In this issue:

Fall Road Shows
Media Report
New Product Bulletin
What's Your Vision For The Tourism Industry In BC?
Federal program cuts a slap in the face to Canadian tourism
U.S. delays passport requirement
How is Travel Booked?
Emerging Markets
2006 Active Member Survey - Key Findings

Fall Road Show

Vancouver, Coast & Mountains is deep into the planning of our marketing tactics for the year from April 1, 2007 to March 31, 2008 and, as always, we appreciate the guidance that we have received from many of our industry partners and our Board of Directors.

Now it’s time to share our collective ideas! Our Fall Road Show this year takes us to:

Whistler and Lillooet - Monday, October 30
Harrison Hot Springs and Langley - Tuesday, October 31
Surrey and North Vancouver - Wednesday, November 1
Sechelt and Powell River - Thursday, November 2

Click here to register and for complete details.

What's Your Vision For The Tourism Industry In BC?

COTA , in partnership with the BC Ministry of Tourism, Sport and the Arts and Western Economic Diversification (Canada), is calling for stakeholder input into a visioning exercise on the future of tourism in BC. As such, COTA has released a tourism industry discussion paper and workbook.

The discussion paper is the result of the first stage of this industry-driven, two year project entitled Foresight; Shaping and Sustaining a Vision for Tourism in British Columbia.

Within the document COTA and partners review the latest economic, environmental and social research as well as the results of hundreds of consultations. It identifies top issues and trends that will affect the future success of the tourism industry in BC.

Some of the major trends and issues identified in the paper are:

• skills shortages; an aging population and demographic shift
• hosting of the 2010 Games,
• the importance of safety and emergency management,
• marketing BC,
• the state of infrastructure,
• provincial government policy,
• the emerging Chinese market and
• decreased tourism to, and from, the US.

Stakeholders are asked to fill out the related workbook and submit it to the listed contact information.
The results of these submissions will help identify trends and issues that will aid the Foresight project in planning for the future as well as developing universal best practices, an industry sustainability policy and a Code of Ethics.

So we invite you to read the paper, answer the questions in the accompanying workbook and contribute to the continued success of the tourism industry in BC.

Click here to read the discussion paper.
Click here to fill out the related workbook.

Source: COTA Newsletter September 2006

Media Report

From April to September 2005, Vancouver, Coast & Mountains hosted 12 media on press trips around the region. This year, during the same time frame, we have hosted 29 different media around the region – and that’s not even counting our upcoming busy month of October. We are pleased to see such an increase in media attention for the region, and we couldn’t do it without the terrific help of our tourism partners. Click here for a list of recent press trips.

---

Media Opportunity
Please do not forget to let us know about your unique and different stories. Travel media are always looking for something that has never been written about before, so if you have something special to tell us about, please make sure you keep your eyes open for the next call for Story Starter submissions . Look for an email from Amanda on October 17! If you have any questions about Story Starters and how to submit, feel free to contact Jennifer at 604- 637-9046 or Amanda at 604-484-5361.

Calling all Christmas tales! We are actively collecting all things Christmas related! If you have Christmas events planned, please click here to download the Christmas story form. Send these as soon as possible to Jennifer at jennifer@vcmbc.com.

---

Editorial
Our media relations team has also been actively scouring every publication we get our hands on for editorial on our region. We receive clippings from Tourism BC on a regular basis and do our best to monitor press coverage of the region. You may have recently received an article from us that features your product. Our media relations team is keen to let you know when you have been written about, and we look forward to keeping these articles coming out to our tourism partners. Click here to view some of the recent articles on our region, and do not hesitate to send any articles you may come across our way!

---

Upcoming media shows
Society of American Travel Writers (SATW) – Santiago, Chile October 17 – 27, 2006

New Product Bulletin

Let us know what you have happening that’s NEW! Throughout the year, Tourism British Columbia and Vancouver, Coast & Mountains send out a "New Product Bulletin" to domestic and international tour operators, in order to highlight new product in the province.

New packages, new tours, new marketing partners, changes to existing properties – if it’s new, we want you to be included!

The next Bulletin is going out in November and the deadline for inclusion is Oct 13th 2006.

Submissions must EXACTLY follow the Tourism BC form guidelines which can be downloaded here: http://www.vcmbc.com/page.cfm/8533. Partial submissions will not be accepted.

Send all forms (or questions!), to Jason Knibbs, Sales Manager – Tour & Travel at jason@vcmbc.com

Federal program cuts a slap in the face to Canadian tourism

OTTAWA, September 26, 2006-Unanticipated federal program cuts announced yesterday are a slap in the face to the Canadian tourism industry, says the group representing the interests of Canada's 200,000-plus tourism-related businesses.

" The cuts threaten the well-being of small and medium-sized enterprises in every province and territory-and the livelihood of 1.6 million Canadians," said Randy Williams, President and CEO of the Tourism Industry Association of Canada (TIAC). "And they don't even meet the government's own spending test in terms of effectiveness, results and value for money."

That is because measures to support tourism are an investment, not an expense, he noted, pointing out that they pay off exponentially in terms of increased tax revenues. Tourism-generated tax revenues total an estimated $15.3 billion a year, including a federal share of $7.7 billion.

Elimination of the Visitor Rebate Program, under which international business travellers and tourists are reimbursed for the GST and HST they pay on eligible goods and short-term accommodations, is the biggest cause for concern. The government tabled a notice of ways and means motion proposing amendments to the Excise Tax Act that would eliminate the $78.8 million program effective April 1, 2007.

Established in response to lobbying by TIAC and other industry stakeholders, the Visitor Rebate Program strengthens Canada's competitiveness as a visitor-friendly nation and promotes spending by visitors-spending that supports Canadian jobs and tax revenues. Canadian duty-free stores located at the Canada-United States land border, which have the right to provide on-the-spot cash rebates to departing visitors, thus encouraging them to spend the rebates in Canada, will be hit especially hard by the program's cancellation.

All other major destinations have visitor rebate programs and, given the increasingly competitive global environment, many are expanding the list of eligible goods and services and making it easier for travellers to access them.

" The elimination of the Visitor Rebate Program reflects a total failure on the part of the federal government to recognize today's economic realities affecting Canadian tourism and Canada's competitiveness as a destination," Mr. Williams said.

He was also critical of the lack of consultation preceding the announcement. "The secrecy surrounding the government's decision to eliminate the Visitor Rebate Program makes a laughingstock of the Parliamentary committee process," he pointed out. Indeed, the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance launched its prebudget consultation hearings just last week; TIAC testified before the committee on September 19.

Also alarming is the clawback of $5.6 million in unused funding from the Canadian Tourism Commission's relocation from Ottawa to Vancouver.

TIAC, which has been leading industry calls for more funding of Canada's grossly underfunded national tourism marketing agency, says these funds should be converted to marketing dollars instead. In fact, when the government set aside money for the move, it promised that the Canadian Tourism Commission could spend any remaining sums on implementing the new Canada brand. The agency has accordingly allocated the money to marketing priorities.

The Canadian Tourism Commission actually needs an extra $100 million a year-an amount that would generate matching private-sector investments-just so Canada can keep up with the competition.

Other announced program cuts that will negatively affect the Canadian tourism industry include a $4.6 million reduction in the Museums Assistance Program, the accelerated windup of the Parks Canada Agency's Commercial Heritage Property Incentive Fund ($2.9 million), and elimination of $2.9 million of non-committed funds for organizations that include Canada's regional economic development agencies.

" By taking the tourism industry for granted, the government is shooting itself in the foot, because tourism tax dollars support a range of public priorities," said Mr. Williams. "And the government can't exactly plead poverty in this instance," he said, noting that Ottawa simultaneously announced a $13.2 billion budgetary surplus.

The Tourism Industry Association of Canada is the national private-sector advocate for Canada's $62.7 billion tourism industry. It performs a unique and pivotal role in ensuring the Canadian business and policy environment works for tourism, by communicating its importance to Canadians, advocating positive measures, and lobbying government for action.

Source: TIAC Press Release: September 26, 2006

U.S. delays passport requirement

WASHINGTON - Canada has scored a potentially significant victory in its efforts to delay new U.S. travel rules that threaten major disruptions in tourism and cross-border commerce.

Negotiators from the House of Representatives and Senate late Monday agreed to delay, until June 1, 2009, a Bush administration requirement for all Canadian travellers to carry a passport or alternative security-enhanced identification document when entering the United States across land borders.

The proposed delay is included in a $34.8 billion US homeland security appropriations bill that is now headed for a final vote before the House of Representatives and Senate adjourns for the fall, likely later this week.

The legislation would then go to President George Bush for his signature.

Canadian officials said the agreement by the House and Senate was a breakthrough because, until now, only the U.S. Senate had favoured a delay in the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper has been pressing the White House and Congress for a delay in implementing the passport rule, arguing it would devastate border communities and cause headaches for Canada-U.S. trade.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, during a recent visit to Canada, has re-assured Canadians that the U.S. will accept a travel document other than a passport. But the State Department and Homeland Security have not provided Canada with any details on what security feature the new document would require, and Harper has said he is reluctant to introduce a new travel card.

Currently, Canadians entering the U.S. must prove their identity and citizenship, frequently by producing just their birth certificate and driver's license.

In order to meet the U.S. demands, some Canadian officials have proposed the creation of high tech driver's licence with enhanced security features and biometrics.

Source: Sheldon Alberts, CanWest News Service
Published: Tuesday, September 26, 2006

How is Travel Booked?

Travel research and strategy firm PhoCusWright Inc. found that almost 40 percent of all types of travel purchased in Europe will be booked online by the end of 2008.

The findings are part of a major study conducted by PhoCusWright across five major European markets in summer 2006. The PhoCusWright study revealed that transaction volume will more than double the proportion of 2005, according to preliminary findings to be presented at The PhoCusWright Travel Conference, 25-27 September 2006, Hôtel Le Plaza, Brussels, Belgium.

Over the next three years, online corporate bookings will grow at twice the rate of online leisure/unmanaged business travel. By 2008, one out of every five euros of corporate travel spent will be transacted online, up from one out of every 20 in 2005. Nevertheless, the percentage of leisure/unmanaged business travel booked online is and will continue to be significantly greater than that of managed corporate travel.

For travel, tourism and hospitality suppliers, sellers and marketers, these findings are significant as the online transaction marketplace begins to match traditional marketplace activity in size. Strategic and infrastructure implications for thousands of companies along the travel industry value chain across European markets are significant as the industry prepares for this powerful, customer-driven change.

Other findings in the study will be shared with attendees at the Brussels conference. A research brief titled Online Travel in Europe: Key Findings will be presented at the event; it summarizes data on the European online travel market -- suppliers and intermediaries -- as a percent of the total travel market and growth rate by country. PhoCusWright analysts will also debut newly released research findings on business imperatives that are essential for planning and budgeting for next year and beyond.

Source: Duesseldorf, Germany and Sherman, Conn., USA, September 19, 2006