No vacancy: Most downtown Halifax hotels fully booked for Canada Day weekend

The front desk at the Westin Nova Scotian hotel in Halifax is pictured. (CTV Atlantic / Jesse Thomas)

If you’re still hunting for a hotel room in downtown Halifax this Canada Day weekend you may be out of luck.

“We are sold out enough that even if the King himself showed up at our front doors we would unfortunately have to turn them away,” said Glenn Bowie, general manager of the Westin Nova Scotian hotel in Halifax’s south end.

Most downtown hotels are sold out this weekend and even booking well in advance doesn’t always guarantee a spot.

Ontario tourist Brian Potts found that out the hard way.

“About two months ago I was trying to get a nice hotel in the downtown area,” said Potts. “But they were all sold out.”

Potts said his persistence paid off, but he and his wife had to settle for a hotel a little further away from the downtown area than they were hoping for.

Tourism in Halifax is booming

A new report from the Downtown Halifax Business Commission (DHBC) shows that tourism numbers have surpassed the numbers from period years and have eclipsed numbers prior to the pandemic.

Halifax welcomed more than 19.2 million visitors in 2024, that’s 18 per cent higher than in 2023 and 3.1 per cent higher than pre-COVID levels.

“We’re in a growing city so we did expect numbers to bounce back,” said Paul MacKinnon, DHBC CEO. “We actually had projected that we would hit those numbers next year, so we’re a little ahead of where we wanted to be.”

With visitor numbers up and major events filing the calendar, industry leaders like MacKinnon says it’s time for Halifax to expand accommodation options.

The DHBC has lobbied Halifax Regional Council to reserve land in the Cogswell District redevelopment area for a hotel.

“One of the opportunities right now, because the city has a bunch of land that will be coming on to the private market,” said MacKinnon. “Maybe one of those land lots be designated for a hotel.”

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