(CNW) Fifty percent of Canadians are planning to take a
vacation this summer and expect to spend an average of about
$2,500 on their getaway, according to Scotiabank's second
annual study on Canadians' travel intentions.
The good news for the Canadian tourism industry is that half of travellers (50 percent) indicated that they would be travelling within our borders.
"Staying closer to home should be good news for Canada's travel
& tourism industry which has had to deal with the dampening
impact of a strong Canadian dollar on foreign travellers,
rising gasoline costs and border issues with our American
neighbours," says Adrienne Warren, senior economist,
Scotiabank.
The study indicates that many Canadians are choosing to travel
domestically. Ontario and Quebec (12 percent), British Columbia
(10 percent) and Alberta (6 percent) remain the biggest draws
for Canadians.
In fact, the study found that travellers in Quebec (38 percent), British Columbia (27 percent) and Ontario (22 percent) are most likely to vacation within their home province.
For those considering foreign destinations, 13 percent say
they are planning to visit the United States and seven percent
say they are planning a European (including the United Kingdom)
vacation.
According to Warren, job gains in Canada have bolstered
household income and are helping support travel spending. Just
five months into 2006, the economy has added 220,000 new jobs,
which almost matches the average annual gain over the past
three years.
"More Canadians are working today than ever before, with the
concurrent booms in resource development, construction activity
and private and public sector services contributing to the
increasing opportunities for employment across the country,"
says Warren.
In terms of spending, the study found an increase in the
area of entertainment and sightseeing ($460), up $112 from
2005.
The study also indicated a modest increase in spending on
transportation ($810), up $74 and meals and beverages ($453),
up $41 over last year. Interestingly, the study found that on
average travellers are planning to spend $185 less on
accommodations ($529) this year.
Decima Research conducted this national omnibus telephone poll
(teleVox) on behalf of Scotiabank between April 26 and May 17,
2006. Overall results are based on a randomly selected sample
of 3,026 English and French-speaking Canadian adults aged 18
years and older. A random probability sample of this size
delivers results with a statistical margin of error of (+/-)
1.8 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
