Vancouver

Vancouver Tourism Master Plan

Vancouver's first ever Tourism Master Plan now has the blessing of Tourism Vancouver, the City of Vancouver and the Vancouver Economic Commission, and is ready for your perusal.

In the master plan document (click here), you'll also find a situational analysis of the key assets, constraints and opportunities facing Vancouver's tourism industry; the goals that were set at the start of the process; recommendations in eight areas of focus, from product development to transportation; and ideas for implementation of the plan.

Tourism Master Plan Background

The Vancouver Tourism Master Plan (TMP) follows the Rethink Vancouver visioning process conducted in 2011 which recommended seven actions be taken by Destination Vancouver, including the creation by Destination Vancouver and the City of Vancouver of a Tourism Master Plan. Furthermore, this TMP has been designed to build on the four key pillars of destination management identified by Rethink:

  • Marketing: Develop a unified tourism industry, allowing collaboration on marketing where appropriate with a focus on tourism customers.
  • Planning: Encourage a regional Tourism Master Plan with a focus on stakeholder interests.
  • Policy: Establish a forum to develop industry consensus with a focus on influencing policy makers.
  • Product: Build energy through product development with a focus on attracting investors.

The TMP is intended to close the gap between the demand side of the equation (Destination Vancouver / visitors and new markets) and the supply side (new products and services / tourism business owners / investors and policy makers at the City and other levels of government). The TMP is also intended to provide a consensus between the stakeholders who participate in decision making on tourism-related development for the City and advising investors / businesses on where they should be putting their energies. A broad range of input and opinions have been considered as part of this process with more than 180 one-on one stakeholder interviews conducted by Resonance Consultancy and participation of more than 2,000 Vancouver residents and business leaders via an online survey.

Based on this input, key issues and opportunities for potential products, amenities, programming and experiences broadly supported by both the tourism industry and Vancouver residents have been identified in areas such as transportation, visitor experience, events, product development, partnerships and alliances, tourism infrastructure, marketing of neighbourhoods, and public affairs and advocacy on tourism related policies and issues.

To view the Vancouver Tourism Master Plan presentation, from Destination Vancouver's AGM (June 13, 2013), please click here.

To view the final report of the Vancouver Tourism Master Plan, please click here.

The video below defines a Tourism Master Plan and explains how it can benefit a destination. In the video, Destination Vancouver's former President and CEO Rick Antonson and Resonance Consultancy's Richard Cutting-Miller each explain the purpose of a tourism master plan and its importance to the growth of tourism in the city.