Tourism industry booms as Manitobans begin travelling again
Manitoba's tourism industry is booming as the pandemic ends and people start to travel more, but we're also seeing more Manitobans leaving our province on vacation as the "return to normal" continues.
The staycation trend -- popularized during the pandemic -- seems to be staying. Judy McIver has been travelling all over Manitoba this summer, "We were at Blue Lake campground last week. We've been up to Birds Hill, out to Henasa campground. So we've done lots of camping this year."
Heading to a cabin near Gimli in a few weeks, Noel & Jordan Dyck are among many Manitobans exploring their own province.
"We just haven't had a chance to get away with all of my siblings so my mom thought it would be a good idea rent a cabin up there and bring at the kids with," said Jordan.
Also fuelling local tourism are the return of events like the Icelandic festival in Gimli and the Manitoba Stampede in Morris. Brian Wiebe, president of the Valley Agricultural Society, said the stampede was very popular. "I’ve been speaking with business owners all weekend, they have been swamped. The restaurants, the hotels. To the best of my knowledge, this has been decades since we’ve had every single hotel room in town booked solid."
But Manitobans aren't just sticking close to home. The Winnipeg Airports Authority (WAA) says many people are also travelling across the country.
More than 775,000 people travelled through the Winnipeg airport between April and June, according to the WAA. That's only 71 per cent of pre-pandemic numbers for the same period three years ago, but communications manager Michel Rosset says it is a 569 per cent increase over last year.
"We know a lot of people are travelling domestically, he said, "People are visiting those family and friends and places across the country where they might not have been able to visit in the last two and a half or three years."
The increase in domestic travel is also bringing tourists to Winnipeg. The out of towners -- like Meagan Levay who came from Alberta to visit family -- also bring with them a boost in business for hotels, restaurants and gas stations.
"We were at Lake Winnipeg yesterday," said Levay. "Eric has a sail boat so we enjoyed a nice day out there then we are just hanging out today and then go out for dinner later."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
How to avoid the trap of becoming 'house poor'
The journey to home ownership can be exciting, but personal finance columnist Christopher Liew warns about the trappings of becoming 'house poor' -- where an overwhelming portion of your income is devoured by housing costs. Liew offers some practical strategies to maintain better financial health while owning a home.
Toxic forever chemicals in drinking water: Is Canada doing enough?
As the United States sets its first national limits on toxic forever chemicals in drinking water, researchers say Canada is lagging when it comes to regulations.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Some customers steaming after McDonald's ends free hot drink sticker program
It took years for Vinnie Deluca to collect more than 400 cards worth of free McDonald's McCafe coffee, a collection that now has "zero value" after the company discontinued the program.
Biden scores endorsements from Kennedy family, looking to shore up support against Trump and RFK Jr.
U.S. President Joe Biden will accept endorsements from at least 15 members of the Kennedy political family during a campaign stop in Philadelphia on Thursday as he aims to undermine Donald Trump and marginalize the candidacy of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Where did the gold go? Crime expert weighs in on unfolding Pearson airport heist investigation
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.
When new leaders took over in ancient Maya, they didn't just bury the former royals. They burned their bodies in public
New archeological investigations in Guatemala reveal that the ancient Maya people had a ritual of burning royal human remains as a public display of political regime change.
Prince William returns to public duties after wife Kate's cancer revelation
Prince William will return to public duties on Thursday for the first time since his wife Kate revealed she was undergoing preventative chemotherapy for cancer.