Region to Host Rendez-vous Canada
Atlantic Canada has won the bid to host the country's largest travel trade show, Rendez-vous Canada, in Halifax, May 9-12, 1999.
More than 1,400 delegates are expected to attend the annual marketplace, where buyers from around the world and sellers of Canada's tourism facilities and services conduct business deals worth millions of dollars.
"This is an excellent opportunity for Atlantic Canada to market our region to travel buyers from all over the world, and we're pleased to have co-ordinated this year's bid," said Michele McKenzie, executive director with Nova Scotia Economic Development and Tourism.
The Halifax bid draws on the strengths and resources of the Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership, which comprises the four provincial tourism departments, the four provincial tourism industry associations, the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, and the Canadian Tourism Commission.
Co-chairs of the partnership are John Slipp, president of the Tourism Industry Association of New Brunswick, and Bert Loveless, deputy minister of Nova Scotia Economic Development and Tourism. They said they consider hosting Rendez-vous Canada a strategic investment in marketing and product development.
"We'll be targeting this international marketplace with the launch of new tourism packages, and travel wholesalers from around the world will have a chance to enjoy the Atlantic Canada experience first hand," said Mr. Slipp.
The event is organized by the Tourism Industry Association of Canada, a national organization representing the interests of the private-sector tourism industry.
"It was felt that the Halifax bid best met all of the criteria to host the event and allowed the association to continue to rotate the event throughout as many regions of Canada as possible," the association wrote in a news release announcing its decision. It thanked the Calgary Convention and Visitors Bureau and Travel Alberta, which also submitted a bid to host the event.
Based on the results of delegate surveys, the Tourism Industry Association of Canada reports that buyers purchase more than $50 million in tourism products and services offered by the host region during Rendez-vous Canada.
In addition to this business and the international media exposure, the event is expected to pump some $1 million directly into Halifax for operational requirements. It's also estimated that delegates and sponsors will spend a minimum of $1 million while visiting the area.
In Atlantic Canada, the new millennium will provide new product opportunities as Newfoundland and Labrador mark 1,000 years since the Viking visits and as Nova Scotia prepares for Tall Ships 2000, a transatlantic race featuring more than 150 vessels from around the world. Also in Nova Scotia, 1999 marks the 250th birthday of the cities of Halifax and Dartmouth.
"We'll be working with these real opportunities to create theme-sponsored events during Rendez-vous Canada 1999," Ms. McKenzie said.
Delegates will also have an opportunity to tour the four Atlantic provinces and take part in cultural events scheduled throughout the region.
Formed in 1993, the Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership initially focused on international marketing initiatives. It expanded into product development with the signing of a three-year $18-million agreement in 1997.
The partnership's initiatives are managed through a committee structure, which will be used to establish an Atlantic Canada host committee for Rendez-vous Canada. Financial resources of the Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership are derived from both levels of government and the private sector.
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