Tourism in Alberta 2012 A Summary of 2012 Visitor Numbers and Characteristics June 2014
Introduction Whether to see their friends and relatives, for business, or for pleasure, 33.1 million total visits were made in 2012 to destinations in Alberta by residents of Alberta, other parts of Canada, the United States and overseas countries. To better understand the volume and characteristics of these visitors, Alberta Tourism, Parks and Recreation has prepared a special analyses of the 2012 Travel Survey of Residents of Canada (TSRC) and the 2012 International Travel Survey (ITS), which are both conducted by Statistics Canada. These consumer surveys provide tourism information for travel in Alberta by Canadians and trips to the province made by U.S. and overseas visitors. Data in this publication includes same-day and overnight trips for Albertans and residents from other parts of Canada, and overnight trips only for U.S. and overseas visitors. This summary highlights key findings only. For more information on tourism in Alberta, please contact Alberta Tourism, Parks and Recreation or visit www.tpr.alberta.ca. Who Travels in Alberta? All trips: More visits in Alberta are made by residents of Alberta than by other Canadians, U.S. and overseas visitors. Of the 33.1 million total visits in the province, 28.3 million (85.5%) were by Albertans. Another 3.3 million (10.0%) were by residents of other parts of Canada. The remaining 1.5 million visits (4.5%) came from the U.S. (2.5%) and overseas (2.0%). Alberta 85.5% Origin of Visits in Alberta in 2012 (N = 33.1 Million Person-Visits) Overseas USA 2.0% 2.5% Other Canada 10.0% Albertans living in the Calgary and area tourism region travelled more than any other segment of the province s population with 24% of all the visits in Alberta in 2012. Residents of the Alberta central tourism region followed with 21% and residents of the Edmonton and area tourism region accounted for 19%. Residents of the Alberta south tourism region accounted for 14% of all the visits in the province, followed by residents of the Alberta north tourism region with 6% and residents of the Canadian Rockies tourism region with 2%. Residents of British Columbia accounted for 4% and residents of Saskatchewan accounted for 3% of all the visits in the province. Overnight trips: Approximately 41% of all visits in the province included at least one overnight stop, yielding 13.5 million overnight visits in 2012. Approximately 33% of all visits in the province by Albertans included spending one or more nights away from home (9.2 million). Residents of the Edmonton and area tourism region accounted for just under one-fifth (19%) of all overnight travel in the province in 2012. Residents of the Calgary and area tourism region followed closely behind with 17%, then residents of the Alberta central tourism region with 15%, the Alberta south tourism region with 9%, the Alberta north tourism region with 7%, and the Canadian Rockies tourism region with 1%. Residents of British Columbia accounted for 9%, residents of Saskatchewan 6%, and residents of Ontario 3%. 2
Who Travels in Alberta? Major inbound overnight markets: Key sources of overnight inbound travel to Alberta include neighbouring provinces, northwestern U.S., and major European and Asian markets. (In Rank Order) Key Inbound Markets - 2012 Overnight Person-Visits British Columbia 1,175,000 Saskatchewan 823,000 Ontario 422,000 Manitoba 212,000 United Kingdom 131,000 Texas 106,000 Quebec 87,000 California 90,000 Germany 68,000 China (Mainland) 59,000 Washington 56,000 Montana 50,000 Japan 47,000 Australia 46,000 The Netherlands 34,000 British Columbia is a substantive source of inbound overnight travel to Alberta (1,175,000), followed by Saskatchewan (823,000), Ontario (422,000) and Manitoba (212,000). With 131,000 overnight visits, the United Kingdom generated more overnight travel in Alberta in 2012 than any American state. Major American states included Texas (106,000), California (90,000) and Washington (56,000). Overnight visits in 2012 from Japan increased slightly to 47,000 compared to 2011 (46,000). However, the Asia/Pacific segment saw a large increase of approximately 9.9% in 2012 (278,000) compared to overnight visits in 2011 (252,000). Main Purpose of Overnight Travel Overnight visits in Alberta totalled 13.5 million in 2012. Across all markets, the visiting friends and relatives (VFR) segment represented 43% of all overnight travel in the province (5.78 million). Alberta Other Canada Overseas Main Purpose of Overnight Travel in 2012 (Overnight Person-Visits in '000s) USA Total 818 3,947 3,768 659 553 1,419 639 196 264 186 303 64 84 226 332 34 1,719 5,778 5,042 953 Business Pleasure VFR Other The overnight pleasure travel segment accounted for 37% (5.04 million), business travel accounted for 13% of all overnight trips in the province and 7% were for other purposes. Travelling to Alberta for the main purpose of pleasure accounted for 37% of American visitors and just under one-half for the overseas visitors (49%). Visiting friends and relatives accounted for 23% of overnight travel by U.S. visitors and 33% of overseas visitors. Business accounted for 9% of overnight travel by Albertans and 32% of overnight travel by visitors from the United States. 3
Accommodation in Alberta Over the course of 2012, visitors spent approximately 46.10 million nights in Alberta. Thirty per cent of these nights (13.78 million) were spent in the province s hotels, motels, resorts, cottages, bed and breakfast establishments, and other commercial roofed properties. A further eleven per cent were spent in campgrounds and trailer parks in the province (5.25 million). Over one-half (54%) of all nights spent in Alberta were spent in the homes of friends and relatives, private cottages and other non-commercial accommodations (25.03 million). Five per cent were spent in other accommodations. Accommodation in Alberta in 2012 (Person-Nights in '000s) 5,519 4,080 12,182-4,315 467 7,581 1 1,955 205 1,359 554 1,989 500 3,912 1,478 13,778 5,252 25,034 2,033 Hotels,Motels, Resorts Camping/Trailer Parks Private Homes/Cottages Other Albertans spent approximately 12.18 million nights in the homes or cottages of their friends and relatives. They also spent 5.52 million nights in the province s hotels, motels and other commercial roofed properties. Forty per cent of all nights spent in commercial properties are by Albertans. Albertans accounted for 78% of all camping nights spent in the province. Average Length of Stay for Overnight Visitors The average length of stay for all overnight visits to Alberta is 3.4 nights. Although Albertans account for the greatest number of overnight visits, they have the shortest average length of stay at 2.4 nights. The longest average length of stay belongs to the overseas market, with 11.7 nights on average for each visit. This is not surprising due to the distance that overseas visitors are required to travel to get to Alberta. Visitors from Ontario have the next longest average length of stay at 5.1 nights, followed by visitors from the United States at 5.0 nights. Visitors from British Columbia stay on average, 4.1 nights and visitors from Saskatchewan stay on average, 3.3 nights in Alberta. Average Length of Stay in Alberta 2012 All Overnight Visits 3.4 Canada 2.9 Alberta 2.4 B.C. 4.1 Saskatchewan 3.3 Ontario 5.1 United States 5.0 Overseas 11.7 4
Seasonality The summer months are more likely to generate travel in Alberta than the winter months. The lure of July through September is especially evident for American and overseas visitors, with close to one-half of all overnight visits (45% for the U.S. and 44% for overseas markets) taking place in this three month period. Approximately 73% of all overseas travel to Alberta is made during the six month period of April through September (Quarter 2 and Quarter 3). Calendar Quarter of Overnight Visits in Alberta - 2012 January - March (Quarter 1) April - June (Quarter 2) July - September (Quarter 3) October - December (Quarter 4) All Overnight 19% 23% 34% 24% By Market Canada 19% 22% 33% 26% Alberta 20% 22% 32% 26% B.C. 16% 21% 32% 31% Saskatchewan 23% 19% 34% 24% Ontario 20% 20% 41% 19% USA 14% 26% 45% 15% Overseas 10% 29% 44% 17% Visitors from Alberta and Canada as a whole tend to visit the province more in the third quarter (33%) and the fourth quarter (26%) with fifty-nine per cent of their overnight visits occurring in these two quarters. Fifty-eight per cent of the visitors from Saskatchewan come to the province during the third and fourth quarters. Thirty-two per cent of all visitors from British Columbia come during the third quarter and 31% come during the fourth quarter. Forty-one per cent of visitors from Ontario visit during the third quarter. Overnight visitors from the United States and overseas concentrate their visits to Alberta during the third quarter (July, August and September) at 45% and 44%, respectively. By way of contrast, only 14% of U.S. and 10% of overseas visitors come to Alberta during the first quarter (January, February and March), which is the smallest proportion of all visitor origins. U.S. and overseas visitors also have the smallest proportion of visits to Alberta during the fourth quarter (October, November and December) at 15% and 17%, respectively. 5
Overnight Tourism in Alberta s Regions Major urban areas are magnets for overnight travel in Alberta. Over the course of 2012, just under one-third (30%) of all nights spent in the province were spent in the Calgary and area tourism region. The Edmonton and area tourism region (18%), Alberta central tourism region (17%), and the Canadian Rockies tourism region (15%) were each responsible for approximately one-fifth of the nights spent by visitors in the province. Nights Spent in Alberta by Tourism Region in 2012 N= 46.10 Million Person-Nights Alberta North Alberta Central Edmonton & Area Canadian Rockies Calgary & Area Alberta South Region Unspecified 0.52 3.41 5.14 6.94 7.69 8.46 13.94 Also, 11% of all nights were spent in the Alberta south tourism region and 7% of all nights were spent in Alberta north tourism region. Approximately 1% of all nights spent in Alberta were in an unspecified region. Combined, the Canadian Rockies tourism region, the Calgary and area tourism region, and the Edmonton and area tourism region account for 64% of all nights spent in Alberta. The Alberta north tourism region, the Alberta central tourism region and the Alberta south tourism region account for 35% of all nights spent in Alberta, with an approximately 1% being unspecified. The Calgary and area tourism region is the most widely visited tourism region in Alberta for overseas visitors (40%), residents of Canada (26%), and visitors from the United States (43%). The Canadian Rockies tourism region is the second largest tourism region for overseas visitors (28%) and visitors from the United States (24%), while the Alberta central tourism region is the second largest tourism region for residents from Canada (21%). ISBN: 978-1-4601-1726-2 ISSN: 2292-9916 Person-Nights in Alberta s Regions - By Market (All Purposes) Person-Nights Canada 34.15 million USA 4.07 million Alberta North 8% 5% Alberta Central 21% 6% Edmonton and Area 19% 10% Canadian Rockies 11% 24% Calgary and Area 26% 43% Alberta South 13% 10% Region Unspecified 2% 1% For more information, please contact: research.innovation@gov.ab.ca Alberta Tourism, Parks and Recreation Overseas 7.88 million 5% 4% 19% 28% 40% 3% 0% 6