Northern Manitoba Tourism Strategy Progress Report 2022-23
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Introduction LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT •
Manitoba encompasses Treaty 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 Territories and communities who are signatories to Treaties 6 and 10. Manitoba is located on the ancestral land of the Anishinaabeg, Anishininewuk, Dakota Oyate, Denesuline and Nehethowuk Nations and is the Homeland of the Red River Métis. Northern Manitoba includes lands that were and are the ancestral lands of the Inuit.
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Introduction MANITOBA’S NORTH •
Northern Manitoba encompasses vast stretches of pristine boreal forest, abundant freshwater lakes, tundra and coastal marine ecosystems. It is a premier international destination for unparalleled sport fishing, hunting and spectacular wildlife viewing opportunities. The region’s diverse Indigenous cultures inform and enrich the visitor experience.
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Introduction STRATEGY BACKGROUND •
The development and implementation of the Northern Manitoba Tourism Strategy is guided by a fourteen-member advisory committee (Appendix A) representing government agencies at the local, provincial and federal levels, Indigenous organizations and northern-based operators.
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Travel Manitoba works with Indigenous Tourism Manitoba (ITM), Communities Economic Development Fund (CEDF), Community Futures and local economic development agencies to promote and develop tourism in northern Manitoba.
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This progress report acknowledges significant progress made on delivering the strategy from April 2022 to March 2023 (2022-23).
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VISION Manitoba’s North is a must-visit, four season destination generating sustainable economic growth by delivering inspiring and authentic experiences in its unique urban, rural and wild settings.
MISSION Rebuild the Northern Manitoba tourism sector to achieve its economic potential through marketing, product development and community engagement.
TARGET Rebuild the northern tourism visitor economy to 2019 levels by 2024.
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STRATEGIC GOAL #1
Lead Brand & Market Positioning
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Accomplishments ALIGN MESSAGING AND MARKETING INITIATIVES WITH THE CANADA’S HEART IS CALLING BRAND •
Rolled out a comprehensive northern marketing plan across a variety of markets including consumer and hunting/fishing audiences and worked with travel media and travel trade to promote Manitoba’s North. These initiatives included: •
Marketing northern Manitoba across print, digital and social media platforms, as well as a dedicated landing page on Travel Manitoba website during seasonal campaigns.
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Printed 200,000 copies of the 2022 Road Trips Guide featuring northern experiences. The guide was distributed in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Northwestern Ontario.
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Accomplishments (cont.) ALIGN MESSAGING AND MARKETING INITIATIVES WITH THE CANADA’S HEART IS CALLING BRAND
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Distributed a total of 75,000 copies of two seasonal northern lures, featuring northern-specific experiences.
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Participated in various content features, including: • Partner participation in TripAdvisor itinerary, • Two sponsored articles in Canadian Geographic Magazine, • Featured road trip article in Avenue Calgary Magazine, and • Featured ads in the Winnipeg Free Press and rural Manitoban newspapers.
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Campaign Results ALIGN MESSAGING AND MARKETING INITIATIVES WITH THE CANADA’S HEART IS CALLING BRAND Campaign Results •
10.1 million impressions and 81,732 clicks to northern content in the Spring Summer campaign.
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10.1 million impressions and 159,089 clicks to northern content in the Fall Winter campaign.
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Travel Manitoba surveyed Manitobans to gauge the impact of the fall “Exploring hidden gems in Northern Manitoba” lure. Forty-five per cent of those who recall receiving the brochure indicated that they were motivated either a little or a lot to book a northern trip.
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Accomplishments (cont.) ALIGN MESSAGING AND MARKETING INITIATIVES WITH THE CANADA’S HEART IS CALLING BRAND
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Featured northern fishing experiences as part of the $1 million Prairie Angling Program in partnership with Destination Canada and Tourism Saskatchewan.
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Sponsored a media and trade FAM tour with the Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada in Churchill ahead of the 2023 International Indigenous Tourism Conference in Winnipeg.
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Received recognition in TIME magazine with Churchill being named one of the ‘World’s Greatest Places of 2023’. • Brooklyn-based journalist Nicholas DeRenzo nominated Churchill for the recognition after a visit in August 2022 with the support of Travel Manitoba and Frontiers North Adventures.
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Accomplishments DEVELOP PHOTO, VIDEO AND OTHER CONTENT ASSETS •
Communities Economic Development Fund (CEDF) installed eight digital information kiosks at key northern locations with support from PrairiesCan.
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Developed videos on Churchill, Wat’chee Lodge and Nanuk Operations, as well as three videos for the International Indigenous Tourism Conference featuring northern Indigenous content.
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Supported the Churchill Bear Smart website development to help operators keep tourists safe.
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Accomplishments MAINTAIN AND ENHANCE WEBSITE CONTENT •
Created customized landing pages on the consumer website for broader seasonal campaigns. The Manitoba North section received 37,303 pageviews.
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Launched a complete refresh of the Manitoba Hunt Fish website, including an itinerary builder featuring lodges and fishing destinations in northern Manitoba.
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Accomplishments MAXIMIZE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF EXISTING ONLINE APPS •
Partnered with the Churchill Ladies Club and Bandwango to build and launch the Explore Churchill Pass. The check-in style pass allows visitors to experience historic and cultural points-of-interest in and around the community with their mobile phone.
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Rebuilt and relaunched the Master Angler App with better compatibility for the latest mobile operating systems.
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Launched the Manitoba Explorer App in 2022, featuring dedicated northern trails. The app has over 8,000 subscribers to date (Oct 2023).
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Accomplishments SUPPORT LOCAL PLACE BRANDS •
Supported Flin Flon, The Pas/Opaskwayak Cree Nation, Thompson and Churchill with direct funding for signage and wayfinding, social media promotion, strategic planning and visitor services.
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Calm Air International and Communities Economic Development Fund (CEDF) partnered to create and promote four tour packages to northern destinations including The Pas/OCN, Flin Flon, Thompson and Churchill.
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Accomplishments PROMOTE NORTHERN LIGHTS PRODUCT •
Featured northern lights as a content pillar in the Fall Winter campaign, generating 33,620 page views for northern content.
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Featured northern lights in major outlets such as Flipboard, Foodism and Escapism magazines, Matador Network, Global Heroes and the Winnipeg Free Press.
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Sponsored an industry luncheon at Rendez-vous Canada 2022 in Toronto focusing on northern lights. Four Churchill operators attended and took meetings with travel trade agents throughout the three-day event.
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Facilitated a planning session in Churchill in November 2022 to discuss ways of building Churchill’s northern lights tourism into a true “third season”. Over 30 local operators and service providers attended.
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STRATEGIC GOAL #2
Build Community Leadership
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Accomplishments COMMUNICATE THE VALUE OF TOURISM •
Hosted a reception at the Kikiwak Inn in OCN in January 2023 to promote the value of tourism to local business leaders and members of the tourism industry with the Northern Tourism Advisory Committee. About 30 individuals participated in the reception, with some traveling from as far away as Flin Flon.
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Developed a Stakeholder Engagement Plan to target tourism industry members, governments, business leaders, sector associations and media. The plan will be implemented in 2023-24 and includes engagement with northern business leaders, governments and industry.
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Accomplishments COLLABORATE WITH PLACE BRANDS •
Supported Flin Flon, The Pas/OCN and Thompson as they developed marketing plans for their communities.
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Funded and supported the development of a tourism strategy for Thompson.
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Accomplishments MEASURE NORTHERN ATTITUDES TOWARD TOURISM
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Conducted a survey among Northern Manitobans on their perceptions of tourism in their communities through Probe Research.
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Sixty per cent of Northern Manitobans strongly believe tourism is vital for the economic growth of the region, significantly higher than Manitobans as a whole.
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STRATEGIC GOAL #3
Advance Destination Management Indigenous Tourism Strategy » Progress Report
Photo: Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada
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Accomplishments ADAPT TO AND MEET TRAVELLER EXPECTATIONS
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Developed plans for a new industry hub that will be the main resource for Manitoba’s tourism businesses and communities.
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Set to launch spring 2024, this resource hub will include information, free business support, advice and share networking and training opportunities that focus on the development of new or existing tourism businesses and destinations.
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Accomplishments DEVELOP AN INVENTORY OF NORTHERN MANITOBA TOURISM PRODUCTS
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Provided $246,000 in funding support through Tourism Innovation and Recovery Fund (TIRF) for the enhancement or creation of new northern tourism experiences. Funding recipients included: • • • • • •
Gangler’s Sub Arctic Polar Bears International Churchill Northern Studies Centre Pickled Loon Kitchen Watchi Bay Bed and Breakfast Kikiwak Inn
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Wekusko Falls Lodge Kenanow Lodge Bakers Narrows Lodge Discover Churchill Paint Lake Lodge
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Accomplishments (cont.) DEVELOP AN INVENTORY OF NORTHERN MANITOBA TOURISM PRODUCTS
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Travel Manitoba participated in the adjudication of proposals received by Communities Economic Development Fund (CEDF)/Look North and through the Canada Tourism Relief Fund (TRF). Successful applicants included: • • • • •
Uptown Emporium Blueberry Jam Festival Pickled Loon Kitchen NorVA Centre Paskwayak Business Development Corporation
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Round the Bend Farm Mall of the Arts Aurora Sacred Healing Paint Lake Lodge Opasquia Trails
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Accomplishments (cont.) DEVELOP AN INVENTORY OF NORTHERN MANITOBA TOURISM PRODUCTS •
Worked on compiling an inventory of Indigenous marketready northern experience providers with Indigenous Tourism Manitoba. Several Churchill operators have achieved export-ready status.
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Piloted an automated tourism-readiness assessment tool in 2022-23 with 176 northern tourism businesses participating. Analysis identified 133 market- and exportready businesses, the majority being lodges and outfitters, accommodation providers or adventure and wildlife viewing operations.
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Tourism Readiness in Northern Manitoba
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Accomplishments DEVELOP WINTER TOURISM •
Completed a jurisdictional scan of snowmobile tourism for select Canadian and northern U.S. locations. This review identified the lack of machine rentals and insurance issues as significant barriers to experience development.
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Provided financial support to a facilitated strategy session in Snow Lake to review and build upon the successes of the 2018 Northern Manitoba Snowmobile Tourism Strategic Plan with Community Futures North Central Development. The updated strategic plan will guide the future efforts of the SledMB53 working group.
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Accomplishments (cont.) DEVELOP WINTER TOURISM •
Through PrairiesCan, funded three northern operators from the Winter Tourism Development Fund (WTDF) to create winter trails and four-season infrastructure.
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The funding recipients were: • Frontiers North Adventures • Opasquia Trails Association • Tonapah Lodge
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Accomplishments DEVELOP A COMPETITIVE ASSESSMENT AND GAP ANALYSIS •
Completed a Destination Assessment study identifying four transformational opportunities, all of which have implications for northern tourism development: northern lights, ice fishing, trails, and human rights and reconciliation.
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Updated Destination Area Assessments for northwest Manitoba (The Pas/OCN, Flin Flon, Cranberry Portage and Snow Lake) and Thompson.
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Accomplishments (cont.) DEVELOP TRAINING PROGRAMS TO ADDRESS CHALLENGES •
Supported the SledMB53 Sled Friendly certification program administered by the Manitoba Tourism Education Council (MTEC) in partnership with Community Economic Development Fund and Snoman.
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Offered several training initiatives with participation by northern operators and organizations, including: • Co-hosted the Manitoba Tourism Conference with Tourism Winnipeg in September 2022. • Held the Arts and Culture Summit, including a panel discussion featuring the Flin Flon Arts Council in January 2023.
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Accomplishments (cont.) DEVELOP TRAINING PROGRAMS TO ADDRESS CHALLENGES •
Held customized workshops on effective grant writing for businesses, communities and non-profits operating in the tourism sector with Decipher Services Inc. • Two northern operators participated.
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Hosted experiential tourism development workshops designed to inspire new products and services or to refine existing experiences. • Five northern tourism businesses participated.
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Hosted a multi-day session by the International Coalition for Sites of Conscience in March 2023. • One northern operator participated in this training. Photo: Robert Postma / Churchill Wild
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Accomplishments (cont.) DEVELOP TRAINING PROGRAMS TO ADDRESS CHALLENGES •
Indigenous Tourism Manitoba and Tansi Solutions, a product development consultant, supported the development of 15 Indigenous tourism operators in Manitoba, six of which are located in the north. One northern business moved from market-ready to export-ready. Two additional businesses are in the process of addressing export readiness requirements and are expected to meet this criteria soon.
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Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada (ITAC) offered training throughout the International Indigenous Tourism Conference held in Winnipeg from March 8-10. Manitoba’s northern Indigenous tourism sector was well represented at the event due to travel subsidies offered to industry with support from the Tourism Relief Fund.
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Identified that Churchill has the largest concentration of Indigenous market-ready and export-ready businesses in Manitoba, including several new businesses: Subarctic Explorers and Dene Routes.
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Accomplishments ASSESS AIR, ROAD AND RAIL SIGNAGE AND WAYFINDING.
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Identified significant gaps in air, road, rail, cellular coverage and roadside services in the preparation of updated destination area assessments for Manitoba’s North.
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Conclusion NORTHERN MANITOBA TOURISM STRATEGY PROGRESS REPORT • The Northern Manitoba Tourism Advisory Committee and Travel Manitoba have made considerable progress in advancing the Northern Manitoba Tourism Strategy. • Employment and GDP have started to rebound from the devastating effects of the pandemic, and the completed Destination Area Assessments have identified several opportunities for growth for northern communities. • The strategy will continue to be regularly reviewed and adapted as circumstances warrant and as progress is made towards achieving the vision of northern Manitoba as must-visit four season destination generating sustainable economic growth.
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Appendix A Northern Manitoba Tourism Advisory Committee
• The Northern Manitoba Tourism Strategy is supported by the Northern Manitoba Tourism Advisory Committee Members, including: • • • • • •
Gary Bell (Chair), President of Calm Air International Becky Cianflone, Community Futures Greenstone Joe Cote, Community Futures Cedar Lake Holly Courchene, Indigenous Tourism Manitoba Laura Finlay, Community Futures North Central Development Kelly Heape, Watchi Bay Bed & Breakfast
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Stephanie Johnson, Communities Economic Development Fund Tim Johnston, Community Futures North Central Development Lori Lathlin, Opaskwayak Cree Nation Shyanna Lynxleg, Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak Chris Maxfield, Indigeno Travel Fred Muskego, Molson Lake Lodge Kathy Ruiter, Paint Lake Lodge Colleen Smook, Mayor, City of Thompson
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