Saint John Achieves Record Performance in 2016 Tourism Expenditures
SAINT JOHN – The city of Saint John has hit a record with last year’s tourism expenditures.
In 2016, total tourism expenditures in Saint John are forecasted to have increased by 6.4 percent to reach a new high of $252.4 million, according the Tourism Industry Performance 2016: City of Saint John, a report commissioned by MacKellar Cunningham & Associates Ltd to provide an overview of the performance of Saint John and an analysis of the region’s performance against its competitive set.
Last year, the city welcomed 5 per cent more visitors, bringing the total to 1.6 million visitors. Higher-spending overnight visitors to the city increased by 4.6 per cent to 726,000, the highest number of overnight visitors ever recorded by Saint John.
“We are pleased to see positive results for the industry across the Maritimes happening in 2016 and Saint John has some terrific momentum,” says Victoria Clarke, executive director of Discover Saint John, in a release. “Our city was able to make gains in both the main season and what has traditionally been known as the off-season.”
In terms of markets, U.S. and foreign visitors led gains, visitation increased by 12.6 per cent; room sales increased by 12.0 per cent and expenditures increased by 9.1 perc ent to $57.6 million. Performance was up 13.7 per cent in main season and by 7.8 per cent in the off-season.
Overnight visitation from the New Brunswick resident market increased by 3.1 per cent and room sales increased by 2.5 per cent. A very strong in-province day trip market helped raise expenditures in the city to $131.1 million, a 6.5 per cent increase over the previous year.
“Our sales and marketing teams are focused on selling the city as a year-round destination,” said Clarke. “And in the six years since Discover Saint John’s inception, our programs and campaigns have evolved and matured and we are now seeing traction and results across the board.”