COCHRANE— Celebrating National Tourism Week, the Cochrane Tourism Association is honouring the unique attractions that make the Town special.
National Tourism Week runs May 24 to 30 and is the perfect opportunity to praise an industry that has been hit especially hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, said Cochrane Tourism Association executive director Jo-Anne Oucharek.
“Our vision is to inspire the world to visit Cochrane— It’s a beautiful place,” Oucharek said. “We have a really big draw for those people who are looking for something that’s a little outside the norm from the national parks.”
Cochrane is a unique destination she said because the Town offers many tourist attractions that celebrate the ranching history of the prairies while hosting a number of special events like the Cochrane Rodeo and Light Up.
Tourism is the fifth-largest sector in Canada and challenging because COVID-19 has affected the industry’s ability to thrive.
The industry was one of the first sectors hit by COVID-19 and will be one of the hardest hit, Oucharek said.
In 2018 the tourism sector brought in $8.9 billion to Alberta.
The goal before the COVID-19 pandemic was to increase tourism in the province to $20 billion annually over the course of five years, Oucharek said. They are now looking at a $4.5 billion dollar loss this year alone.
It will take time to build back up and the goal now is to get back to $8.9 billion.
Services will be different this year because the visitor economy has been transformed by the pandemic.
National Tourism week serves a chance to support local businesses while highlighting how they have pivoted to hopefully survive the COVID-19 pandemic, she said.
To celebrate the event the Cochrane Tourism Association has launched three new videos featuring tourism staples MacKay's Ice Cream, the Yamnuska Wolfdog Sanctuary and Studio West Bronze Foundry and U Art Gallery.
The videos are part of the association's continued work to promote and celebrate the tourist destinations in Cochrane.
The non-profit association is the destination marketing organization for Cochrane and area and works to promote Cochrane as a destination through partnerships with the Chamber of Commerce, the Town and local businesses and event organizers, Oucharek said. She added the organization has developed a tourism strategy they work on in tandem with the Town of Cochrane Business Development.
As COVID-19 public health measures are lifted and it becomes more feasible for local travel Oucharek said she expects that people will be taking more road trips instead of flying as a trend.
“People are looking for something that is close to home,” Oucharek said.
