marketing lead for promoting the provincial tourism brand in partnership with the new tourism regions. 2. Market strategically: Ontario should market its destinations and experiences by focusing on our strongest existing international markets; prioritizing new and best- prospect markets like Mexico, Brazil, India and China; strengthening our appeal to French-speaking markets, especially ; expanding our reach to new Canadians and their families; and continuing to focus on the strong domestic Ontario market.

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3. Focus on our unique products: Ontario should focus on the unique product offerings of regions including natural experiences and our great water assets as well as niche tourism experiences such as sports, cultural, culinary, eco and agricultural tourism. 4. Improve way-finding: Ontario needs better signage to help make the province more welcoming, safe and comfortable. 5. Increase e-marketing and online booking: The industry should increase internet marketing and online booking capabilities. Through its marketing agency, the Ontario government should work with industry to make it easier for consumers to book accommodations and visit attractions.

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3. Then and Now The period leading up to the initiation of the competitiveness Report—from 2000 to 2008—was tumultuous. Ontario’s tourism industry faced significant change given a host of unforeseen external factors that resulted in some positive, but mostly negative, impacts on business volumes and customer service. For example: • SARS put Toronto on the map, in the worst of ways. • Exchange rates provided a temptation for Ontario (and all Canadian) tourism businesses to incorporate significant “discounting” in the marketing message. • Increased cross-border security concerns (prompted by 9/11) resulted in a less porous Canada-U.S. border and, eventually, a requirement for all visitors to carry a passport. Arguably, even more change has occurred since the Report was completed: • The Canadian Tourism Commission (“CTC”), facing budget constraints, diverted international marketing efforts to emerging source countries at the expense of marketing in the United States. • At the same time as the CTC turned away from the U.S., Brand USA came online with a US$200million marketing budget. Canada was identified as a key target market for the U.S. as a whole and numerous individual U.S. destinations. • The exchange rate differential reversed, with the Canadian dollar strengthening against most foreign currencies, notably the U.S. dollar, Pound and Euro, prompting even more outbound trips by Ontarians and Canadians. • The number of city-pair flight offerings between Canada and the U.S. increased substantially—given increased competitiveness and growth of start-up airlines such as Porter—but much of the usage has been dominated by Canadians travelling outbound. • The number of Americans carrying passports (enabling foreign travel) has never been higher but Canada has not been a top-of-mind destination. Change is inevitable. Therefore the Ontario tourism industry must not only address internal structural, budget, regulatory and policy challenges but also a host of external, largely uncontrollable factors. Despite these challenges the long-term future of tourism—in Ontario, across Canada and internationally—presents many opportunities. Ontario offers a variety of tourism assets ranging from natural features to vibrant urban areas to cultural and mass-market attractions. Ontario is well located to large potential markets and its airport infrastructure permits those from further away to easily travel to Ontario. In the end, flexibility, nimbleness and the ability to react quickly will separate winners from losers over the next decade, and beyond, as tourism remains one of the most competitive international sectors.

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4. The Stakeholder Input Process Engagement is the key priority of this stakeholder consultation process. We need opinions, critical thinking (including criticism where warranted) and thought leadership from both traditional tourism industry stakeholders as well as non-traditional stakeholders. Additionally, we need suggestions on the current relevancy of the Report’s suggestions for modifications and recommendations on future implementation.

A STARTING POINT In order to frame the consultation process, the TIAO Board and membership identified five priority areas from among the Tourism Study’s twenty recommendations. In some cases more than one recommendation has been joined into a single priority. In others, recommendations have been modified to reflect the current environment. TIAO’s priority areas for the consultation process (not necessarily in order) are laid out in the following table, together with several priority-specific questions.

THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS SHOULD GUIDE YOUR INPUT Based on your knowledge of the Tourism Study, the Report and the priority areas identified by TIAO, please use the following questions to guide your input to the consultation process: 1. Do you agree with the five priority areas identified by TIAO? 2. Would you change or modify these five priorities? If so, how? 3. What are your thoughts on implementation strategies/tactics to achieve the priorities specifically, responsibilities and timelines? 4. What do you consider to be the “next five” priority areas from the original twenty recommendations in the Report? 5. Are there new recommendations you would like to add (i.e., something not included in the Report’s twenty recommendations)? You may also use this process to provide any other feedback designed to improve the Ontario tourism industry.

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TIAO Priority TIAO Priority Includes the following Tourism Study Recommendations Priority-specific Comments/Questions • For Ontario's tourism industry to fu • Leadership needs include, but may extend beyond, Leadership and as a contributor to the economy, it needs a highly visible and Premier and Cabinet. sustained commitment from the Premier and Cabinet. • The Tourism Study’s target of “doubling tourism (Recommendation II.1). receipts by 2020” is likely not achievable but a target • Setting meaningful targets (Recommendationlfill its potential I.1) isas a a function destination, of is necessary to focus activity and measure leadership. leadership and should be incorporated into any future plan. • The need for public- and private-sector investments in tourism crossed • Where/how much should government invest? Investment several Tourism Study recommendations including marketing at the • How should government enable private sector provincial and regional level (Recommendation I.3, and assumed as investment? part of IV), transportation infrastructure (III.1) and product • How will DMF funding supplement the government’s development (remainder of III with a primarily focus on attractions investment; regulation or let individual sector and events). organizations determine for their region? • Ontario should market its destinations and experiences by focusing on • Future marketing efforts need to focus on the Marketing strongest “existing market”, the U.S. Strategically our strongest existing international prospect markets like Mexico, Brazil, India and China; strengthening • How should Ontario balance in-province marketing our appeal to French-speaking mark with external marketing (role and funding of RTOs and OTMPC)? our reach to new Canadians and their families; and continuing to focus (Recommendation IV.2) on the strong domestic Ontario markets;market. prioritizing new and best- • Ontario should focus on the unique product offerings of regions • How to define “unique” and how does “unique” differ Product & in an in-Ontario versus external marketing Experience including natural experiences and ou ets, especially Quebec; expanding environment? Focus niche tourism experiences such as sports, cultural, culinary, eco and agricultural tourism.(Recommendation IV.3) • Several recommendations within Section III also speak to product and experience enhancements and their role in marketing/positioning Ontario. r great water assets as well as • Establish regions: Ontario should es • Although achieved, questions remain about need, Regional roles and responsibilities, wisdom of creating regional Structure coordinate tourism marketing and Each region should work towards creating a unique brand and a stellar brands, linkages with DMOs and long-term funding experience within a provincial brand. There should be one Destination support/performance measures for this recommendation. Marketing and Management Orgatablish tourism regions to better (Recommendation I.2) • Tourism Regions (RTO’s) should be examined from a management across the province. standpoint of continuous improvement from the point of inception in 2011. nization for each region.

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SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS IN MANY WAYS • At the Stakeholder Input Sessions A total of sixteen sessions will be held across the Province commencing in early May and running to mid June. Check the TIAO website at http://www.tiaontario.ca/ConsultationSessions for details of session times and location. Note: while at least one consultation session will be held within each region/RTO, the sessions are not meant to be RTO-specific. The sessions will focus on the Ontario tourism industry and its opportunities in total. Each session is open to anyone regardless of which region(s) a tourism business is located. • Online You may submit your comments directly on the website at htt://www.tiaontario.ca/ProvidingInput or provide a submission of any length to [email protected]. Comments may be submitted until June 30, 2014. • By mail or fax to: HLT Advisory Inc. 370 King Street West, P.O. Box 24 Toronto, Ontario, M5V 1J9 Fax: (416) 961-7737

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