Canada and tourism — страница 7

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"Themes are hot", she says. "And it's much easier to attach a theme to a buffet than to a single plate." She also points to the greater variety available at a buffet and its effect on social dynamics. Buffets allow party-goers to mingle throughout the room. Table service confines them to one table. Where's the money? Commercial operations vary in their commitment to catering; social caterers live by it; and non commercials seem to take care of their own people. These variations make direct analysis of profit margins hard to ascertain. But one conclusion is obvious: with 50 per cent of the commercial operators, 78 per cent of social caterers, and a 25 per cent of non-commercial operators making more than $10,000 per year, catering is alive and growing. The

future: Results show that respondents see healthy growth in every market for catering. The highest numbers in each category reflect the strength of each type of caterer. Non-commercials see potential in on-premises events, as do commercial caterers. Ginger Kramer agrees. "There simply aren't enough banquet facilities and special event sites," she says. The survey confirms Kramer's assertion that caterers who do both on and off-premises events will achieve the greatest business success. Tourism industry At the federal level tourism is the responsibility of the minister of state for small business and tourism through Tourism Canada in the Department of Regional Industrial Expansion. The promotion and development of tourism through a designated federal agency dates from

1934. The recognized national industry association is the Ottawa-based Tourism Industry Association of Canada (TIAC). It is an umbrella organization representing private sector companies, organizations, institutions and individuals engaged in tourism in Canada and working in partnership with provincial and territorial tourism-industry associations. TIAC has represented the Canadian tourism industry for 69 years and exists to lobby government, to communicate with industry, and to increase public awareness of the importance of tourism and the need for public support. Tourism dates back to the early history of Canada. Writings by the early explorers and traders contributed to the growing knowledge of the Canadian landscape, still the primary attraction of Canada's tourism industry

(see EXPLORATION AND TRAVEL LITERATURE). From the mid-18th to the early 19th century TOPOGRAPHIC PAINTERS recorded an idealized landscape, scenes that were often reproduced as engravings in travel books published in Europe. The CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY, through its rail and steamship services, its hotels and publicity campaigns, attracted affluent European and American tourists to Canada. Modern travel and the opportunity for mass travel came with the jet airplane. Business travel illustrates the degree of change: travel and related expenses are the third-largest expenditure of Canadian business, after payroll and data-processing expenditures. Canadian companies spent $3 billion in 1986. The Canadian tourism industry requires sophisticated marketing, delivering value and service.

Beginning in 1984 Canada experienced a turnaround following 10 years of decline during which its balance of payments deficit on the international travel account grew from $300 million to $2.2 billion. Nineteen eighty-six was an exceptional year: foreign visitors increased 18%. The primary reasons for this growth were EXPO 86 in Vancouver, a favourable exchange rate with the US, an aggressive federal government advertising campaign in the US and negative incidents in other parts of the world which discouraged N Americans from travelling overseas. The best potential new source for travellers to Canada is likely in the Pacific Rim countries. Arrivals from Japan and Hong Kong are expected to show an increase, continuing an upward trend that started in 1979. Australia remains stable.

The US continues to be Canada's primary source of visitors; they comprise over 85% of our tourism market. Traditional European markets, including the UK, France, W Germany and the Netherlands, are expected to produce moderate growth over the next few years. Contemporary Canadian tourist attractions are often the same as those extolled by early travel writers - the fjorded coast of BC, the majestic grandeur of the Canadian Rockies, the wide open spaces of the Prairies, the lakes, forests and rivers of central Canada, the Atlantic coast in its infinite variety of bays, coves, beaches and scenic vistas, the arctic environment and people, and, of course, such old favourites as NIAGARA FALLS. The works of humans have been added to these natural assets through the development of modern