Tourism operators in Victoria eager for international borders to reopen
Tuesday was the first day British Columbians could travel anywhere in the province on vacation. But Victoria’s Inner Harbour — normally a mecca for summer tourists — remained quiet, with few folks from the mainland taking advantage of their new freedom.
Up island, however, Tofino was already feeling the onset of recreational travellers from the mainland, according to Samantha Hackett, the manager of the Long Beach Lodge Resort.
"We have more arrivals today than what we expected," said Hackett. "This is definitely the opening of our summer season, we have higher occupancy than we've had since last November."
Meanwhile, BC Ferries says with good weather in the forecast and no travel ban in place, it has added more sailings for the weekend, as it expects it will be busy.
"Not only is it supposed to be sunny, but it's also Father’s Day, so many people will probably be wanting to visit with their family and friends," said Deborah Marshall, spokesperson for BC Ferries.
But in Victoria, Brooke Harris, with the Inn at Laurel Point hotel, says urban centres aren’t anticipating the same demand as destinations like Tofino.
What the tourism industry in the city really needs is international tourists to return before things return to any semblance of how they were pre-pandemic, says Harris.
"Being the proximity that we have to Washington state and that side of the border, it’s huge," said Harris. "(International travel) is a huge part that we're missing. So we're quite anxious to see those borders open when it's safe to do so."
So far, no date has been set for when the Canada-U.S. border will reopen for tourism. But on Thursday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is meeting with all the premiers to get their feedback on the issue.
B.C. Premier John Horgan addressed that upcoming meeting on Tuesday, during a press conference with Western Canadian premiers.
"There’s absolute consensus that we want to get back as quickly a possible to whatever normal will be, but we also expect the Federal Government to be leading on this question," said Horgan.
For Victoria’s tourism industry there seems to be consensus that a safe reopening of international borders is needed sooner rather than later in order to turn flagging fortunes around.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
Ukraine uses long-range missiles secretly provided by U.S. to hit Russian-held areas, officials say
Ukraine for the first time has begun using long-range ballistic missiles provided secretly by the United States, bombing a Russian military airfield in Crimea last week and Russian forces in another occupied area overnight, American officials said Wednesday.
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
All Alberta wildfires to date in 2024 believed to be human-caused: province
There are 63 wildfires burning in Alberta's forest protection area as of Wednesday morning and seven mutual aid fires, including one in the Municipal District of Peace.
7 surveillance videos linked to extortions of South Asian home builders in Edmonton released
The Edmonton Police Service has released a number of surveillance videos related to a series of extortion cases in the city now dubbed 'Project Gaslight.'
Suspects waving weapons, smashing glass in Toronto jewelry store robbery caught on video
Arrests have been made after five men were captured on video rampaging through a jewelry store in Toronto, waving weapons and smashing glass display cases.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
New evidence challenges the Pentagon's account of a horrific attack as the U.S. withdrew from Afghanistan: CNN exclusive
New video evidence uncovered by CNN significantly undermines two Pentagon investigations into an ISIS-K suicide attack outside Kabul airport, during the American withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.