Canadians spending their tourism dollars at home
Tourism spending in Canada rose 1.3 per cent during the first three months of this year, as Canadians' spending at home grew, while foreign spending continued to slide, Statistics Canada said Friday.
Tourism spending has increased in every quarter since the second quarter of 2003, the federal government agency said.
Spending by Canadians on domestic tourism grew by 2.3 per cent in the January-March period, the fastest pace in nine quarters. Statistics Canada said the increase came in tandem with an increase in employment and gains in Canadians' personal disposable income.
Spending by international visitors dropped by 1.9 per cent in the first quarter, the 10th quarterly decline since the fourth quarter of 2004.
Higher fuel prices and severe winter weather led Americans to cut back their travel to Canada, as same-day and overnight trips from the United States were both down sharply.
Looking ahead, hotel operators report lower expectations for the second quarter of 2008 compared to the same period of last year.
The Canada-U.S. exchange rate, excess room supply and labour shortages were all cited as factors in the expected decline.
0 comments:
Post a Comment