INSIGHTS
Tourism can be impacted by many factors including weather, area economies, coal and oil prices, global recessions, value of the US dollar, competition, land use and access, and in the current case, pandemics.
Summer has seen the steadiest tourism growth in Fernie over the past 6 years as awareness of summer experiences vs winter increases.
Data suggests that August 2020 tourism during the pandemic was almost as strong as August 2019. It is suggested that the primary reasons were pent up demand for travel and desire for small towns with nature and wide-open spaces.
SITUATION ANALYSIS & KEY INSIGHTS
VISITOR VOLUME, ROOM REVENUES AND SEASONALITY
For 2019, total visitor volume, both overnight and day visitors, to Fernie was estimated to exceed 400,000 and 2019 visitor spending was estimated to exceed $ 130 million based on the lodging revenue growth since 2015. Visitor surveys indicate that approximately 84 %- 94 % of visitation to Fernie is from outside of British Columbia, which implies that over $ 110 million of visitor spending is new money coming into the area.
Although Fernie experienced a decrease in revenues in 2014-2015, as a result of the poor snow year that impacted winter visitation, tourism growth has taken place prior to and up until the pandemic. The impacts of COVID-19 began affecting lodging revenues mid-March 2020 and continues to do so. It is estimated that a decrease of 30 %-50 % in lodging revenues is expected for 2020 compared to 2019. The local tourism industry continues to address and adapt to the pandemic and the resulting changes in travel behaviours and patterns.
Figure 1