Special to the Times Chronicle
As a resort town tourism is a major revenue generator for the Town of Osoyoos, and while other parts of the province have been heavily impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, this region has continued to thrive.
Some of the biggest factors for Osoyoos’ continuing success is its proximity to a key feeder market — the Lower Mainland — its reputation as being a small, friendly and safe community, and, of course, the practically guaranteed great weather, food and wine.
Just by looking at the volume of visitors coming during the summer months, it is easy to see that there is a booming tourism economy in Osoyoos, however, it is not evidently clear how big of an impact the industry makes. In order to find quantifiable data, Destination Osoyoos commissioned Larose Research & Strategy back in June 2021 to undertake a comprehensive and independent evaluation of the size, composition and characteristics of the tourism industry in the region.
The study found that there were an estimated 301,000 visitors that came to Osoyoos in 2020, the first year of the pandemic. These visitors spent an estimated $174 million in the community, mostly on accommodations, leisure activities, food and beverage. The data suggests that these expenditures resulted in an estimated total economic impact of $264 million.
“A study like this has never been done in the history of our town,” says Destination Osoyoos Executive Director, Kelley Glazer. “This information not only shows us where we are in relation to the rest of the province but helps us plan and make important tourism decisions as we continue to grow as a destination.”
That visitor number has only continued to grow since COVID-19 restrictions have been dropped in British Columbia with the majority of hotels reporting to Destination Osoyoos that they were at full capacity during the 2022 summer months.
The study conducted by Larose showed that Osoyoos is more of a long-stay destination compared to other resort towns across the province. With over one-quarter of the visitors to Osoyoos staying five nights or more, the data indicates that the average length of stay in the region is double that of other communities in British Columbia.
In 2020, the longer visits led to higher expenditures than other resort towns as well, translating to over $41 million in tax revenue.
One of the many things working in Osoyoos’ favour when it comes to visitors choosing it as a destination is its Indigenous cultural experiences. Increasing amounts of travellers are making travel decisions around Indigenous experiences, which has helped propel Osoyoos to the forefront of people’s minds.
Although some visitors have indicated they would like to see the current experiences expanded, those who visited the Nk’Mip Desert Cultural Centre or experienced one of the activities or accommodations available from the Osoyoos Indian Band are much more likely to recommend Osoyoos as a travel destination to others, according to Larose.
Tourism in Osoyoos and the economic impact it has expands beyond the visitors as well. Larose found that in 2020, tourism directly employed over 650 people in Osoyoos. This accounts for just over one-third of the employment in the sector, with the largest area of employment falling under accommodation. Larose says this number doesn’t include indirect employment either in areas such as finance, construction and real estate.
“The tourism industry continues to grow in our town at an unprecedented pace, bringing value to the local economy through job creation and visitor expenditure,” said Glazer. “We are looking forward to the future opportunities that tourism will provide as the industry in Osoyoos evolves in the spring and autumn months.”
This article was submitted by Graham Cox from Destination Osoyoos.
