“MAKING TORONTO THE BEST IT CAN BE”December 2007

Tourist Destination

ProjectResearch Summary and Recommendations

Premier-RankedC I T Y O F T O R O N T O

MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONSTourism

Table of Contents

This project was facilitated in partnership with the City of Toronto, Employment Ontario and funded in part bythe Government of Canada and the Ontario Ministry of Tourism

ABOUTTHIS REPORT

3EXECUTIVESUMMARY

4BACKGROUND

9STARTING FROMA POSITION OFSTRENGTH

11

PRODUCT

12PERFORMANCE

17SUSTAINABILITY

20OBSERVATIONS

25

RECOMMENDATIONS

28NEXT STEPS

35

APPENDIX 1: DETAILED GAPAND OPPORTUNITYASSESSMENT

36APPENDIX 2: PRTDSTEERING COMMITTEE

50

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This report has been written based on the findings fromToronto’s extensive Premier-rankedTourist Destination(PRTD) process which began in January and concluded inDecember 2007.The destination audit, a thorough inventoryof Toronto’s tourism assets, was completed by a twelveperson audit team over a period of 11 months.The detailedfindings from the audit are contained in a companion reportentitledToronto’s Premier–rankedTourist Destination Project– Research Report, dated December 2007.A comprehensivebibliography is contained in this report that details thesources of information that were used to complete thePRTD process and write the Summary Report.We have notincluded all sources of information in Summary Report, anydefinitive statements or statistical data can be supported byextensive data included in the full Research Report.

The consultant to the process and author of this report isfamiliar with the PRTD process having completed it in 14 otherOntario destinations over the past 36 months. However, inundertaking the assignment in Toronto it was necessary thathe supplement the process with additional consultation anddialogue in order to gain a thorough understanding ofToronto’s tourism offering and deal with the enormity ofthe opportunities and issues facing its tourism industry.

As a result, the report, while attempting to remain true tothe process, includes information derived from extensiveindustry dialogue. Small group consultation and one on onedialogue withToronto’s tourism industry leaders took placeand proved valuable in gaining full understanding of theopportunities and challenges that exist.This additionaldialogue and research was required in order to ensure theprocess delivered the results Toronto’s tourism industrywas looking for.

The observations and conclusions reached along with thespecific recommendations and actions have been validatedalong the way by industry stakeholders at a number of levels.

The City of Toronto,Tourism Section, was responsible forthe implementation of the process with ultimate accounta-bility toToronto’s Tourism Leadership Group, Chaired bythe Assistant Deputy Minister Tourism, for the Province ofOntario.This group heard the preliminary findings in apresentation made on December 7th.All members of theLeadership Group were present and unanimously endorsedthe findings of the PRTD project. It will be the responsibilityof the Leadership Group to accept the final report andput in place a process for implementation of the statedrecommendations.

Finally, the Co Chairs of the PRTD Project Steering Com-mittee, John Houghton,Vice President at MetroTorontoConvention Centre and Gino Giancola, SeniorVice Presidentat TourismToronto, as well as the lead staff at the City ofToronto, Judy Morgan and Ned Sabev all played a significantpart in both the execution of the process and the outcomescontained in this report.Their commitment and contributionto the process was significant, they added value along theway and provided leadership and guidance.

The underlying theme of theToronto’s PRTD project is“MakingToronto the Best It Can Be.” As a result of under-standing the opportunities presented, and successfullyimplementing the identified strategies Toronto will becomea desirable place for not only those who visit but also forthose who live here, those who work here and those whohave come to call Toronto home.

ABOUT THIS

REPORT

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What is the Premier-rankedTourist Destination Framework?

The PRTD was developed by the Ontario Ministry ofTourism to provide a means for tourism destinations todefine their competitive position within the tourism market-place. Premier-ranked is not a formal tourism designationbut, rather an internal tourism goal to help destinationsbecome “better than the rest” by improving their viabilityand competitiveness as a place people want to visit.

THE THREE DIMENSIONSOF TOURISM ASSESSMENT

1. The Product DimensionThis dimension looks at the features that enable adestination to provide a high quality tourist experience.This is validated through examining the following:

• Distinctive Core attractors

• Quality and Critical Mass

• Satisfaction andValue

• Accessibility

• An Accommodations Base.

2. The Performance DimensionThe performance dimension looks at the destination’ssuccess in providing a quality tourist experience.This isvalidated by examining:

• Visitation

• Occupancy andYield

• Critical Acclaim.

3. The Sustainability DimensionSustainable tourism is vital to any destination. In thisdimension, the process looks at the destination’sability to thrive from tourism into the future and itssustainability through:

• Destination Marketing

• Product Renewal

• Managing within Carrying Capacities.

The process involves several critical steps along with aserious commitment of time by industry partners.Thisinvestment of time and energy is rewarded with specificinsights and direction.

THE PRTD PROCESS

The PRTD process was designed to guide the industrythrough several key steps including database design andcollection, evaluation, interpretation and planning.

• A database of tourism businesses was created and2588 questionnaires were delivered to companiesrepresenting the accommodation, food and beverage,attraction, heritage and cultural, parks and recreation,marinas, golf, transportation, retail, events and festivals,winery and breweries and meeting venue/plannersectors.

• 847 surveys were completed, representing a responserate of 33%.

• Of the 2588 database it was determined a total of1069 were key core tourism businesses, 446 surveyswere completed from this group representing a betterresponse rate of 42%

EXECUTIVE

SUMMARY

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• Secondary research was gathered and used to helpshape the current picture of the destination.

• The survey data and secondary research was accu-mulated, entered, clarified, analyzed and evaluatedusing the PRTD workbook and theTourism ResourceOpportunity Matrix.

• A comprehensive “PRTD Research Report” wascompleted by the audit team; it contains the detailresearch that supports this report.

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS

Starting From a Position of Strength

Toronto is starting from a position of strength when it comesto improving its status as an attractive tourism destination.This must not be underestimated as the industry puts inplace plans to moving to the next level. Its strengths include:

• Breadth and depth of visitor experiences

• Excellent air access with extensive improvements toPearson International Airport

• Significant new cultural product in the form ofperformance venues, galleries, museums

• Attractors have quality & critical acclaim as rankedby known tourism authorities

• Accommodation base is excellent, offering a widerange of options for visitors

• Significant annual visitation, an envy of many cities inNorth America

• A large new Canadian resident population that fuelsVFR traffic and activity

• Engaged tourism industry who have a track record ofworking together

• The Destination Marketing Organization that isstrong with resources required to market & sell,TourismToronto is the recognized and respectedDMO

• Significant product and experience developmentprojects are already in play that will have positiveimpact onToronto’s ability to increase visitation intothe future.

EVALUATION

The PRTD measurement criteria rates the destinations statusrelated to its performance for its Product, Performance andSustainability dimensions.After completing the DestinationPerformance Summary using the data provided throughindustry surveys and supplementary information it has beendetermined that the destination is lacking in a number offundamental areas.

PRODUCT – ATourist Destination provides a highquality tourist experience, enabled through the destination’sofferings of:

➢ Distinctive Core Attractions

➢ Quality and Critical Mass

➢ Satisfaction andValue

➢ Accessibility

➢ AnAccommodations Base.

According to the Guidelines in theWorkbook, the City ofToronto’s tourism product does not reach its full potentialand therefore was rated as “Almost Premier-ranked,” as aresult of deficiencies and gaps in the “Accessibility” and“Satisfaction andValue” elements.

PERFORMANCE –The quality of the tourist experienceand the destination’s success in providing it is validated by:

➢ Visitation

➢ Occupancy andYield

➢ Critical Acclaim.

According to the Guidelines in theWorkbook, the City ofToronto’s tourism performance does not reach its full po-tential and therefore was rated as “Almost Premier-ranked,”as a result of deficiencies and gaps in the “Occupancy andYield” and “Critical Acclaim” elements.

SUSTAINABILITY – Ability for a destination to thrivefrom tourism into the future is sustained by:

➢ Destination Marketing

➢ Product Renewal

➢ Managing within Carrying Capacities.

According to the Guidelines in theWorkbook, the City ofToronto’s tourism sustainability does not reach its full po-tential and therefore was rated as “Almost Premier-ranked,”as a result of deficiencies and gaps in the “Managing withinCarrying Capacities” and “Product Renewal” elements.

Note:“Almost Premier-ranked” —The affirmation canalmost be made and supported, one to several key efforts /investments will enable affirmation.

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GAPS AND DEFICIENCIES

Under the three dimensions of assessment model andprocess the following gaps or deficiencies have been identified:

• Distinctiveness of the Destination

• Hospitality and Service

• Memorable Experiences

• Visitors’ Perception ofValue

• Signage /Way Finding

• Accessibility and AccommodatingTravellerswith Special Needs

• Stability of Market Demand

• Consideration as a “Must See/Must Do” Destination

• Intentions toTravel toToronto

• Product Renewal

• Underdeveloped and/or Underperforming Assets

• Geographic distribution of tourism assetswithin Toronto

• Labour Pool

• Road,Transit, Parking andTrail Capacity.

OBSERVATIONS

• Toronto Does Not Have a Common Vision toImprove It’s Competitiveness

The PRTD process has identified that while there aremany efforts to improve the viability ofToronto in generaland its tourism industry specifically, no common vision todevelop the destination into the future is currently present.As a result energy and resources are expended on aseries of fragmented efforts that don’t collectively buildto impact the gaps that exist in Toronto’s tourism experi-ences and products.

The following observations have been made as a resultof the PRTD process:

• Lack of consensus among the tourism industry onwhat needs to be addressed

• Work is already being done on a number of frontsbut is being done in isolation and in some caseswithout a tourism perspective

• The tourism industry reacts very well when facedwith challenges however it has no cohesive plan inplace related to future destination development

• Future growth for tourism depends on being proactive,not only reactive

• The process has revealed what needs to be done andidentifies the specific areas where improvements areneeded.

• Toronto’s Value Proposition can be Improved

Efforts must be made to improveToronto’s “Value Propo-sition.” A series of specific initiatives have been identifiedthat when implemented will deliver significant value tothose who visit Toronto and therefore impact theirwillingness to return and to talk positively about theirexperience.

• A Collective Process to Manage Toronto’sTourism Business into the Future DoesNot Exist

In order to succeed as a viable tourism destination and togrow visitation numbers and revenue a proactive businessmanagement model or process should be established tohelp manageToronto’s tourism business.This forwardlooking process attempts to better organize the industryin order that it is more successful. It attempts to maximizethe industry’s collective efforts to grow the business.Themodel looks to the future to determine opportunitiesand challenges and identifies proactive strategies to ad-dress the issues. It can become a mechanism to improveindustry communications and relations. It attempts to getall involved, on the same page and reduces the propensityfor the creation and implementation of one-off activity.

• Low Awareness of the Importance of Tourismamong Torontonians

Increasing the awareness of the importance of tourismamongTorontonians in general and among influencers,specifically the media and business, will positively impactthe tourism industry’s ability to attract more visitors.The notion that tourism is good for a destination isrecognized in many destinations.This awareness canaffect public policy in positive ways while at the sametime improve the services local residents come to enjoy.The industry must work together to address the lackof awareness of the tourism impact on the city. A seriesof specific steps must be identified to overcome thissituation.

RECOMMENDATIONS

• Create a Formal Tourism DestinationDevelopment Plan for Toronto

o Address Toronto’s Product and ExperienceDeficiencies and Improve ItsValue Proposition

o Establish an Annual Tourism BusinessManagement Model

o Increase the Awareness of the Importance ofTourism toToronto.

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SPECIFICALLY

Improve the Value Proposition

Through the PRTD process it has been determined that focusshould be given to improving the Quality of theVisitor Envi-ronment and Experience Renewal and Development. Byaddressing these key areas it is believedToronto will improveits value proposition and deliver superior value to all thosewho visit as well as to all those who call Toronto home.

Quality of theVisitor Experience:

• Hospitality Excellence: adopt a “We’ve BeenExpectingYou” Attitude

• Raise Service Standards – at all visitor touch points

• Destination Animation – create a “buzz”

• ImproveVisual Appeal – work with Clean & BeautifulCity Office

• Improve Availability ofVisitor Information

• ImproveVisitorWay Finding and Signage

• ReduceTraffic Congestion andTransportationEnhancements

• Become More Motor Coach Friendly.

Experience Renewal and Development:

• Waterfront Development

• Ontario Place Revitalization

• Exhibition Place Development

• Blockbuster Exhibits AGO/ROM –Attract theexhibits that demand visitation

• Attract Major Events – when we need them

• Upgrade Heritage Sites – better tell theTorontoheritage story

• Mass Entertainment Complex – a year round attractor.

Implement an Annual BusinessManagement Model

Put in place/strengthen the mechanisms for collectivedestination management including improved industrycommunications, cooperation between sectors and relatedpartners, long term business building strategies (attractbusiness in need periods with new reasons to visit), trainingand information sharing. Establish an annual proactivebusiness management process designed to enhance thedestinations opportunities to positively attract morevisitors and increased revenue.

Increase the Awareness of the Importanceof Tourism

Specifically it is recommended that the following strategiesbe undertaken in order to positively impact tourism aware-ness levels.

• Identify and Quantify Positive Impacts of TourismtoToronto

• Effectively Communicate the Facts and SpeakWithOneVoice

• Utilize the City’s Prosperity Agenda to Reinforce theMessage

• Mobilize Residents – MakeThemTourismAmbassadors.

NEXT STEPS

The Premier-rankedTourist Destination project has pro-vided a clear appraisal of Toronto’s position in the tourismmarketplace. It has also set out clear direction to take thedestination to the next level. Under the direction ofToronto’sTourism Leadership Group a specific implementation planwill be developed.This implementation plan will be done incooperation with tourism industry partners, the City ofToronto and the Ontario Ministry of Tourism.

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The Premier-rankedTourist Destination program is an initia-tive developed by the Ontario Ministry of Tourism in 2001.The goal of the PRTD program is to help destinations acrossOntario identify areas for development related to tourism,assess their competitive tourism advantage and ultimatelyimprove to become a destination of choice. Being a Premier-rankedTourist Destination indicates that “here is a placemore attractive than the rest, a place the potential visitorshould consider first in making travel plans.” To be clear,Premier-ranked is not a formal tourism designation butrather is an internal tourism goal for a destination to worktowards as it relates to becoming “better than the rest”.

To assist municipalities with assessing and developing theirtourism product, the Ministry of Tourism established a toolcalled the Premier-rankedTourist Destination Framework.This framework assists jurisdictions in assessing their touristassets, attractions and amenities and allows them to identifyopportunities in tourism development.The Ministry ofTourismprovides financial assistance to regions that successfullyapply to undertake the PRTD process.

TheToronto PRTD project is an initiative facilitated by theCity of Toronto in partnership with, the Ontario Ministry ofTourism, Service Canada (now Employment Ontario), andtourism industry stakeholders.The funding for the projectcame from three sources – City of Toronto, EmploymentOntario and the Ontario Ministry of Tourism.

The successful implementation of the recommendations isbased on a thorough understanding, appreciation, engagementand endorsement from both the private and public sectorpartners.This is not an initiative of government, at any level.It is a shared process undertaken by industry and government.

Both must accept the accountability for delivery if it is to beviewed as productive over the long term.

A Premier-rankedTourist Destination Steering Committee,made up of senior representatives of the tourism industrywas established in 2006 to help direct and guide the devel-opment of the overall project. The members are listed inAppendix 2. Pre-project planning meetings with the SteeringCommittee were held on September 12 and December 13,2006.

To assist the PRTD Steering Committee with the process,facilitation of the industry consultations and the preparationof the final report, a tourism industry consulting firm wasretained in December 2006. The consultants, BRAINTRUSTMarketing & Communications, worked with the PRTDSteering Committee and City of Toronto staff to establishthe project parameters and facilitate the informationgathering process.They monitored the project process andprovided direction and guidance. Once the resource auditwas complete they reviewed the results, assessed industrystrengths, weaknesses, attributes, gaps, and conditions thatimpact existing and future development plans and identifiedpotential opportunities.

The PRTD project was introduced toToronto’s tourismindustry at a presentation held at George Brown Collegeon February 28, 2007. Representatives from all sectors ofthe industry were present.An overview of the process waspresented followed by a working session to discuss the vari-ous aspects of the project and to enlist industry representa-tives to serve as industry advisors throughout the process.

BACKGROUND

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The Steering Committee met throughout the process, onDecember 13, 2006, January 22, June 19, September 19,October 19, and December 4, 2007.

Formal industry consultations with representatives from theaccommodation, attraction, retail, food and beverage, culture,heritage, meeting/convention/trade show, transportation andsightseeing sectors were held on April 3, September 26 andOctober 25, 2007.Additional consultations were held witha representative group from the meetings and conventionsector on October 23, withTourismToronto senior staff onOctober 31 and with senior representatives from severalhotel chains on October 18 and 29, 2007.

A presentation was made to several City ofToronto Councillorson November 6, 2007.A series of one-on-one meetings,facilitated by the consultant, also took place in September,October and November.

Having completed these meetings a presentation was madetoToronto’s Leadership Group on December 7,where DRAFTrecommendations were presented.This group was establishedin 2006 to understand the challenges that, at the time, were

facingToronto’s tourism industry. It is comprised of seniorrepresentatives from the Ministry ofTourism,City ofToronto,TourismToronto, the GreaterToronto Hotel Association,Toronto Board of Trade, MetroToronto Convention Centre,Ontario Restaurant, Hotel and Motel Association,Attrac-tions Ontario, and OntarioTourism Marketing PartnershipCorporation. It was this group that commissioned theimplementation of Toronto’s Premier Ranked Project.

Finally, on December 10, 2007 findings and DRAFT recom-mendations were presented at an industry wide meeting heldat the MetroToronto Convention Centre. Recommendationswere validated via a survey distributed to attendees.The vastmajority of those in attendance agreed with the recommen-dations and findings.

It can be safely said that as a result of this consultativeprocess the tourism industry in Toronto has endorsed therecommendations contained in this report. It is the culmina-tion of many hours of diligent work, dialogue and discussion.This report contains actions that if implemented, will have apositive impact on all of those who live, work and visit theCity of Toronto.

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The PRTD process is designed to identify areas whereimprovements in a destination’s tourism products andexperiences are required.That being said, this work hasbeen done inToronto against the backdrop of a destinationthat is starting from a position of strength, these include:

• Breadth and depth of visitor experiences

• Excellent air access with extensive improvements toPearson International Airport

• Significant new cultural product in the form of per-formance venues, galleries, museums

• Attractors have quality & critical acclaim as rankedby known tourism authorities

• Accommodation base is excellent, offering a widerange of options for visitors

• Significant annual visitation, an envy of many cities inNorth America

• A large new Canadian resident population that fuelsVFR traffic and activity

• Engaged tourism industry who have a track recordof working together

• The Destination Marketing Organization that isstrong with resources required to market & sell,TourismToronto is the recognized and respectedDMO

• Significant product and experience developmentprojects are already in play that will have positiveimpact onToronto’s ability to increase visitationinto the future.

TORONTO’S CRITICAL ACCLAIM

• FDI Magazine, a subsidiary of the Financial Time ofLondon, awarded the GreaterToronto Area thedistinction of the secondTop City Region of theFuture, receiving top honours for Best Transport,Best IT andTelecom, Best Quality of Life and BestFDI Promotion Strategy.

• The city has been ranked as one of theWorld’s Top10 Economic Centres with a strong credit rating ofAA (Standard & Poor’s, 2006)

• It has the 12th strongest city brand in the world(Anholt GMI City Brands Index, 2005)

• Toronto was ranked 2nd in North America andplaced 15th world wide in the Mercer HumanResources Quality of Living Survey 2007

• Identified a leading city in the world in terms ofreducing carbon emissions by the Carbon Group

• Toronto was ranked as the 3rd in the world asmost desirable destination for business travel inThe Economist’s Intelligence Unit business tripindex 2006

• Toronto’s skyline was ranked 11th in the worldon its visual impact according to Emporis SkylineRanking 2007.

STARTING FROM A POSITION OF

STRENGTH

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DISTINCTIVE CORE ANDSUPPORTING ATTRACTORS

Core Attractor: The features, facilities, and/or experienceswhich act as the primary motivators for most travel to thedestination; the attractors with the most tourist visits in thedestination. Core attractors can differ from season to sea-son, as in for example golf vs. skiing at a four seasons resortdestination.They can overlap or be distinctly different fordiffering visitor segments, e.g., taking in aToronto Blue Jaysbaseball game vs. attending a major convention; or mass vs.niche segments, e.g., visiting the CNTower or Hockey Hallof Fame vs. attending a performance of the Canadian OperaCompany.

A core attractor can also be a cluster of assets all relatingto a specific theme, e.g., dining, shopping, entertainment andnight life in the Entertainment District; or an experienceenabled by clustering, e.g., a cultural experience like visitinggalleries, museums, the symphony and accommodations at adistinct boutique hotel.

Supporting Attractor: The features or facilities thatdraw guests to the area by giving them additional but sec-ondary reasons to travel to the particular destination.Supporting attractors can be primary travel motivators (i.e.core attractors) to some markets (typically niche segments).They are generally distinguished from core attractors bytheir smaller number of visitors.

The evaluation process has identifiedToronto’s coreattractors, their distinctiveness, and the nature and sizeof the visitor markets to which they are considered to beattractive.This section assesses:

o What it is about a destination that makes it standout as distinct in the marketplace

o How the attractors are distinguished

o How the attractors are relevant to market wants.

Toronto’s Core Attractors:

• Culture & Heritage — Performing Arts, FestivalsEvents,Art Galleries, Museums, Historic Sites

• Theme and Amusement Parks

• Meetings, Conventions,Trade and Consumer Shows

• Residents Hosting Friends and Relatives

Culture & Heritage — Performing Arts,Festivals / Events, Art Galleries, Museums,Historic Sites

• Annually there are 5,614 musical theatre perform-ances, 1,684 ballet / other dance, 1,009 classicalmusic/opera performances, 151 rock &roll concertsby artists with global appeal, 1,742 comedy shows

• 45 mid-sized facilities (151 – 500 seats), 20 largevenues (501+ seats) total of 38,682 seats inperforming arts venues

• 24 annual music, 91 annual non-music, 38 arts/craftsfestivals/events held annually

• 7,430 local, 926 provincial, 33 national historic sites,11 living history sites, 64 aboriginal sites, 6,803 archi-tectural heritage sites, 26 museums, 19 art galleries

PRODUCT

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TheTravel Activities and Motivation Study (TAMS) on theCanadian and American traveller was conducted betweenJanuary and June of 2006. In the previous two years (2004and 2005), 84% of adult Canadians and 79% of adult Ameri-cans had taken an overnight trip.

Forty-three per cent of Canadian travellers and 38.5 per centof U.S. travellers participated in various performing artsrelated activities while on vacation. Seventeen per cent ofCanadian travellers and 14.7 per cent of American travellersreported that participation in various performing arts relatedactivities motivated some of their overnight trips. (TAMS,2006)

Forty-three per cent of Canadian travellers and 41.5% ofU.S. travellers participated in a festival or event while onvacation. Sixteen per cent of Canadian travellers and 15.3per cent of American travellers reported that attendingfestival and events motivated some of their overnight trips.(TAMS, 2006)

Fifty-seven per cent of Canadian travellers and 54.3 per centof U.S. travellers went to exhibits, observed architecture,and visited historic sites while on vacation. Seventeen percent of Canadian travellers and 18.1 per cent of Americantravellers reported that such activities motivated some oftheir overnight trips. (TAMS, 2006)

Theme and Amusement Parks

• Nine amusement parks, 11 gardens and conservatories,two zoos, two animal farms, an observation tower, awater park, five specialty cinema venues, a sciencecentre and a garden theme park

• CNTower, Ontario Place, Hockey Hall of Fame,Exhibition Place, Downsview Park,Toronto Zoo,Centreville, Ontario Science Centre,Toronto MusicGardens.

Forty-six per cent of Canadian travellers and 52.4 per centof U.S. travellers visited a theme park while on vacation.Fifteen per cent of Canadian travellers and 23.9 per centof American travellers reported visiting a theme park moti-vated some of their overnight trips. (TAMS, 2006)

Meetings, Conventions, Tradeand Consumer Shows

• Three major convention/trade show facilities, (plusanother just outside the boundaries of the City)

• 145 meeting service companies

• 30+ hotels — meeting space exceeding 1,263,815 sq. ft.

• More than 50 special event venues

• 45 major conventions confirmed for the period of2007–2015, more than 700,000 room nights and360,000 attendees.

Toronto’s share of the Meetings and Conventions business issignificant both domestically and within the North Americanmarket. In 2004,Toronto attracted 653,000 business conven-tion visitors or 53 per cent of the total 1,302,000 businessconvention visitors to Ontario. Overall average spending in2004 for visitors to Ontario was $144.40 per person per visit.By comparison, business convention visitors spent morethan four times that amount or $558 per person per visit,highlighting the lucrative growth opportunities provided bythis market. In 2006,Toronto hosted 13 city-wide conven-tions (a city-wide convention is one that uses a minimum of6,000 room-nights and three or more hotels) accounting for242,000 room nights and 104,000 attendees. Forty-fivemajor conventions have been confirmed for the period of2007–2015, which accounts for more than 700,000 roomnights and 360,000 attendees.

Meetings and IncentiveTravel magazine’s 2006 Market Reportsurvey had 865 Canadian industry respondents (more thandouble that of 2005) of which 342 were from corporateorganizations, 346 from associations and 177 meeting planners.Respondents indicated that Toronto continues to be thenumber one Canadian meeting destination (73 per cent), withVancouver (34 per cent) and Montreal (34 per cent), Calgary(33 per cent) and Ottawa (20 per cent) trailing behind.

Residents Hosting Friends and Relatives

• 35 per cent of all visitors toToronto in 2004 said themain purpose of trip was to visit friends and relatives(VFR).

• VFR represented 6.7* million person visits in 2004(most recent date of available tourism statistics)*Statistics Canada, CTS/ITS 2004

The visiting friends and relatives (VFR) market is consistentlybeing reported as one of the major motivations for domesticpleasure travel.VFR travellers also constitute a considerablesegment of the international travel market, particularly forregions with a strong immigration tradition (like the City ofToronto).

Toronto’s Supporting Attractors:

• Spectator Sports – Professional & Amateur

o Fans of spectator sports have year-round reasons toattend professional sports events in the city. Torontois the only city in Canada with professional basketballand soccer teams. Baseball, football, hockey, and

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lacrosse provide the other major league sports expe-riences available in the downtown area.According toStatistics Canada in 2004, eight per cent of overnightvisitors to the City ofToronto attended sports events.

• Shopping

o Shopping, though not usually a trip motivator is animportant activity for 66 per cent of U.S. travellersand 70 per cent of Ontario travellers while at adestination. Beyond shopping while they travel, manyof these travellers also indicated that great shoppingopportunities were highly important to them whenchoosing a destination for their pleasure or vacationtrip. (TAMS, 2006)

o U.S. and Ontario travellers indicated the importanceof shopping at the trip-planning stage: 15 per centof adult Canadians and 16% of adult Americans rated“great shopping opportunities” as a highly importantaspect when choosing a pleasure destination. (TAMS,2006)

• Dining and Night Life

o 566 licensed ethnic restaurants, 206 unlicensed ethnicrestaurants, 1500 licensed restaurants, 789 unlicensedrestaurants, 442 pubs/bars/nightclubs, 1,612 take-out/fast food/donut shops, 36 caterers and 218 streetvendors with permits.

o 56 per cent of Canadian travellers and 56.5 per centof U.S. travellers participated in dining in restaurantsthat offer local ingredients. Five per cent of Canadiantravellers and 5.8 per cent of American travellersreported such activities motivated some of theirovernight trips.

• Neighbourhoods

o Toronto’s diverse neighbourhoods are ideal for suchon-theme activities as shopping, dining, clubbing andrelated experiences. Many neighbourhoods aresupported by one of the 61 Business ImprovementAreas (BIAs). BIAs help create safe, unique, andthriving business areas that attract shoppers, dinersand tourists.

• Outdoors Cluster - Parks, Trails, GolfCourses, Marinas

o Deemed a “City within a Park,” the City of Torontohas 3,565 hectares of natural areas and open spaces,and there is more than 8,000 hectares of green space.The city is an urban forest containing more than 3million trees.There are 1,500 street trees, as well as500,000 city-owned street trees.

PRODUCT STRENGTHS

• Breadth and depth of visitor experiences

• Significant new cultural product in the form ofperformance venues, galleries, museums

• Attractors have quality & critical acclaim as rankedby known tourism authorities

• Accommodation base is excellent, offering a widerange of options for visitors.

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GAPS AND DEFICIENCIES

The following gaps and deficiencies exist amongToronto’sproducts and experiences:

Distinctiveness of the Destination, MemorableExperience and Hospitality

The assessment of the extent to whichToronto is consideredto be a distinctive and hospitable destination with memorableexperiences significantly relies on two research sources:TheTravel Intentions Research undertaken by the Ministryof Tourism and studies undertaken forTourismToronto bythe University of Guelph in 1998 and 2006.

TheTravel Intentions Research is a series of studies whosegoal is to measure intent to travel to Ontario and specificOntario destinations within key US and domestic markets.People living in key US and Canadian markets were inter-viewed over the telephone.The most recent study wascompleted in February, 2007. In total, 5,840 interviews werecompleted (1,909 in Canada; 3,931 in the United States.

The University of Guelph study distributed surveys toovernight visitors at 21 participating hotels in the GreaterToronto Area. This 2006 study replicated to a large extentresearch that was conducted during 1998 in partnershipwithTourismToronto andWhere Magazine.

Travel Intention Research suggests that Toronto is notperceived as a “Must See/Must Do” destination amongAmerican and Canadian tourists, which implies thatToronto’s product is not seen as being superior or distinctfrom the competition. From the University of Guelph studyrespondents who rated their experience as “very satisfied”decreased from 69 per cent in 1998 to 47 per cent in 2006.A similar drop in service performance occurred: 30 percent of respondents felt that the levels had exceeded theirexpectation in 1998, but only 17 per cent expressed thesame answer in 2006.

The same study identified gaps in the way that Toronto isviewed in terms of hospitality. Canadians identify hospitalityas one of Toronto’s weaknesses. However both U.S. andoverseas visitors perceive hospitality of Torontonians as amajor strength. The latter finding is consistent with a recentstudy by Anholt City Brands Index “How theWorldViewsIts Cities” which rankedToronto 9th globally as a welcomingcity. Other differences among Canadian, U.S., and Overseasvisitors include the following:American visitors seem to bevery impressed by the hospitality, cleanliness and safety ofthe city. Overseas visitors indicated that Toronto shoppingfacilities were not up to par compared to their expectations.

Ontario visitors and visitors from other provinces indicatedthat they were concerned about their personal safety andthe overall level of cleanliness of the city.

Visitors’ Perception of Valuefor Money in Toronto

In terms of value the University of Guelph study found visitorsbelieved that events and hotels did not offer enough valuefor the money. Visitors found event prices (45.7 per cent),hotel prices (38 per cent), and attractions prices (35.7 percent) high.While 27.6 per cent considered sales taxes high,only 1.4 per cent of respondents rated sales taxes as low. Inaddition, theTravel Intentions Research indicated one of thetop three issues that made Canadians less inclined to visitthe city was that is was perceived as expensive.

Signage

The quality of signage on the major highways leading toToronto is good in that they provide information as to thedistance to downtownToronto, adequate advance notice ofapproaching exits, along with the road names, and servicesavailable such as hotels, restaurants, gas stations, etc.

However, upon entering the City of Toronto, there is littlein the way of directional signage to any of the major touristoriented facilities. Unless the visitor knows in advance theroute to travel, and where to exit, the visitor will not seeany directional signage unless he/she happens to drive toits immediate vicinity.The situation is even worse for thoseattempting to drive out of Pearson International Airport.Again, unless one knows the route and which highway totake, there is not even a clear indication upon leaving theterminal buildings as to how to drive to downtownToronto.The deficiencies mentioned above are backed up byThe University of Guelph’s study; respondents indicatedthat they perceive that signage was an issue that requiresimprovement.

Accessibility and Accommodating Travellerswith Special Needs

Toronto generally scores positively on Accessibility.Torontois very accessible to other nearby cities as well as regionaland international gateways by a variety of travel modes andprice options. However, accessibility to, and within, the Cityis increasingly problematic on major highways and arterialroads. Congestion results in significant delays for motoristsand motor coach passengers. While it is acknowledged thatthe public transportation is good, especially within the cityserved by theTTC, there is a general awareness that thetransit network, both intra-city (e.g., theTTC network) andinter-city commuter service (e.g., GOTransit) needs to be

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significantly extended and enhanced to meet future demand.In addition, public transit infrastructure and service is stronglyoriented to serving peak hour commuter demand. It can bechallenging to travel between suburban locations by publictransit, or use it during the weekends, holidays and evenings.

Accessibility can also refer to how easy it is for everybodyto approach, enter, and use buildings, outdoor areas and otherfacilities, including transportation services, independently,without the need for special arrangements. Providing infor-mation on accessibility and improving access benefits a widerange of people who want to travel, but may find it difficult.Despite all of the recent attention being given to providingaccess to those with disabilities and special needs,Toronto'stourist sites do not provide comprehensive access. It isimportant to point out that those interested in accessibilityare not only the disabled, but also the growing numbersof seniors. Families also may be concerned about the easeof travelling with young children in strollers.

The Resource Audit confirmed that the majority of respon-dents indicated that they offer services or facilities tovisitors with special needs. However, while 71.4 per centanswered “Yes” to this question, the 28.6 per cent whoanswered “No” actually represents a substantial number ofpopular tourist sites. This means that a tourist with specialneeds will find that nearly one in three sites may presenthim/her with accessibility problems, and, therefore, mayrepresent a barrier to repeat visits, or even coming at all.

Even when looking at those respondents who indicated theydid offer services or facilities, it is noteworthy to point outthat there remains a gap in what is offered. For example,only 60.3 per cent had an entrance ramp, 58.6 per cent hadwheelchair accessible washrooms and only 49.5 per centoffered wheelchair accessible food and beverage services.

OTHER GAPS AND DEFICIENCIES

These observations are from representatives of the traveltrade.They include tour operators, wholesalers and travelagents who send clients toToronto.

Lack of Multi-Lingual Services at Attractions

The availability of such service would make the “Toronto”product more appealing to sell.

Tour/Sightseeing Guides

Travel trade representatives noted that some sightseeingguides do not refresh their scripts frequently enough. It isnoted that tour guides are not certified or licensed inToronto.There is a shortage of guides with multilingual skills.

Specialized Tours

Consumers are looking for specialized tours but few areoffered by receptive operators, destination managementcompanies or attractions.They’re new product availablebut it’s not Group ready.

City Infrastructure

Road conditions continue to deteriorate. Road constructionin the summer gives a bad impression to tourists and makesgetting around the city challenging. Garbage is another issuethat has become a growing problem in the past five years.Travel trade staff indicated they do not schedule FamiliarizationTours on Saturday or Sunday mornings because garbage hasnot yet been picked up in the downtown core.The declinein visual appeal of the city, the increased number of homelesspeople and (aggressive) panhandling has a negative impacton the tourists’ perception of the city.

Motor Coach Parking

It is sufficient for now, since the level of bus tours is not ashigh as pre- 2003. However, it could pose a problem whenthe market takes a positive turn.

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The Performance measures identify the extent to whichToronto is successful and recognized in the marketplace.By comparingToronto’s performance attributes in terms ofhard data, conclusions can be determined as to its actualperformance against its primary competitors and in acompetitive marketplace context.Visitation statistics,accommodation occupancy levels, and critical acclaim areall industry standards to measure performance.

The quality of the tourist experience and the destination’ssuccess in providing it is validated by:

➢ Visitation

➢ Occupancy andYield

➢ Critical Acclaim

Data used in this section is from Statistics Canada’s CanadianTravel Survey and International Travel Survey (CTS/ITS). 2004is the most recent year for which official statistical informa-tion about visitation is available in Canada. This is becauseStatistics Canada changed the methodology and definition ofdomestic travel in 2005 and is still analysing the data beforetheir release of 2005 data.All information released since 2004by various organizations regarding total visits are estimatesand projections. (See chart below PersonVisits toToronto)2005 and 2006 estimates by the City ofToronto were derivedfrom analysis of PRTD survey responses.The figures werethen compared to estimated percentage growth in visits byThe Conference Board of Canada,TourismToronto andTheMinistry of Tourism, and were found to be consistent.Theforecast for 2007 visits was calculated using projections basedon most recent border crossings for international visitors,and domestic travel forecasts provided byThe ConferenceBoard of Canada, andThe Ministry of Tourism.

PERFORMANCE

Person Visits to Toronto

Note: 2005, 2006 – estimates, 2007 – forecast

1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007

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20

19

18

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Millons

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PERFORMANCE STRENGTHS

• Significant annual visitation, an envy of many citiesin the world

VISITATION

Toronto as a destination draws a significant share of Ontario’stotal travel. In 2004Toronto attracted a total of 19,392,249visitors. Of these guests, 10,671,396 were on day trips and8,720,852 were overnight visitors. Person visits toTorontopeaked in 2001, but decreased sharply afterwards due touncontrollable factors. Since 2003 tourism visits have beenincreasing.

Toronto is the most important destination in Canada receiving8.7 per cent of total trips to Canada.The nearest competitoris Montreal which receives 6.5 per cent of total Canadiantrips.Toronto Business trips represent 15.6 per cent of totalbusiness trips in Canada compared to Montreal’s 9.8 percent.This emphasizes Toronto’s importance as a business centre.VFR visits toToronto are also substantial as they represent9.9 per cent of totalVFR visits to Canada.Toronto’s shareof tourists coming to Canadian destinations for Pleasureand Personal/Other reasons are only slightly ahead of itscompetitors.

Major Cities’ Share of Total Canadian Visits

Primary Toronto Quebec City Montreal Ottawa Edmonton VancouverTrip Purpose

Total of 8.7% 4.1% 6.5% 3.5% 2.1% 3.5%CanadianVisits

Visit Friends 9.9% 3.7% 7.8% 4.1% 1.9% 2.7%or Relatives

Pleasure 6.7% 4.8% 5.3% 2.6% 1.4% 3.9%

Personal and Other 6.5% 3.1% 4.9% 3.1% 3.3% 3.2%

Business 15.6% 4.4% 9.8% 5.2% 3.4% 4.5%

CRITICAL ACCLAIM

Toronto has received Critical Acclaim in several categories as listed below:

International Ranking and Acclaim

Ranking Source Year

1st Elite International Institute of Transport Management 2006

2nd Foreign Direct Investment Magazines Cities of the Future (Financial Times) 2007

2nd U.N. Population of Foreign Born Residents 2004

AA/Stable/A-1 + Standards and Poor's Credit rating 2007

5th The Economist's Most Liveable City 2007

9th Conde Nast Travellers Choice Awards - Top 10The America's 2006

10th Canada's Most Sustainable City Ranking Corporate Knights 2007

11th Emporis Skyline Rankings 2007

14th How theWorldView - Anholt City Brands Index 2006

15th Mercer - Quality of Living Survey 2007

19th Meeting and convention planner survey - Flaspöhler 2006

21st Mercer - Health and Sanitation Ranking 2007

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GAPS AND DEFICIENCIES

The following gaps and deficiencies exist in Toronto’s per-formance as a tourism destination.

Visitation

Actual visits in 2004 were still below 2001 levels by almost7 per cent due to various circumstances. Best estimatessuggest that there has been a modest growth in marketdemand since 2004.This is driven by an increase in domesticand overseas travel, which has slightly outpaced the decline inU.S. visits toToronto. Projections for future demand suggestthat a similar trend will continue. However, it must be notedthat the strong Canadian dollar may not only negatively impactU.S. visits, but also can lure more Canadians to substitute atrip toToronto with a trip outside Canada. Furthermore,theTravel Intentions study conducted in February 2007showed deterioration in both Canadian and U.S. residents’intentions to visit Toronto.

From February 2004 to February 2007 there was a decreasein intended visits toToronto for U.S. and Canadian residents.Toronto is perceived as a “been there/done that” destinationand that other destinations offer more attractive tourismproduct.

Intentions to Travel to Toronto —Stability of Market Demand

2004 2007 % Change

American 4 % 3% -25%

Canadian 13% 10% -23%

% of those intending to travel

OCCUPANCY AND YIELD

With respect to “Occupancy andYield,” the hotel occupancyrate in 2006 was 66.4 per cent. However, a consultation

with hotel industry experts has revealed that generally, theindustry is looking for occupancy to be in the 70 per centrange to have a chance at viability.There also is a seasonalvariation in occupancy, with the rate falling to 58.6 per centin the first Quarter

Quarterly Occupancy Rate*

Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4

58.6% 69.9% 73.9% 62.6%

*Source: Pannell Kerr Forster Consulting Inc.Trends in the Canadian HotelIndustry. Cited in Ontario Ministry of Tourism, July 2007, Ontario HotelOperation Statistics, 1997-2006.

Toronto Consideration as a “Must See/MustDo” Destination

According to theTravel Intentions study that was conductedin February, 2007,Toronto ranked a 7.1 “Must See” amongCanadianTravellers based on a 10-point scale.AmongAmericans,Toronto ranked 6.7 as a “Must See” Destination.In both cases the “Must See” ranking has slipped by .2 (6.9 –6.7) among American travellers from 2004 and by .4 (7.5 –7.1) among Canadian travellers.

TheTravel Intentions Research identified the following per-ceived Issues forVisitation toToronto:

The top three issues raised by Canadians that made themless inclined to travel toToronto included:

• “Issues of violence/crime”

• “Too much traffic”

• “Cost/Expensive”

The top 3 issues raised by Americans that made them lessinclined to travel toToronto were:

• “Passport requirements”

• “Difficulty/delays at the border”

• “Bad weather”

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Sustainability identifies the extent to whichToronto isinvesting in its future as a place with viable and continuingattractiveness to evolving markets. It includes the activitiesin place to raise awareness for the destination as well as thedegree in which new investment in the form of capital dollarswill be made to enhance its product offering. It also deter-mines its capacity in a number of physical measures such asinfrastructure.

The ability for a destination to thrive from tourism into thefuture is sustained by:

➢ Destination Marketing

➢ Product Renewal

➢ Managing within Carrying Capacities.

SUSTAINABILITY STRENGTHS

• TourismToronto is strong with resources to marketand sell.TourismToronto currently has sufficient mar-keting funds, because of the voluntary introduction ofthe Destination Marketing Fee (DMF) in 2004, whichhas brought Toronto’s CBV marketing budget in linewith other major North American travel destinations

• Engaged tourism industry who have a track recordof working together and are committed to constantimprovement

• Significant product and experience development proj-ects already in play that will have positive impact onToronto’s ability to increase visitation into the future

• A City that is adequately managing the majority ofdemands placed on its infrastructure especially as itrelates to carrying capacities

DESTINATION MARKETING

TourismToronto (TT) is the official Destination MarketingOrganization (DMO) forToronto’s tourism industry.TT focuseson promoting and selling the GreaterToronto Area as a re-markable destination for tourists, convention delegates andbusiness travellers. Officially operating as a not-for-profitagency,TT has over 1,000 members and is a partnership ofthe public and private sectors. Successful marketing dependson the size of the yearly budget. Forty-four per cent or $13.9million of the annual budget is directed towards consumermarketing, communications and Call Centre operations.Other expenses are sales and marketing related such asMeeting Convention and IncentiveTravel Sales (MC&IT)$8.6 million, which involves a dedicated sales force marketingToronto as a convention destination.

PRODUCT RENEWAL

The ResourceAudit indicated thatToronto’s tourism industryis committed to reinvestment and new investment to revitalizefacilities relevant to the quality of the tourist experience.Seventy-one per cent of businesses indicated that they hadreinvested capital into their respective businesses in the pastfive years. Sixty-two per cent of those said that the capitalwas invested in the past two years.

Future Hotel and Hotel/Condo Investments

Hotel inventory grows 2008 - 2011 +1,566 rooms*City of Toronto Estimate

– To reach 66% (current level) need to sell377,250 more room nights

– To reach 70% need to sell 791,000 moreroom nights

SUSTAINABILITY

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Hotel/Condo Year Total Investment Rooms

550WellingtonWest Hotel and Condominiums 2008 Not Available 107

Bloor/Yonge SE Corner TBA Not Available Not Available

Four Seasons Hotel and Private Residences 2009 $325,000,000 265

Hôtel Le Germain Maple Leaf Square 2009 $400,000,000 171

Manga Hotels International 2008 Not Available 250

Ritz Carlton Hotel 2009 $350,000,000 267

Shangri-La Hotel 2011 $430,000,000 220

Trump Int'l Hotel andTower 2010 $500,000,000 286

Managing Within Carrying Capacities

For tourism destinations, one of the most vital tasks is tomonitor the inbound tourist’s effect on the environmentaland community health and wellness systems.With environ-mental issues more prominent in social and governmentalcircles, it has become increasingly important to focus onsustainable initiatives when implementing developmentprojects that cater to both short- and long-term growthstrategies.The carrying capacities criteria and measuresestablished in the PRTD framework assess the scope towhich the destination is cognisant of, and compliant to, thecapacity thresholds of the natural environment that sustainlocal ecosystems as well as the quality of life at the destination,as it pertains to current and planned development initiatives.

Tourism is but one sector in Canada’s largest city and mostdiverse economy.As a result the city has significant capacityto manage any growth in tourism visitation. In addition, thereare many monitoring programmes that track the City’sability to meet current and future demands.An assessmentof these monitoring programmes has determined that nosignificant issues exist in terms of the city’s ability to managewithin its carrying capacities.The one exception may berelated to adequately handling transportation needs withinthe current roads and public transit systems.

GAPS AND DEFICIENCIES

The following gaps and deficiencies exist for Toronto andimpact its ability to thrive into the future:

Product Renewal

Twenty-nine per cent of the audit respondents have notinvested in new or upgraded existing product and experi-ences. A closer look suggests that many of the cities core

attractors, in particular not for profit and public performingarts and heritage organizations have been unable to improvetheir venues. It is reported that heritage and cultural venuesrequire significant investment (with the exception of thelead cultural and performing arts attractors). In terms of thelead cultural facilities (AGO,ROM) while significant investmenthas been made in upgrading facilities, investment has notbeen made in programming. Neither has there been newinvestment in the form of a new major mass entertainmentcomplex, which would go a long way to attracting newvisitation.As it relates to convention facilities the last majorexpansion occurred in 1997 at the MetroToronto ConventionCentre.There is evidence to suggest an expanded or newconvention facility could attract organizations who are toolarge to meet in the current space.

Underdeveloped and/or Underperforming Assets

WaterfrontToronto’s harbour lands are, and have been for severaldecades, an underdeveloped asset.A content analysis of theopen-ended questions from the Resource Audit which askedrespondents to give suggestions of what needs to be doneto improve tourism inToronto, revealed that waterfrontdevelopment was a key area that needs to be improved.

Suggestions included: improving accessibility and transporta-tion to the waterfront, adding more coffee shops andrestaurants, and building new tourist attractions (aquarium,world-class contemporary art gallery, casino, marinemuseum, amusement park, etc).

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Culture and Heritage Sites

As reported in both the PRTDAudit process and thoroughindustry consultationsToronto’s culture and heritage attrac-tions are underdeveloped.While icon facilities like the ROM,AGO and the Opera House have received much attentionsmaller not for profit and public sector facilities have hadlittle or no attention for many years. Many of Toronto’s notfor profit theatre venues are in need of repair and renovations.Toronto’s historical sites also require investment in boththeir facilities and in programming. Development of thesefacilities represents a significant opportunity to growtourism within Toronto.

Sports Facilities

Sports development is important when thinking of addingbenefits toToronto’s tourism industry. The opening of theAir Canada Centre in 1999 and the BMO Field in 2007brought a new sense of enthusiasm for sports in the city.However, there are insufficient sports venues and facilitiesto attract a growing number of amateur sports events andtournaments toToronto.The most critical gap is a lack ofsport facilities at the district level. Evidence suggests thereare not enough clusters of district level facilities to be at-tractive to tournament organizers.The loss of opportunitiesto host amateur sport tournaments has a negative economicimpact toToronto and the hotels, restaurants and entertain-ment venues that this market supports.

Even though there has been some progress in the revitalizationof existing sports amenities and the development of newsports facilities, there is still a need for improved district andregional level sport facilities in the city. Twenty-seven percent of Toronto’s recreation facilities are over 40 years oldand the regional public facilities like the large fields, largercommunity centres and high school facilities are in a severestate of disrepair.Work needs to be done and investmentsmade to improve these facilities if Toronto wants to capital-ize of the lucrative sports tourism market.

TourismToronto has recently established a sport tourism/event hosting group. However, this group’s effectiveness ishampered by the restricted inventory of facilities as well asthe lack of a database capable of identifying the details andlocations of sport facilities that could be used by eventorganizers to plan tournaments.

Culinary Tourism

Toronto has a very extensive and diversified inventory ofrestaurants as well as unique micro-breweries and severaldozen annual culinary events and festivals. From value-pricedto high end, ethnic to local,Toronto’s restaurants are highlyregarded and plentiful, satisfying the taste of experiencedfoodies. Its multi-cultural range of culinary experiences isespecially noteworthy and distinctive. However,Toronto’sculinary experiences don’t seem to be profiled to touristaudiences as much as in other destinations such as Ottawaand Montreal, and the PRTDAudit revealed that three quartersof the restaurants who responded do not currently partnerwith other types of businesses to offer cross-promotions orpackages to tourists.

The Ontario Ministry ofTourism developed the new CulinaryTourism in Ontario, Strategy and Action Plan 2005-2015 —a plan to make Ontario a leader in culinary tourism by pro-filing authentic regional cuisine. Research has confirmed thatopportunities to experience local cuisine do motivate travel.The Resource Audit indicated that though the majority ofdining establishments use and serve local ingredients, winesand beers, few actually promote this fact.Toronto diningestablishments are not capitalizing on the locally growncache that many destinations are using to raise profile andincrease revenues in the F&B sector.

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Green Tourism

There is a growing, world-wide trend of environmentallyconscious travellers who choose their destinations accord-ingly. They look for cities which offer “green” themes, suchas cycling or walking on nature trails, the availability of hotelsand restaurants that offer organic food, and environmentallyconscious operations (e.g., recycling energy efficient powersystems), as well as an efficient public transit system to getaround the city. Cities that are internationally recognized asbeing an “urban green tourism” destination are, therefore, ina competitive position to capture a share of this growingsegment of the tourism market, which now includes groupsand organizations staging conventions.

The GreenTourismAssociation is a unique non-profit or-ganization that is committed to establishing an urban greentourism industry in Toronto.The GreenTourismAssociationworks collaboratively with a network of businesses, communityand environmental groups, government agencies, heritage andcultural organizations and individuals that share a commoninterest in promoting green tourism. Their Mission Statementis “To lead tourism inToronto towards a sustainable future,evolving an industry which is ecologically sound, promotes andsupports local economies, and fosters an appreciation of andrespect for diverse cultural and natural heritage.” Greaterattention should be paid to these initiatives byToronto’stourism industry; they offer significant future potential givenToronto’s leadership status in a number of areas related toenvironmentally consciousness.

New Major Demand Generator/Attractor Impact

WhileToronto has many attractions making it the mostfrequented location for visitors to Canada there is potentialfor further developments.The following chart indicates theimpact of pleasure visitors if the type of attractor wasbuilt.The chart is specifically for Toronto and indicates thatthe addition would be beneficial from a pleasure visitorstandpoint.

Attractor Average Impacton Pleasure Visitors

3-Star Amusement Park 4.5Million - 7.0Million(e.g., SeaWorld AdventurePark, Universal Studios)

3-Star Shopping Area 610,000 - 1,150,000(e.g., Macy'sWorld,Chinatown NYC)

3- Star Specific Structure 1,020,000 - 2,870,000(e.g. Statue of Liberty,CNTower)

Casino 390,000 - 430,000

Hotel Property 5,000

1% Improvement in 70,000Public Transit System

Ontario Ministry of Tourism and Recreation (2004, June) Factors Influenc-ingVisitor’s Choices toVisit Urban Destinations, Prepared by Global InsightInc. 3-Star quality ratings refers to "Highly recommended/Worth a Journey"as defined by the Michelin Guide's star system

Distribution of Tourism ActivityWithin Toronto

Benefits are not balanced within the municipal borders sincethe majority of the tourism assets are located in the downtowncore. More specifically 64 per cent of survey participantswere located within the central area bounded by DufferinSt., Eglinton Ave., BayviewAve., and Harbourfront. Howeverhotels and attractions are located outside the downtowncore area, which presents an opportunity for visitors toexplore more of the city.Attractions like the OntarioScience Centre, PioneerVillage,Woodbine Racetrack, andthe Zoo are reasons for visitors to travel and stay outsidethe downtown core.

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Labour Pool

The general sentiment across Toronto’s tourism industry isthat the current labour pool is sufficient to support the variousbusinesses in the long term.Together with the relatively strongeconomy ofToronto and a favourable rate of unemployment,a major factor contributing to this optimistic assessment isimmigration, which is averaging 101,600 immigrants toToronto per year.

While these trends in immigration and the growth in generalthat is expected to occur within the GTA would appear tosupport the satisfaction with the labour source by thetourism industry, there are concerns and demographictrends that may result in labour related issues arising in thefuture. It would seem that Toronto’s tourism industry is notpreparing for this likelihood.

One area of concern involves the apparent low levels of jobsatisfaction being expressed by many of those currentlyemployed in the tourism industry. Using hotel workers as anexample, the average hotel worker earnings fall far short ofthe 2004Toronto low-income cut off of $34,572 for a familyof four. Moreover, even though there has been a recovery ofhotel room occupancy rates in the last few years, both fulland part time jobs have declined overall.

The majority of those still employed in this sector are immi-grants and the earnings gap between immigrants and thosewho are Canadian born has increased despite policies aimedat selected individuals with greater economic potential tointegrate. In spite of the fact that recent immigrants are nowmore highly educated, their wages and standard of livingcontinues to decline. Many immigrants have reported thattheir educational accomplishments received abroad are oftennot recognized by professional associations and employersin Canada, forcing them into low paying, service jobs, such as

those in the hotel and tourism industry. Given that many ofthese employees are also visible minorities and female, theyencounter additional barriers.

These factors result in a work force with a high turnoverrate, low job satisfaction, and with no particular interest inworking in the tourism industry, other than as a way(temporarily, they hope) of surviving economically.

Road, Transit, Parking and Trail Capacity

Gridlock has become a daily reality inToronto and is becominga competitive disadvantage for the city.The GTA is thefourth-most congested area in North America, trailing onlyLos Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area and Chicago. Con-gestion costs the GTA $2.2 billion each year. Commuting inthe GTA currently takes 32 per cent longer than it would infree-flowing conditions. By 2031, that will rise to 40 per cent.The environmental cost of congestion is also unsustainable.GTA residents made approximately 10 million car trips perday in 2004 and were responsible for approximately 14million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions. If this trendcontinues, the time needed to travel by car fromTorontoto Hamilton during peak hours, for example, will nearlydouble — from an hour-and-a-half in 2000 to about threehours in 2021.

A content analysis of the open-ended questions from theResourceAudit which asked respondents to give suggestionsof what needs to be done to improve tourism inToronto,revealed that accessibility and transportation was a key areathat needs to be improved. Suggestions included: improvingpublic transit (Rail link to airport, Light rail links across thecity) and road infrastructure, improving parking, implement-ing customer service programs for taxi drivers, and assigningmore pedestrian only streets.

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In discussing the results of the PRTDAudit with the industrystakeholders, a number of key observations were made asto why the current weaknesses that were uncovered exist.These also will constrain efforts to implement improvementsunless they too are addressed.

1.Toronto Does Not Have a Common Vision forDestination Development

Over the past several years significant efforts have beenmade to enhanceToronto’s attractiveness by offeringexciting things for both residents and visitors to see anddo.These things have included building new or enhancingexiting attractions and adding new or improved infra-structure. They have included staging new events andincreasing the excitement level of existing ones.Thisreport and the PRTD Research Report details many newinitiatives that have taken place over the past five years.It also indicates what new initiatives are planned for thefuture. In spite of this activity it can be saidToronto’s planfor destination development does not share a commonvision that moves it towards establishing a planned andstrategic position in the marketplace.

While all positive,many of these initiatives could be viewedas a series of one-off projects, executed with the best ofintentions but done without a bigger picture in mind.Having a common vision for destination developmentleads a destination to a place that, by design, ensuresattractiveness, efficiency, notoriety and distinction.Thetourism industry consultations associated with the PRTD

process revealed that there was significant agreementaround this premise. It was recognized the tourism indus-try does have a number of organizations and individualsthat have done a good job rallying the industry, especiallyin times of challenge.The industry is to be congratulatedfor having managed through many challenging and difficultcircumstances. However, it was agreed those efforts havebeen reactive in nature. When it comes to a proactiveand collective approach to development the industryappears to be fragmented and ineffective.

This will continue to be a challenge in the future.Throughthe PRTD process, no fewer than 93 specific opportunitiesfor action have been identified, each of which would begood for tourism development.As has been the case inthe past, one can anticipate that these 93 opportunitieswill compete with each other for resources and attention.We will run the risk of spinning a lot of wheels, but notdriving anywhere in particular unless a mechanism isdeveloped for discussing and reaching agreement as towhat Toronto’s common tourism development visionshould be, and how the various possible actions contributeto its achievement.

2.Toronto’s Value Proposition can be Improved

The PRTD research revealed that there has been a nega-tive shift in how visitors view the value of a Torontoexperience.Toronto’s “value” proposition has diminishedthe past several years.A destination’s “value proposition”is defined by whether visitors feel that “they’ve received

OBSERVATIONS

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more than they expected.” The destinations that scorethe highest are those that deliver more than the guestexpected especially against a backdrop of dollars spent forthat experience.Value is determined by, among other things,high calibre experiences, attractions and entertainment,as well as by excellent accommodation, dining, the friend-liness of the people, the cleanliness of the streets, theaesthetics of the destination, and the ease and comfortwith which people can get around to experience thedestination.

A number of factors have contributed to the erosion ofToronto’s perception as a “good value” destination. Cer-tainly the gained strength of the Canadian dollar over thepast several years has increased the price of a Torontoexperience compared with international competitors,especially for U.S.ThereforeToronto needs to increasethe value it offers visitors to compensate for this change.

Perceptions of Toronto as a thriving theatre destinationhave waned as the number of unique blockbuster pro-ductions on stage has decreased. Perceptions related toToronto’s infrastructure and appearance connected totraffic congestion, homeless people on the sidewalks, trashon the streets and the apparent belief that Torontoniansand front line workers in the service and hospitalityindustry are not welcoming and friendly all havenegatively impactedToronto’s value proposition.

3.No Collective Process Exists to ManageToronto’s Business Into the Future

Sectors of the industry do currently operate excellentplanning processes. For example,TourismToronto hasadopted a business planning approach to destination

marketing. It establishes both annual and multi-year goals,and marks its progress against well defined objectives andperformance measures. Industry members participate in theplanning process through sub-committees, and effectivelyoffer industry intelligence to guide staff decision-making.

What is lacking is a similar approach to broader destinationdevelopment.

In order to succeed as a viable tourism destination and togrow visitation numbers and revenue a proactive businessmanagement model or process should be established.Such a forward looking process would attempt to betterorganize the industry in order that it can become moresuccessful. It would also attempt to maximize the indus-try’s collective efforts to grow the business.The modelwould look to the future to determine opportunitiesand challenges and then identify proactive strategies toaddress the issues. It also would become a mechanism toimprove industry communications and relations. It wouldattempt to get all involved on the same page and reducesthe propensity for the creation and implementation ofone-off activity. It should be established to eliminate thefragmented efforts that have been evident in Toronto’srecent past.

4.The Importance of Tourism to Toronto isNot Widely Recognized

While tourism continues to grow globally and theeconomic impact of tourism reaches record levels, inToronto, the impact of the industry is lost on many.ThePRTD report documents the positive impacts thattourism brings to the City of Toronto.These impacts arerealized in increased GDP, employment, and tax revenues.

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In addition, developing the tourism industry enhancesthe quality of life for Torontonians in general. Moreattractions, entertainment, shopping, and dining optionscan be supported because of visitors.And a sense ofpride in community is engendered by visitors enjoyingthemselves in our city and increasing our internationalprofile.As demonstrated in destinations around theglobe, a flourishing tourism market generates positiveoutcomes for most every destination.When tourism toa destination grows, so does its economic well being.

The lack of awareness regarding the importance and thepositive impacts of tourism to the City ofToronto impactsthe tourism industry, and its ability to thrive. People whounderstand the importance of tourism tend to be predis-posed to go out of their way to be nice to strangers andto take the time to answer their questions or explainhow things work. If people have a high level of knowledgeabout the community, they can be very effective “tourismambassadors.” They can make suggestions about things tosee and do, where to stay or eat dinner, and how to getfrom place to place.Average citizens, as well as the frontline workers in the hospitality industry, stores, restaurants,taxis, police, transit and parking lot operators all have apotential role to play.

Within the public realm decisions that impact tourismdirectly or indirectly are being made without the knowledgeor understanding of the importance of tourism. Examplesinclude matters related to beautification, street closings,policing, public transit, maintenance and roads and traffic.Consideration is typically given to the residents and localbusinesses.As a result public policy and bylaws can presentbarriers for the tourist and the tourism industry.

For example the desire to promote the use of publictransit and discourage automobile use sometimes results

in limited parking being provided at venues.Visitors travelingfrom beyond the city’s boundaries may find it difficult touse transit, especially on holidays and weekends whenless frequent service is provided. Motor coaches bringingvisitors from outside the city often run into difficultywith parking and no-idling regulations when they stop fortheir passengers.

The PRTDAudit revealed that most businesses inToronto are highly oriented to serving the local market.This is not surprising when one considers that at 5.1 mil-lion people, the GTA market represents one of the mostconcentrated and affluent markets in North America.However, this advantage creates a challenge for developingtourism experiences and taking them to market since thefocus of most businesses is on developing and marketingexperiences for their local clientele. While it is encourag-ing that 92% of the survey respondents saw tourism as agrowth opportunity for their businesses, only about 40%currently actively market or participate in tourist-orientedpackages or promotions. Raising business’ awareness ofthe opportunities afforded by tourism and making it easierfor them to develop and tourist-ready product wouldincrease the depth of Toronto’s product experiences thatare accessible to tourists.

Raising the awareness of the importance of tourismmight be considered a starting point to moving towardsbecoming a premier ranked tourist destination. Greaterunderstanding of the value of tourism by all individualswithin the City of Toronto would make discussions aboutother areas of needed improvement easier and moreefficient. Once local residents, business, elected officials,municipal staff, the media etc. understand and appreciatethe upside opportunity tourism offers, then, and onlythen, will Toronto move to the next level as a desirabletourism destination.

27

Based on the findings the following over arching recommen-dation has been developed in consultation with the SteeringCommittee, industry leaders and tourism stakeholders inToronto.

Under the Direction of Toronto’s TourismLeadership Group Create and Implement aFormal Tourism Destination Development Planfor Toronto

The plan must focus on three specific areas of importance:

1. Address Toronto’s Product and ExperienceDeficiencies and Improve ItsValue Proposition

2. Establish an Annual Tourism Business ManagementModel

3. Increase the Awareness of the Importance of TourismtoToronto

The PRTD process has identified a need to develop atourism destination development plan, a plan that is definitivein nature, has a common vision and encompasses all aspectsof Toronto’s product, experience and infrastructure gaps.The plan becomes the road map for future developmentand works in tandem with the City of Toronto’s ProsperityAgenda and the Province of Ontario’s Competitive Frame-work. It establishes agreed action priorities that the tourismindustry can embrace and support. It engages a multitude ofstakeholders, those directly involved in tourism and thosewho provide related services. It identifies short termstrategies that will have immediate impact onToronto’stourism offering as well as a list of medium to long terminitiatives that will build the destination’s attractiveness intothe future.

The plan should capitalize on work that is already beingdone, though currently often in isolation from tourism sectorstakeholders and without explicit regard for the impact ondestination development. It is recommended that the tourismindustry establish mechanisms for keeping up-to-date withthe various initiatives and identify opportunities for makingstrategic interventions.This will serve several purposes includingbuilding higher levels of understanding, engagement, andsupport and taking advantage of synergistic opportunitiesto support tourism while accomplishing other city-buildinggoals. Current initiatives that offer strong potential for im-mediate impact on tourism destination development include:

• Waterfront development

• Union Station redevelopment and rail link toPearson Airport

• The City’s initiatives to enhance the visual appealthrough the “Clean & Beautiful City” office

• Various transportation enhancement projects

• The City’s initiatives to address homelessnessand panhandling.

1.Demonstrate Toronto’s Superior Value ByAddressing the Experience Deficiencies

Toronto’s tourism industry has a tremendous desire toimproveToronto’s status as an attractive and thrivingtourism destination. It once enjoyed notoriety as anexciting and desirable place to visit, whether for pleasureof business. It could be said a trip toToronto was “goodvalue.” Recently, however, many factors have negativelyimpactedToronto’s ability to maintain momentum in thisarea and specifically its desire and ability to be among thebest.Toronto’s “value proposition” has diminished to thepoint where it is impacting its ability to compete consis-tently and successfully in the tourism marketplace.

RECOMMENDATIONS

28

It is recommended that the industry adopt as its goalfor the future that Toronto deliver more as a touristdestination than the guest expected. No mater what theexperience, no matter where they went or what they did,we should want visitors to leave saying “I got more than Iexpected.”We will then know that they got “good value.”

This can only be achieved if Toronto’s tourism industryleads a collective effort to address its deficiencies andimprove on the delivery of its tourism offering.The keycomponent to the success of this strategy is that theeffort be a collective one.All aspects of theToronto thevisitors experience must be positive.This will requiremoving beyond the traditional tourism products andservices and to locations, experiences, activities that arebroad and far reaching.Therefore this must become aToronto effort not just a tourism effort.

As is summarized in Appendix 1, the PRTD process iden-tified a large number of potential actions that could beundertaken to increaseToronto’s value proposition. It isrecommended that the first focus be given to the elementsthat impact the most visitors. By addressing these keyareas it is believedToronto will deliver superior value toall those who visit as well as to all those who callToronto home.

Quality of the Visitor Experience

• Hospitality Excellence: adopt a “We’ve BeenExpectingYou” Attitude

• Raise Service Standards — at all visitor touch points

• Destination Animation — create a “buzz”

• ImproveVisual Appeal — work with Clean &Beautiful City Office

• Improve Availability ofVisitor Information

• ImproveVisitorWay Finding and Signage

• ReduceTraffic Congestion andTransportationEnhancements

• Become More Motor Coach Friendly

Experience Renewal and Development

• Waterfront Development

• Ontario Place Revitalization

• Exhibition Place Development

• Blockbuster Exhibits AGO/ROM —Attract the exhibits that demand visitation

• Attract Major Events — when we need them

• Upgrade Heritage Sites — better tell theTorontoheritage story

• Mass Entertainment Complex — a year round attractor

MORE SPECIFICALLY:

Quality of the Visitor Experience

• Hospitality Excellence: adopt a “We’veBeen Expecting You” attitude

Implement a program that positively addresses theperception that visitors toToronto don’t feel welcomed.The initiative will start within the hospitality industryand be expanded to include any individual that couldencounter a visitor. It is all about attitude.The beliefis that if Torontonians adopt an attitude that suggeststhey were expecting visitors they would take a morecaring and accommodating approach greeting andservicing that particular guest.

• Raise Service Standards – at all visitortouch points

Service training exists currently within individual busi-nesses in Toronto. However, it appears the delivery ofconsistent service is the issue.We need to “raise thebar” and eradicate poor service levels by promoting“best practices” and investigating ways of addressingpoor service standards.

In the implementation phase of the plan, more specificstrategies should be developed, such as employeeaccreditation, employee and business recognitionprograms, improved training tactics for small business,and encouraging an enhanced customer service ori-entation amongst service providers and enforcementagencies.

• Destination Animation – Create a “Buzz”

Adding value is about getting more than expected.Destination animation delivers on this objective bysurprising people with entertainment, opportunitiesto interact, and interesting things to experience asthey move around the city.When visitors sense thereis a “buzz” in a destination and that they are part ofthat buzz, they experience a positive emotional response.

Achieving higher degrees of destination animation inToronto won’t be difficult.The City and the BIAsalready delivers on this — for example through itsmany street festivals, programming its public squaresand encouraging public art installations.The notionhere is to do this more frequently at those locationsvisitors congregate outside a formal event or festivalsetting.

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Destination animation can take on many forms.At itsroot is some form of entertainment found in locationswhere visitors congregate. Street musicians andbuskers are common examples of the entertainmentoffered and performing in public spaces are perfectvenues for such animation. In the implementationphase of the plan more specific strategies for animationshould be developed

• Visual Appeal

Interviews with stakeholders in the travel trade sectoridentified the deterioration of Toronto’s visual appealas a deterrent to repeat visitation.Visual appeal is arelative term that means different things to differentpeople. However, the point here is that poor visualappeal has only recently emerged as a concern.Toronto traditionally has enjoyed a reputation for beingclean, green and safe, but that is not the case anylonger. It is recommended as part of the DestinationDevelopment Plan that an industry task team beformed that begins to identify and address the keyissues that are feeding this perception.The PRTDresearch identified the actions that the City hasbegun to undertake to address visual appeal issues.The industry task team should begin by establishingcloser liaison with the City officials responsible forthese efforts

• Visitor Information

Providing relevant information to visitors once theyare in the destination is key to ensuring they have aenjoyable experience. It is recommended that anextensive review of the current levels of visitor infor-mation distribution mechanisms be undertaken. Once

this is complete, specific strategies can be developedto address the gaps in this area.The City of Toronto’sTourism Section has been active in this area, and it issuggested they spearhead this initiative and incorporatethe needed strategies into the implementation phaseof the Destination Development Plan.

• Visitor Wayfinding/Signage

Gaps exist in Toronto tourism signage and wayfinding.Destinations that have effective visitor wayfinding andsignage offer visitors a more enjoyable and efficientexperience.More specific study is required to determinethe best strategy for improvement. It is recommendedthat a specific industry led task team be establishedto identify an action plan. City staff must be part ofthe strategy, and it is understood work in this areahas already begun.

• Traffic Congestion

This is not a new challenge. Significant time and energyhas been expended to help alleviate this growingproblem. It is recommended senior tourism officialsbegin to participate in discussions around improvingand dealing withToronto’s accessibility challenges.The belief among the industry is that there is not atourism perspective being presented in the contextof discussion and planning. In addition the tourismindustry must identify what it needs and wantsrelated to growing traffic congestion issues in orderto positively affect its ability to compete more suc-cessfully. The Development Plan must identify amechanism for this to happen.

30

• Become More Motor Coach Friendly

With leadership from the Ontario Motor CoachAssociation, the Destination Development Plan mustidentify the specific issues that are having a negativeimpact on motor coach operators who travel to andwithin Toronto.The City has been successful in under-standing and dealing with some of the issues. However,barriers still exist for motor coach operators. It isrecommended, once the issues are identified, that anindustry led task group work with City officials totackle the remaining issues.

Experience Renewal and Development

• Waterfront Development — connect totourism experiences

It is recommended that private sector leaders becomeactive participants in discussions and planning aroundToronto’s waterfront development. Significant oppor-tunities exist but currently it is perceived that a“tourism perspective” is missing.

• Ontario Place Revitalization andExhibition Place Development

These two assets are probablyToronto’s most significantunderdeveloped opportunity for creating an excitingattractor. Ontario Place is a Government of Ontarioowned asset on theToronto’s waterfront which holdspotential for development as a new, year round visitorattraction. It is recommended under the DestinationDevelopment Plan, that formal steps be taken to ex-plore a strategy to revitalize Ontario Place. Similarly,the ongoing development of Exhibition Place offers amajor future opportunity.This City of Toronto ownedasset already has taken steps to intensify its use andactivity levels, but it is believed further opportunitiesmay exist, especially within the context of any newdevelopment plans for Ontario Place.

• Blockbuster Exhibits AGO/ROM — attractexhibits that demand visitation

It is recommended that a more strategic and coordi-nated approach be taken to identifying key internationalblockbuster opportunities and attracting them to aToronto venue.At the present time, each venueundertakes this activity on its own.Toronto’s key venuescapable of hosting a large scale blockbuster exhibitioninclude the recently renovated ROM andAGO, as wellas the Ontario Science Centre andToronto Zoo.Creative cooperative partnerships among venuesmight also be considered, thereby expanding ourhosting capacity.

• Attract Other Major Events

The industry is encouraged to work with CityTourism staff as well as others, to secure events thatare demand generators for visitors.The City enjoys atrack record for attracting significant events. Its largerannual “home grown” events such as theTorontoInternational Film Festival, International Car Show,Royal Agricultural Fair, and Caribana are significanttourist draws. However, an ongoing proactive andstrategic approach should be considered.TheBusiness Management Model speaks to attractingexhibits and events in the years, and at the timeof year, when incremental tourism business is mostneeded.

• Upgrade Heritage Sites — tell the Torontoheritage story

Toronto has a rich heritage that is celebrated in anynumber of historic sites located throughout the City.Unfortunately those sites have, for the most part,been underdeveloped in terms of their ability topresent compelling experiences and attract largenumbers of tourists. It is recommended that underthe Destination Development Plan, action be takento identify those facilities that offer the greatestpotential to attract visitors and that a strategy bedeveloped to enhance those properties.The Bicen-tennial of theWar of 1812 offers an interestingopportunity to elevate the profile of Toronto’sheritage story and build synergies and connectionsbetween individual attractions.The Province ofOntario is helping to coordinate a province-wideprogram for the years 2012-2014. Planning andcommunity outreach has begun in many communities,includingToronto.An opportunity exists to use thisoccasion as a target date to have a select group ofToronto’s historic attractions upgraded and offeringenhanced experiences.

• Mass Entertainment Complex — a yearround attractor

Continue to be proactive in attracting and pursuingthe next major new visitor attraction. It has beenseveral years since a new entertainment complexattraction was built in Toronto.The Ministry ofTourism’s 2004 “Factors InfluencingVisitor’s ChoicestoVisit Urban Destinations” report (discussedearlier in this report) indicated that investing in anew entertainment complex would likely have agreater impact on visitation than investing in anyother kind of attractor.

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2.Establish an Annual Tourism BusinessManagement Model

This model, when created, should form the basis for acollective strategic approach to growing tourism toToronto.This model would strive to identify opportunitiesthat offer the greatest potential for both short and longterm visitation growth.

The primary components of the model include:

• A comprehensiveTourism Investment Strategy

• A 10 – 15 year forecast calendar that tracks majorevents, conventions, activities currently scheduledfor the City

• A detailed and proactive plan to address gap periodsin visitation as identified in the calendar

• Strategies to deal with labour shortages, capitalizingon work already being done with the tourism sector

• Strategies to ensure ongoing competitive advantagein attracting conventions, such as monitoring theneed for and feasibility of expanded or new meetingand convention facility/venues.

In addition the model will establish mechanisms forcollective destination management including improvedindustry communications, cooperation between sectorsand related partners, long-term business building strate-gies (attract business in need periods with new reasonsto visit), training and information sharing.

The goal is to establish an annual proactive businessmanagement process designed to enhance the destinationsopportunities to attract more visitors and increasedrevenue.The plan will be long term, establishing 10-year,

5-year and 3-year goals and strategies.The BusinessManagement Process will set priorities and targets, identifyand monitor actions and tasks, and monitor progress ina collaborative fashion across the industry.The Planwould be refreshed on an annual basis to respond tonew opportunities or challenges, and targets and tacticsfor the following year would be set.

Tourism Investment Strategy

Significant investment has recently been made inToronto’s tourism offering.The PRTD report documentsmany of these initiatives. But going forward the successof Toronto in moving to next level will depend onimplementing a proactive and strategic tourisminvestment strategy that helps address its currentproduct and experience deficiencies.The goal ofsuch a strategy would be as follows:

• Direct investment where it is needed most

• Direct investment initially where it will garner “quickwins”

• Maximize the effectiveness of attracting newinvestment by having collective agreement on whatis needed

• Leverage public investment by “speaking with onevoice”

Forecast Calendar

In the past,Toronto’s tourism industry, specificallythose businesses that benefit form the meetings andconventions market, have come together to increasethe success rate of attracting major M&C business tothe City. Understanding what business was available,when the business was needed in the city (specific

32

year) and what it would take to close a particularaccount increased the success rate to attract thatbusiness. In addition the industry and government cametogether and created the Convention DevelopmentFund, monies used to overcome specific financialdisadvantagesToronto had compared to destinationsthat were competing for the same meeting or con-vention. In a sense this was “business management.”This recommendation suggests that a similar proactiveapproach to business planning is warranted targetingall potential tourism markets.The goal would be tohave a significant demand generator taking placeduring every season, and to avoid scheduling conflictsbetween demand generators.

Convention and Meeting Facility Expansion

As part of the Business Management Model a processmust be established to determineToronto’s abilityto compete in the meetings and convention marketspecifically related to capacity restrictions and config-urations of its current facilities and venues.Thetourism industry identified the need to explore thedevelopment of a plan to expand current conventionspace.

Labour Shortages

Another key component of the Business ManagementModel deals with labour shortagesToronto’s tourismindustry will encounter in the future. It should benoted that much has and is being done focusing onthis area.The tourism industry is already engaged toone extent or the other in understanding the impactthis challenge could have on its future ability tothrive. It is recommended those, and other activities

be part of this plan. It is suggested a formal task teambe established under the plan that involves those al-ready involved in the work and includes those leaderswho also need to be at the table.

3.Increase the Awareness of theImportance of Tourism

Tourism is the world’s fastest growing industry and inmany communities around the world it is the numberone source of economic impact and jobs. In Torontotourism is big business and is a key export industry thatplays an important role in the growth of our economyby generating employment, foreign exchange earnings,investment and regional development. In 2004 tourismToronto created more than 57,000 jobs and $1.7 billionin labour income.Tourists spent more than $4 billiongenerating $1.8 billion in taxes including $105 million inmunicipal taxes. Unfortunately not enoughTorontoniansrecognize the important role tourism plays in the healthof our community, not only economically but also from alifestyle perspective.

In order to enhanceToronto’s position as an attractiveand exciting tourism destination an increased under-standing of the industry’s importance toToronto isneeded. It is believed this understanding will pave the wayfor many of the needed improvement strategies identifiedin this report.Toronto’s ability to respond to these vitalrecommendations will only improve if, at all levels, agreater appreciation for tourism is garnered.

Specifically it is recommended that the following strategiesbe undertaken in order to positively impact tourismawareness levels.

33

• Identify Positive Impacts of Tourism toToronto

o Create an up to date and accurate communicationtool that details the facts aboutToronto’s tourismindustry

o Make this information readily available to all who areinterested, initially to all those in the tourism industryand then to broader constituents who have a armslength relationship to tourism

• Effectively Communicate and Speak WithOne Voice

o It is crucial to tell a consistent tourism impact storyensuring that at every opportunity a standard messagecan be delivered, and through this consistent and fre-quent communication, awareness levels will increase

o Utilize the expertise of the tourism industry’s com-munications experts to develop a specific tourismawareness strategy that the industry understandsand embraces

o Target Influencers including the general public,business leaders, elected officials, City staff

• Utilize the City’s Prosperity Agenda toReinforce the Message

o Tourism is imbedded as a sector throughout the fourpillars of the City’s Prosperity Agenda; it therebyprovides a springboard to reinforce the importanceof tourism messages that should continue to used asthe implementation plans for both initiatives unfold

• Mobilize Residents – Make Them TourismAmbassadors

o Educate local residents and equip them to be goodhosts, active, proud, informed and engaged, invitingfriends and relatives to visit the City’s tourismattractions

o Since 49% of Toronto’s population are new Canadianswho may not know the city,we should create a residentbased “experienceToronto” programme for firstgeneration Canadians

o Toronto’s residents offer a significant opportunity topositively impact tourist’s experiences by capitalizingon the inherent notion of “pride of place”, enlistTorontonians to serve as ambassadors for tourism

o Develop an initiative that mobilizes this resident re-source by giving them tools to support and promotetheir home as a place anxious to welcome visitors

o Utilize the experience gained whenToronto launcheda similar program in the mid-nineties

o Incorporate the “We’ve Been ExpectingYou” theme(detailed earlier in this report) in all communications

34

The Premier-rankedTourist Destination project has provided a clear appraisal of Toronto’s position in the tourism market-place. A critical finding in other Ontario jurisdictions that have implemented the recommendations arising from their PRTDprojects is having tourism industry “buy-in” and more importantly, proactive industry involvement in future strategic planningis an imperative. In Toronto the industry is anticipating the release of the PRTD report. Under the direction of Toronto’sLeadership Group a specific implementation plan will be developed.

In partnership with senior representatives from the Ontario Ministry of Tourism and the City of Toronto, the LeadershipGroup will undertake to understand the implications of the PRTD findings and create a process that will lead to animplementation strategy.

The implementation strategy should be developed using a combination of resources to do the work:

• Tourism industry partners

• Other sector partners

• Governments – Municipal, Provincial, Federal

• A combination of all of the above

NEXT STEPS

APPEN

DIX

1:DETAILED

GAPANDOPPORT

UNITYASSESSM

ENT

TheresearchandconsultationundertakenthroughthePRTDprojectuncoveredalargenumberofspecificfindingsaboutopportunitiestoenhanceToronto’stourist

product.ThesearedescribedinthePRTDResearchReport,butaresummarizedbelowinalphabetical“catalogue”formatformoreconvenientreference.Thereare6

categoriesoffindings:

1.1HospitalityandService

1.2MarketReadiness

1.3ProductDevelopmentOpportunities

1.4MarketSegmentDevelopmentOpportunities

1.5PublicRealmandInfrastructure

1.6Sustainability

Possibleopportunitiestoactoneachfindingaresummarizedandnumbered.Theactionopportunitiesarecolourcodedtoindicatewhichoftherecommendedaction

themestheysupport.

ActionClassification/TypeofAction

AddressProductDeficiencies,StimulateExperienceRenewalandDevelopment

AddressQualityoftheVisitorExperience

ManagetheBusiness

IncreaseTourismAwareness

Eachactionopportunityisaccordedatimelinepriority.Theseprioritiesarepreliminarysuggestionsforfurtherdiscussionwiththeindustryinthecontextofdeveloping

thePRTDImplementationPlan.Shorttermprioritiesareitemseitherincludedincurrentworkprogramsorwhichaddressfundamentalneedscuttingacrossthesector.

Itissuggestedthattheseshouldbethefocusofattentionin2008.Itissuggestedthatconsiderationofmid-termprioritieswouldbeginin2009/10,andlongtermpriori-

tiesin2011orlater.Itisrecognizedthatthesepreliminarytimelinesuggestionsmayshifttotakeadvantageofemergingopportunitiesforsynergyorinresponseto

changingissues.

1.1HOSPITALITYANDSERVICE

ThePRTDprocessidentifiedanumberofspecificareaswhereTorontocouldimprovethelevelofserviceitoffersitsvisitors.Thiswouldincreasevisitors’levelsof

satisfaction,pleasureandperceivedvalue.

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Accessibilitytopeople

withspecialneeds

Customerservice

DirectionalSignage

Findings

•Wheelchairaccessibilityanimportant

considerationto20-30%oftravelmarket

•Torontodoesnothaveatourist-oriented

accessibilityguideorwidelyofferservices

suchasshort-termwheelchairrental;

WheelTransnotaccessibletovisitors

•28%ofoperatorsdonotaccommodate

wheelchairs,andmanyothersofferonly

partialaccommodation

•Visitorsarelesssatisfiedwiththeirexperi-

encesinTorontotodaythanadecadeago

•Manysmalloperatorswithunevenaccess

totraining

•35%ofauditrespondentsdonotprovide

customerservicetrainingfortheiremploy-

ees

•PoorlydevelopedinTorontoandsecond

mostimportantweaknessindestination

notedinvisitorsurvey

OpportunitiesforAction

•Furtherexploregapsinconsultation

withCityAccessibilityOfficeanddevelop

actionplan

•Furtherexploreservicegapsandoppor-

tunitiestoaddressacrosssector,including

serviceproviders(e.g.,taxis,transit)as

wellasattractionsandcommercialac-

commodation

•“CoordinatedStreetFurniture”program

willimprovewayfindingforpedestriansin

2008/9;CityEDCT-Tourismstaffisdevel-

opinginformationcontent

•Gapsremainingincludedirectionalsignage

from

airportandtokeydestinationswithin

city;RequestCitytodevelopstrategyto

address

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

1 2 3 4

Priority

Mid

Term

Short

Term

Short

Term

Mid

Term

InformationServices

Rickshaws

Taxiservice

TourGuideQuality

Assurance

•Surveyindicatedthat85%ofvisitorswho

usedcounsellingserviceswere“very

satisfied”withTorontocomparedto47%

ofgeneralhotelguests

•Inadequacyofvisitorinformationservices

afrequentcommentduringstakeholder

consultations

•Manycomplaintshavebeenreceivedfrom

visitorssurprisedbyrickshawchargesand

intimidationtacticssometimesusedby

operators

•Situationhassignificantlyimprovedsince

2006,whenCityintroducedstricter

regulationsover“pedicab”operations,

butincidentsofregulationcontravention

continuetobereported

•Stakeholderconsultationfrequently

recordedcommentsaboutunevendriver

knowledge,customerservice,levelsof

cleanliness;AmbassadorCabsaregood,but

theminorityofoperators

•AnyonecanbeatourguideinToronto;no

regulationsorrequirements;IndustryAsso-

ciation(CTGA)hasrequestedCitysupport

forcertificationandlicensing

•Interviewswithtraveltraderepresentatives

indicatedchallengeinfindingspecialtytour

operatorscapableofaccommodatinglarge

groups

•Guidesdon’toftenprovidemultilingual

services

•CityEDCT-Tourismhasbegunseveralsmall

scaleservicesinrecentyearsandisdoinga

businessplanin2008inconsultationwith

infoserviceprovidersandTourismToronto

•Monitorcomplaintsandoperatorsand

workwithCityMunicipalLicensingstaffto

increaseenforcementlevelsasrequired

•Ensurethathotels,entertainmentvenues,

etc.,areawareofregulationsandwhoto

contactiftheyobserveinfractions

•Explorefindingingreaterdetailinconsulta-

tionwithCityMunicipalStandardsand

Licensingandindustry

•CTGAisdevelopingaproposalfor

standardsandcurriculum;EDCT-Tourism

willfacilitatewiderreviewandconsultation

withintheindustryandworkwithMunicipal

LicensingandStandardsDivisiontoacton

Associationrequest

5 6 7 8 9

Short

Term

Short

Term

Short

Term

Short

Term

Mid

Term

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

Welcoming

WiFi

•Visitorslesssatisfiedwiththeirexperiences

inTorontotodaythanadecadeago;Cana-

dianvisitorsdonotconsiderthecitytobe

welcoming

•TorontoHydroTelecomandWireless

Torontoexpandinghotspotnetworks

acrosscity

•RecentCityEDCT-Tourisminitiativesto

increasevisitoraccesstofriendlywell

informedstaffandresidentshavebegunto

addressissue

•Exploreopportunitiestoextendandexpand

approach,withthegoalthatthevisitorfeels

welllookedafterandwelcomedfrom

arrival

inTorontotodeparture;LinkedwithOppor-

tunityNo.2,5and81.

•Explorecurrentparticipationbytourist

sectorbusinessesandevaluateneedto

facilitateconnectionsandpromotethis

serviceavailabilitymorewidely.

10 11 12

Short

Term

Short

Term

Mid

Term

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

Multi-lingualservices

Packages&

Multi-experience

passes

•Poorlydevelopedincomparisonwithother

internationaldestinations;potentialimpediment

toattractingmulti-culturallocalresidentsas

wellasoverseasvisitors

•Somerecentimprovementinmultilingual

marketingwithTourismToronto’sdevelopment

offournon-Englishwebsites,butin-city

multilingualserviceisnotwidespread

•Auditrespondentsdemonstratearelatively

lowlevelofparticipationinworkingwith

DMOordevelopingpackagesorcross-

promotions

•CityPasshasbeenofferedinTorontosince

2006;onlymulti-experiencepassofferedon

aconsistentbasis,andincludesonlytopsix

attractions;

•TourismTorontopromotesmember

packagesonwebsite;typically100+

individualoffers

•Exploreservicegapsinmoredetailand

developcosteffectivestrategiesfor

facilitatingimprovedlevelsofmulti-lingual

capacityofoperators;possiblelinkwith

OpportunityNo.14

•Stronginterestdemonstratedbyauditre-

spondents(92%saidtourismdevelopment

wasimportanttobusinessgrowth;60%of

operatorswhocurrentlydon’tpackage

wouldbeinterestedindoingso)

•Furtherexplorepossiblemechanismsand

strategiesforfacilitatingpackagedevelop-

mentandothertourismdevelopment

tacticsforoperators;

13 14

Mid

Term

Mid

Term

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

1.2ADDRESSIN

GMARKETREADIN

ESS

ThePRTDprocessidentifiedsomeareasinwhichthespecificneedsofthetourismsectorarenotwellservedbyTorontoexperiences.Theselimittheextenttowhich

touristsareabletoenjoyTorontoexperiences.

PriceCompetitiveness

RegionalPartnerships

SightseeingTourSales

StoreClosures

onHolidays

•“ValueforMoney”is#1issueforvisitors

•Torontoconsideredahighpriceddestina-

tion;exacerbatedby2007exchangerate

adjustmentsandendofGSTrebate

•Auditrevealedanupwardpricingtrendin

allsectorsbutretail

•Publicmuseumandgalleryadmissionisfree

inmanyotherjurisdictions;international

visitorssurprisedtheyhavetopay

•Cross-promotionsandpackagesbetween

Torontoandotherdestinationsare

relativelyfew

•Everyoperatorisresponsibleforownsales

distributionnetwork;canbeabarrierfor

newer,smallercompanies,andconfusing

forconsumertoinvestigateandfindtour

options

•Illegalstreetvendingbytouroperators

anissue

•Currentlegislationrequiresstorestoclose

oneightholidaysayear,oftenwhenvisitors

aretakinglongweekendsinToronto

•Consultationrevealedconsensusthatprice

competitivenessneedstobeaddressedby

offeringgreatervalue;increasingvalueis

thecoreobjectiveofmostopportunities

identified

•Furtherexploreopportunitiesandbarriers

•Explorefurtherinconsultationwith

operators

•CityEDCT-Tourismisundertakingpolicy

reviewandbringingrecommendations

forwardtoCouncilinMarch2008

15 16 17 18

Short

Term

Long

Term

Mid

Term

Short

Term

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

Ticketaccess

•Grouptravelcan’treserveblocksoftheatre

orentertainmentticketsfarenoughinad-

vance;othercitieshavebetterdistribution

networks

•Showsandeventswiththemosttourist

drawpotentialcanselloutinlocalmarket;

notofferedtotourists

•BoxOfficehoursforsmallervenueslimited,

althoughTO

TIXandwideruseofon-line

andcallcentreticketdistributionsystems

arereducingimportanceofboxoffice

access

•44%ofauditrespondentsdon’thave

toll-freephonenumbers

•DiscussfurtherwithGroupTraveland

theatre,concertandeventsvenue

representatives

19Mid

Term

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

Archaeology

Architecture

Arts&LiveMusic

(galleriesandclubs)

Blockbuster

Programming

•Torontohasaninterestingarchaeological

heritagecurrentlynotaccessibletothegen-

eralpublic;otherdestinationshaveturned

archaeologyintotouristproduct

(e.g.,Montreal’sPointe-à-Callière)

•Strongproductofferingandincreased

awarenessduetonewbuildingsby“land-

mark”architects

•DoorsOpengetsstronglocalparticipation

eachyear

•Architecturalexperienceshavenotbeen

developedforthegeneralpublicortourist

audiences

•Strongproductoffering,notorientedto

touristmarkets

•“LivewithCulture”and“NuitBlanche”

programshavebeguntoelevateawareness

ofproduct

•13ofCity’sculturaliconswereextensively

expandedorrenovatedbetween2002/8;

haveenhancedphysicalcapacitytomount

majorinternationalexhibitionsandprograms,

butneedenhancedsourcesoffinancing

•Furtherinvestigatepotentialwith

stakeholders

•AninterestoftheCity’sCleanandBeautiful

Office,whichhasstartedanannualFestival

ofArchitectureandDesign

•FurtherinvestigatepotentialwiththisOffice

andotherstakeholders

•Furtherinvestigatepotentialwith

stakeholders

•Strategic,destination-wideapproachrecom-

mended;Manageatenyearcalendarand

collectivelydeterminebestopportunities

toanimategaps;formcross-industry

partnershipswithpublicandcorporate

sectortofocusresourcesondeveloping

keyopportunities

20 21 22 23

Long

Term

Mid

Term

Long

Term

Mid-

Term

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

1.3PRODUCTDEVELO

PMENTOPPORTUNITIES

ThePRTDprocessrevealedthatTorontocurrentlyisnotwidelyconsideredtobea“must-see”destinationinitscoretravelmarkets.“Excitementlevels”aboutbeingin

thecityasreportedbyvisitorshavedecreasedsincethelate1990’s.YettheCityhasawealthofproduct.ThePRTDAuditandconsultativeprocesssuggestedthatthere

ispotentialtofurtherdevelopthefollowingassetssothattheycanmoresuccessfullyattracttouristaudiences.Formoreconvenientreference,theyarelistedinalpha-

beticalorder.

Boating&Cruising

CulinaryExperiences

EntertainmentVenues

•Marinas,boatcruiseopportunities,and

recreationalboatingopportunitiesunder-

performingintouristmarkets

•LimiteddockwallinCentralHarbourcon-

strainingexpansionofmarineactivities

•CruiseShipTerminalinPorthascapacity

forincreaseduse

•Strongdiningproductincludinginternationally

renownedchefs,multi-culturalexperiences,

distinctivemicro-breweriesandseveral

dozenannualculinaryfestivalsandevents

notwidelyrecognizedoutsideoflocalarea

•Experiencesbasedon“localproduct”not

welldeveloped;otherjurisdictionsaremo-

tivatingtravelbyfeaturinglocalcuisine

•Havenothadthesamelevelofrecent

investmentasToronto’sculturalvenues

(exceptfortheOntarioScienceCentre

renovation);mostrecentsignificantmass

entertainmentvenuetoopenwasthe

HockeyHallofFame(1993)

•MinistryofTourismresearchshowsthat

massentertainmentcomplexwouldhave

greaterimpactonvisitationthananyother

typeoftourisminvestment

•Furtherexploreopportunitieswithstake-

holderssuchasTorontoWaterfront,

PortAuthority,QueensQuay-Harbourfront

BIAandHarbourfrontaswellasoperators

•Continuetodevelopopportunitiestobring

the“TallShips”toToronto

•Continuetoworkwithandsupportthe

GreatLakesCruisingCoalition

•Continuetosupportthedevelopmentof

“localproduct”culinaryexperiencesthrough

theOntarioCulinaryStrategy

•Continuetodeveloptourist-readyculinary

experiencessuchas“Winterlicious/

Summerlicious”andascomponentsofkey

festivalssuchasWinterCityandSante.

•Furtherexploreadditionalopportunities

withstakeholders

•Consideropportunitiestobringamajor

investmenttofruition;linkedwith

OpportunityNo.86

24 25 26 27 28 29 30

Long

Term

Short

Term

Short

Term

Short

Term

Short

Term

Mid

Term

Long

Term

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

Festivals&Events

FilmTourism

FirstNations

Experiences

Geographic

Distribution

•Torontohasastrongarrayoffestivalsand

majorconsumershows,asignificanttravel

motivatorandactivityenjoyedbyover40%

oftravellers

•Individualfestivalsmaynotbereachingtheir

potentialastouristproductsforavarietyof

reasons,includinglackofresources

•Torontoisamajorlocationforfilming;

otherdestinationshaveleveragedthisactivity

tocreatetouristproduct;theopportunity

toobservestarsandtheinternational

entertainerswhofrequentlyperformin

Torontoisanotherpossibleattraction(to

daterealizedattheTorontoInternational

FilmFestival)

•TorontoFirstNationsheritageis

inaccessibletothegeneralpublic

•Internationalvisitorshavestronginterest

inFirstNationscultureandheritage,

•Manykeysitesareinpublicownership

(e.g.,Parks,ConservationAuthority

•Toronto’stouristactivityisheavilyconcen-

tratedinthedowntownarea.Attractions,

hotels,shoppingdistrictsandrestaurants

elsewhereinthecitydon’tbenefitasmuch

from

synergisticactivity

•CityofTorontoEDCTDivisionisleading

thedevelopmentofaneventsstrategyand

“festivalsalliance”;furtherconsidertourism

developmentpotentialinthatcontext

•supportmorestrategicapproachtodevelop-

mentofnewfestivalsandevents,withfocus

onoff-peakperiodsofthecalendarandfesti-

valsalignedwithauthenticTorontoproduct

(e.g,theArts,multi-cultural,culinary)

•Furtherexploreopportunities

•ConsultwithFirstNationscommunities

toexploreopportunitiesfordeveloping

authenticexperiences

•Planningforthe1812Bicentennialandthe

TorontoMuseumprojectmayprovide

catalyst(OpportunityNo.35)

•Explorewaysofdevelopingandpromoting

tourisminoutlyingneighbourhoods;couldbe

relatedtoleveragingvisitingfriendsandrela-

tivesmarket(OpportunityNo.61),visitor

informationservices(OpportunityNo.5)and

packagedevelopment/tourism

development

training(OpportunityNo.14&59)

31 32 33 34

Short

Term

Long

Term

Mid

Term

Mid

Term

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

HeritageExperiences

InternationalEvents

Neighbourhoods

Nightlife

•Torontovisitorsarenotfindingourher-

itageexperiences;Torontostoryisnot

coherentlytold;properties,interpretation

andprogrammingareunder-resourced

•someprogresshasrecentlybeenmade:

e,g.,CasaLomarenovations,theDistillery

Districtdevelopment;planforFortYork

visitorcentre,St.LawrenceComplexand

OldTowninitiatives,on-lineinterpretation

(e.g.,www.virtualmuseum.ca)

•Toronto’ssuccessinattractingmajorinter-

nationaleventsisnotasstrongasother

destinations;significantprogressachieved

since2002formationofCitystaffUnit,

“TorontoInternational”

•Wealthof“UniquelyToronto”experiences

inneighbourhoodshardfortouriststo

discover

•BIAsprovidecommunitypartnersfor

developingandmarketingtourist-ready

experiences;someBIAshavebegun

initiatives(e.g.YongeDiscoveryWalks)

•City“TAPintoTO!”programprovidesfree

personalizedtoursofneighbourhoodsby

volunteerresidents

•StrongproductdifferentiatingTorontofrom

near-marketcompetition

•Issueswithlatenightsecurity,congestion

andnoisecreatingconflictwithhotelsand

residences,detractingfrom

qualityofexpe-

rienceandcreatingpressureforstricter

regulationandenforcement

•Monitorandsupport“TorontoMuseum”

and“1812bicentennial”projectsasgood

opportunitiestoelevateheritageproduct

•Monitorandsupportacquisitionand

developmentof“FirstParliamentSite”

•Furtherinvestigateadditionalpotentialand

tourismdevelopmentrequirementswith

operatorsandstakeholders

•“TorontoInternational”Unitisleading

thedevelopmentofaninternationalevents

strategy;furtherconsiderinthatcontext

•Furtherexploreanddevelopopportunities

withBIAsandotherstakeholders

•SupportexpansionofTAPintoTO!Program

andothertacticsforfacilitatingneighbour-

hooddiscoverybyvisitors

•Monitorneedforstrongerindustryvoice

toinfluencepolicyortoencourage

operatorstoreduceconflictlevels

35 36 37 38 39 40 41

Short

Term

Long

Term

Mid

Term

Short

Term

Mid

Term

Mid

Term

Mid

Term

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

Outdoor&Nature

Experiences

SameSexWeddings

Shopping

SpecificSite

Developments

•Torontooffersexcellentoutdoorexperi-

encesthatcurrentlyareunderperforming

intouristmarkets(scenicparks,wilderness

areas,trails,beaches,golfcourses)

•LegalinCanada

•TourismTorontoprovidesgoodinformation

aboutweddingregulationsandserviceson

theirwebsite

•CityHallWeddingChamberprovidesa

somewhatbasicsettingforceremonies

•Torontohasanenormousarrayofstores

andshoppingdistrictscateringtoabroad

rangeofincomelevels,demographicsand

interests;however,visitorandtravellersur-

veyssuggestthatinternationalvisitorsdo

notconsiderTorontotobeatopshopping

destination

•MajorunderdevelopedsitesincludeParc

DownsviewPark,OntarioPlace,Exhibition

Place(intensificationtakingplaceunder

approvedmasterplan),DistilleryDistrict,

St.LawrenceHallandMarketComplex,

Woodbine(developmentplansrecently

announced)

•Exploreopportunitiestoelevateawareness

andaddresstourismmarketreadinessissues

withstakeholderssuchastheGreenTourism

AssociationandCityParks,Forestryand

RecreationDivision(whichisdoingan

inventoryofdistinctiveattractionsinparks)

•ExploreopportunitiestoupgradeCityHall

weddingchapelandaddressanyother

constraintsorinconveniencesassociated

withperformingsame-sexweddingcere-

moniesinToronto(e.g.,anycapacityissues)

LinkedwithOpportunityNo.51

•Explorethisfindinginmoredetailwith

stakeholders;moreinformationisneeded

toaddress

•Consideropportunitiestointensify

tourist-orientedexperiences;possiblelink

withOpportunityNo.30

and86

42 43 44 45

Long

Term

Short

Term

Mid

Term

Short

toLong

Term

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

Sports

StreetAnimation

andVending

Theatre

Waterfront

•Asignificantopportunitythatcurrently

isconstrainedbygapsinsportsfacilities

(somegapshavebeenclosedinrecent

years–e.g.,WesternBeachesW

atercourse,

BMAStadium,VarsityStadium,Rexall

Centre)

•Torontodoesn’thaveacomprehensive

databaseofitssportsinfrastructurefor

useindevelopingbidsandevents

•City’spublicartprogram,streetfestivals,

andprogrammingonpublicsquarescur-

rentlysupportanimationofcity’spublic

realm,especiallyinJuly/August

•Aproactive,consciousapproachtofacilitating

positiveanimationneartouristgathering

spotswouldelevatethe“buzz”andexcite-

mentlevelsexperiencedbyvisitors

•Notmotivatingtraveltothesameextent

asinthe1990’s

•Smallertheatresandnot-for-profit

companiesoftencan’taffordgood

audienceamenities

•Touristsmayfindithardtoget

performanceticketsorinformation

aboutperformances

•Enormousdevelopmentpotential;Toronto

Waterfrontleadingmanydevelopmentini-

tiatives;concernbyindustrystakeholders

thattourismdevelopmentagendamaynot

havesufficientfocus

•TheCity’s“TorontoInternational”Unitand

TorontoSportsCouncilareworkingonthis

area;furtherexploreinconsultationwith

them

andotherstakeholders;possiblelinkto

OpportunityNo.86

•Furtherexplorepotentialinpartnership

withstakeholderssuchasBIAs,theCity’s

“StreetFoods”project,andmajorvenues

•Discussfindingswiththeatresectorand

formulateactionplan

•FormstrongerindustryliaisonwithToronto

Waterfrontandexploreopportunities;

considerdoingatourismdevelopmentplan

forwaterfront

46 47 48 49

Short

Term

Short

Term

Mid

Term

Short

Term

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

BusinessTravellers

Gay&Lesbian

Travellers

InternationalStudents

InternationalYouth

LuxuryVisitors

•3.7millionpeopleayearmakeabusiness

triptoToronto;improvingtheirimpressions

andinformationaboutTorontocould

motivatereturnvisitsforvacation

•Alucrativeandgrowingmarketwhere

Torontohasstrongcompetitiveadvantage;

TourismTorontohasbeentargetingandde-

velopingthismarketsince2006

•Largenumberofinternationalstudents

attendTorontouniversities,collegesand

ESLschools;theyarevisitedbyfamily

members;stronginterestinexperiencing

touristattractions

•Growthmarketinternationally,currently

beingdevelopedbyindividualhostelopera-

torsandbyeffortstoattractstudentgroup

travelbyTourismToronto;FITyouthtravel

segmentnotbeingtargeted

•Fivenewfive-starhotelproperties

underdevelopment

•Explorefurtherincontextofvisitor

informationservicedelivery

(OpportunityNo.5)

•TourismTorontoismonitoringprogramand

canbringanyproductdevelopmentissuesto

attentionofbroaderstakeholdersasneeded;

opportunitiestoupgradeCityHallwedding

chapelisonesuchinitiative(Opportunity

No.43)

•Exploreopportunitiestoincreasevisitor

informationservicesandpromotional

activitiestargetinginternationalstudents

andtheirfamiliesinconsultationwith

schools.LinkedwithOpportunityNo.5

•Exploreadditionalopportunitiesto

strengthenproductappealingtothis

marketandexpandmarketingeffortswith

stakeholdersandTourismToronto

•Exploreopportunitiesandneedto

strengthenToronto’sofferingstoluxury

clienteleinconsultationwithstakeholders

50 51 52 53 54

Mid

Term

Short

Term

Long

Term

Long

Term

Mid

Term

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

1.4MARKETSEGMENTDEVELO

PMENTOPPORTUNITIES

PeoplevisitTorontoformanydifferentreasons.ThePRTDprocessidentifiedanumberofspecifictypesofvisitorswherepotentialmayexisttoincreasetheirtourism

expenditures.Theseincludethefollowing,againlistedinalphabeticalorder

MedicalVisitors

Meetingsand

Conventions

•Largenumberofpeopleandtheirfamilies

cometoTorontoformedicalappointments

andtreatments;aretheyanuntapped

marketfortourism?

•Strongcompetitivepositioncriticalto

healthoftourismsector;

•currentlyTorontoiswellpositioned

internationally,althoughfacingregulatory

challenges(e.g.,PharmaCode,passport

requirements)

•Butotherdestinationsareupgradingtheir

facilitiesandfinancialincentivepackages;

continualimprovementneededtostay

competitive

•Opportunitytoencouragestrongdelegate

registration,andtomakedelegatesfeel

welcomeandwellinformedabout

Torontoanditsattractions;thismotivates

higherspendingandreturnbookingsby

organizationandvisitsbyindividuals

•Explorefurtherincontextofvisitor

informationservicesdelivery

(OpportunityNo.5)

•Monitorinternationalcompetitiveness

asaconventiondestinationandidentify

anyemergingissues;mobilizeindustry

leaderstoadvocate;identifyanyemerging

needforimprovedfacilitiesandtake

appropriatestepstoaddress(Linked

withOpportunityNo.86)

•City“TorontoInternational”andTourism

TorontoClientServiceshavebeen

coordinatingenhancedwelcomeprograms

forindividualmajorconventionsandevents;

a“hostingpolicy”isunderdevelopment;

possiblelinkwithOpportunityNo.5

55 56 57

Long

Term

Short

Term

Short

Term

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

MotorCoachesand

GroupTravel

•MuchofTorontoproductisinaccessibleto

grouptravelbecauseperformancerunsare

tooshort,exhibitsandeventsplannedwith

toolittleleadtime;facilitiescan’taccommo-

daterequirementforquickturnaroundof

groups;manyoperatorsdon’tunderstand

grouptravelneeds

•Motorcoachesfrequentlyexperiencediffi-

cultywithCityregulationsandenforcement

whenloading/unloadingpassengers

•Whilerecentimprovementsmeanmotor

coachparkingcurrentlyisadequate,this

maychangeasdemandincreases

•Decisionsaresometimesmadeabout

roadclosures,etc.,withoutregardfor

needsofsector

•OntarioLicenserequirementsadisincentive

toout-of-provincecoachcompanieswho

wouldotherwiseoccasionallybringintours

•Modernstate-of-the-artbusterminalnear

expresswayandtransithubwouldimprove

efficiencyofoperationsandcustomer

servicelevels

•Motorcoachesarenotpermittedaccessto

bus-onlylanesincity

•Furtherexploremotorcoachissueswith

keystakeholderssuchastheOntarioMotor

CoachAssociationandCityTransportation

andPoliceServices;considerationmight

begiventoestablishingafacilitationservice

forlargegroups

•Furtherexplorepotentialand

mechanismsforincreasingpoolof

operatorsabletoworkwithgroupt

ravel;linkwithOpportunityNo14

58 59

Short

Term

Mid

Term

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

RVUsers

VisitingFriends

&Relatives

•TorontocurrentlyhasoneRVcamping

facility,withafewotherswithinanhour

drive;atcapacityduringsummermonths

•RVindustrydoesnotconsiderTorontoto

be“RVfriendly”

•RVersconstituteanaffluentandincreasing

marketsegment

•Aboutsevenmillionpeopleayearcometo

Torontotovisitfriendsandrelatives;largely

untappedpotentialforincreasingtheir

touristexperiencesandexpenditures

•Maybeespeciallyeffectiveentrytoover-

seasmarkets,leveragingToronto’smulticul-

turalpopulation

•CityEDCT-Tourismpublishedananalysisof

RVResortopportunitiesandrequirements

in2007andismakingitavailabletoprivate

operatorsandlandowners

•Mobilizeresidentstobeinformed,

enthusiastichoststothecityfortheir

visitingfriendsandrelatives

•Researchresidents’needsandaspirations

inhostingfriendsandrelatives,especially

firstgenerationCanadians

60 61 62

Long

Term

Short

Term

Mid

Term

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

Cycling

DestinationGateways

•Considerablestrengthincyclinginfrastruc-

tureandsupportservices,butprimarily

orientedtolocalresidents

•Cityhashada“CityCycling”Committee

andOfficefortwodecades

•LandingfeesatPearsonthesecondhighest

inworld

•Pearson$2chargeforbaggagecartsa

frequentlymentionedirritantinstakeholder

consultations

•GTAAcablicensesandpoliciesforother

taxisaconcernwithintaxiindustry

•Limitedflightstosomemarkets

(e.g.,Germany)constrainingabilityto

attractoverseasgrouptravel

•Pearsonismidwaythroughamajor

expansion

•Exploreopportunitiesforincreasingvisitors’

accesstocyclinginconsultationwithCity

CyclingOfficeandotherstakeholders(e.g.,

GreenTourismAssociation)

•Monitorkeygatewayinfrastructureand

formulatestrategiestoaddressissuesin

partnershipwithoperatorsasneeded

•Liaisewithoperatorstoidentifyandaddress

customerserviceissues

•Considerdevelopmentofimproved

informationsignageandservicesfor

arrivingvisitors

•GTAAmadeaformalpresentationto

CityEconomicDevelopmentCommittee

inOctober2007,askingforacloser

partnershipwiththeCitytoaddress

manyoftheissuesraisedinPRTDprocess;

EDCTtoreportin2008onactionplan

63 64 65 66 67

Mid

Term

Mid

Term

Mid

Term

Mid

Term

Short

Term

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

1.5PUBLIC

REALMANDIN

FRASTRUCTURE

Torontoisaveryeasycitytogettofrom

mostpartsoftheworld,withexcellentairandrailserviceaswellasInterCityBusService,aPort,severalmarinasandaCruise

ShipTerminal.Itisahubintheinter-regionalhighwaynetwork,enablingindividualtravellerstoreachiteasilybycar.W

ithinthecity,thereisanexcellentpublictransit

system,awell-developedroadnetworkandcyclingrightsofway.However,thePRTDprocessrevealed

avarietyofissueswithcapacitylimitations,congestionandlevels

ofmaintenanceandservice.Italsoidentifiedconcernsaboutthelevelofmaintenanceandappearanceofthepublicrealminthecity,andperceptionofpublicsafety.

Panhandling&

Homelessness

Parking

•UnionStationhasn’tbeensignificantlyreno-

vatedfordecadeswhileseveraliterationsof

redevelopmentplanshavebeendiscussed

•CityapprovalofnewMasterPlanin

December2007shouldleadtoaction

•Inter-citybusterminalhasinsufficient

capacityandisnotlocatedadjacentto

highwayaccess

•PRTDAuditandstakeholderconsultations

revealedsignificantconcern

•Parkingticketsthe#1visitorcomplaint

madetoCityofficials

•Visitorsdon’tunderstand“permitparking”

system

orpayanddisplaypillars(from

com-

plaintanalysis)

•TorontoParkingAuthority(TPA)hasvery

largeinventoryofpublicparkinglots

•Liaisewithoperatorstoidentifyand

addresscustomerserviceissues

•Considerdevelopmentofimprovedinforma-

tionsignageandservicesforarrivingvisitors

•Supporteffortstoadvanceconsiderationof

FixedRaillinkbetweenPearsonandUnion

Station(beginEnvironmentalAssessment)

•Metrolinx(GreaterTorontoTransportation

Authority)plansfeasibilitystudyfornew

terminaladjacenttoUnionStation

•CityShelter,Support&HousingDivision

(SSHD)hasmadesignificantprogressinlast

twoyearsinreducinghomelessness

•SSHDundertookapilotprojectonpanhan-

dlingin2007,isconsultingwithindustryand

reportingonstrategyin2008

•Furtherinvestigatecurrentinitiativesand

exploreopportunitiesforadditionalaction

•Furtherexploreissuesandopportunities

tomakeiteasierforvisitorstofindlegal

optionsforparkingtheircars

•Identifykeydestinationswithparking

shortfallsanddevelopstrategiestoaddress

68 69 70 71 72 73 74

Mid

Term

Mid

Term

Short

Term

Long

Term

Short

Term

Mid

Term

Mid

Term

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

PedestrianRealm

PublicTransit

Safety

•CommentsonPRTDAuditandconsultations

supportedmoreamenitiesforpedestrians,

suchascar-freestreetsandwalkways

•Cityhasbeenworkingtopromotewalking,

pedestriansafetyandamenitiessince

1998andhasanAdvisoryCommitteeand

dedicatedstaffUnitaswellasa“Pedestrian

Charter”and“WalkingStrategy”

•PATHsystem

linksmostbuildingsand

subwaystationsinfinancialdistrictwith

extensionstoEatonCentreand

ConventionCentre

•TTCservicesoperatingbeyondcapacity

•Servicehighlyorientedtocommuterpeaks;

lowerservicelevelsonweekendsand

eveningswhenvisitors’demandoccurs

•Inadequateregionalintegrationoftransit

systems

•TTCDayandWeeklypassesgoodforvisi-

tormarket,butnotwidelypromotedto

them;visitorsdon’tfinditeasytofindout

aboutorusetransit

•TTCinvestigatingfeasibilityofintroducing

SMARTCARDtechnology,alreadybeing

usedinmanyotherjurisdictions

•Travelintentionsandvisitorsurveyshave

revealedCanadianmarkets’increasedcon-

cernsaboutsafetyinToronto,althoughfacts

confirmthatTorontoisamongtheworld’s

safestcities

•Furtherexploreopportunitiestoenhance

pedestrianenvironmentforvisitorsin

consultationwiththeCityPedestrianOffice,

BIAsandotherstakeholders

•GreaterTorontoTransportationAuthority

(Metrolinx)formedin2007toaddressre-

gionalintegration;investigateinitiativesfur-

therandconsideropportunitiesforsector

involvement

•Exploreopportunitiesandneedforsector

toadditsvoicetoongoingactivities

directedatencouragingtransportation

improvements

•Exploreopportunitiestohelpreducevisitor

dependencyoncarsbymakingiteasierfor

them

toaccesspublictransitsystem

•Alllevelsofgovernmenthaveescalated

anti-crimeinitiatives;

•Monitorandconsiderneedforindustry

action(e.g.,advocacy,communications)

75 76 77 78 79

Mid

Term

Short

Term

Short

Term

Short

Term

Mid

Term

Alphabetical

Catalogue

Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

TrafficCongestion

VisualAppeal

&Cleanliness

•TravelIntentionsresearchindicatedthat

trafficisthe#2reasonCanadiansarenot

inclinedtovisitToronto

•Gridlockhasbecomeacompetitive

disadvantageforthecity;demandexceeds

capacityforbothroadandtransit

•Weekendhighwayandroadclosuresfor

specialevents,races&constructionimpact

visitors

•Visitorsurveys,PRTDAuditandstake-

holderconsultationrevealedsignificant

concernaboutlevelofmaintenanceand

visualappealofthepublicrealm

•Exploreopportunitiesandneedforsector

toadditsvoicetoongoingactivitiesdirected

atencouragingtransportationimprovements

•Exploreopportunitiestohelpreducevisitor

dependencyoncarsbymakingiteasierfor

them

toaccesspublictransitsystem

•“CleanandBeautifulCity”Officeformed

in2006

•ProjectunderwayinCityPlanningto

recommendpublicrealmimprovements

nearculturalicons

•Coordinatedstreetfurnitureprogram

willbegintoreplaceplethoraofstreet

elementswithawell-designedvisually

coherentsystem

in2008

•Furtherinvestigatethesecurrent

initiativesandexploreopportunities

forfurtheraction

80 81 82

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Findings

Opportunities

forAction

Typeof

Action

Opp.

No.

Priority

Awarenessoftourism

Capacityto

Accommodate

Growth

Educationandtraining

Environmental

Sustainability

•Manydecisionsinpublicsectoraremade

withoutregardforimpactontourism

•Mostauditrespondentsareprimarily

focusedondevelopinglocalmarkets,not

tourism

•79%ofauditrespondentssaidthatcurrent

capacitymeetsneedsofgrowingmarket

•53%donotreachfullcapacityduring

busiestthreemonths

•plannedhoteldevelopmentwilladd

1850roomsbetween2008and2011

(7%increase)

•Stakeholderconsultationrevealedthat

therearefewopportunitiesforsharingin-

formationorprovidingoperatortraining

aboutnewtrends/bestpractices

•Increasingenvironmentalawarenessbycon-

sumersisstartingtomake“greenpractices”

adecision-makingcriterion

•WorkbyGreenTourismAssociationover

lastdecade,individualcompanies,Tourism

Toronto’srecentlaunchofan“eco-friendly”

sectionofwebsiteandCity’sleadershipin

environmentalsustainabilityinitiativesgives

Torontoaninternationaledgeinbeinga

“greendestination”

•Explorewaysofraisingandsustaining

awarenessoftourism’ssignificanceto

theeconomyandcommunityandits

requirements;targetsarepublicsector,

themedia,businessesandemployees,

andlocalresidents

•ActingonopportunitiesidentifiedbyPRTD

willbuilddemand

•Furtherinvestigategapsandexplore

opportunitiesforaddressing

•Exploreandsupportadditional

opportunitiestopromoteandfacilitate

greenpracticesandexperiencesin

consultationwithstakeholders

•Explorevalueindevelopingsectorlinkages

withtheCityEnvironmentalOfficeand

GreenEconomicDevelopmentStrategy

83 84 85 86 87

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No.

Priority

1.6SUSTAINABILITY

ThePRTDprocessidentifiedanumberofissueswhichmaylimitthestrengthoftheindustryanditsabilitytogrow

inthefuture.

InvestmentStrategy

LabourMarket

LeadershipForum

•29%ofauditrespondentshavenotinvested

capitalinlastfiveyears

•ProvincehasrecentlygiventheCityof

Torontothepowertoprovidesome

investmentincentives

•Mostinvestmentdecisionsaremade

withoutregardforimpactonoverall

attractivenessofTorontoasadestination

•Labourmarketresearchindicatesthat

tourismsectorhasissueswithlowjob

satisfactionandhighturnover;widely

consideredentryjobsforyouthandrecent

immigrants,withpoorlydevelopedcareer

ladders

•66%ofAuditrespondentsexpressedbelief

thattherewasasufficientlabourpoolto

supporttheirbusinessinthelongterm,out

ofsyncwithotherbroaderlabourmarket

analyses

•Currentindustryassociationsandcommit-

teesrepresentonlysub-sectorsofthe

broadertourismindustry,orarefocused

onmarketing

•Stakeholderconsultationrevealedwide-

spreadcommentsabouthowsynergistic

opportunitiesaremissedby“silo”approach

todestinationdevelopment

•Undertakeatourisminvestmentstrategy

toidentifyopportunitiesandbarriers&

directinvestmenttoaddresskeytourism

developmentpriorities;linkedwith

OpportunityNo.30,45,46,49,and56

•Considerhowstrategicfinancialincentives

canbestbeusedtoencouragemostneeded

sectorinvestments,andanyotheractions

neededtoremoveinvestmentbarriers

•Furtherexplorefindingsandconsiderneed

foractiontosustainadequatelabourmarket

forsectorinthefuture

•Capitalizeontourismsectorworkbeing

doneProvinciallyandNationally

•Consideroptionsforenablingmore

effectivecross-sectoraldiscussion,

cooperationandleadershipandput

appropriatecommitteestructurein

place

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Typeof

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Opp.

No.

Priority

Research

Seasonality

•Researchgapsincludelimitedinformation

oncompetitiveadvantageorperformance

ofTorontocomparedtootherinternational

destinations;noregularizedprogramfor

monitoringvisitorsatisfaction;over50%

ofoperatorsdonottrackguestorigins

orsatisfaction

•MinistryofTourismandTourismToronto

usedifferentresearchsourcesanddefini-

tions;differentnumbersarepublished

aboutTorontoperformancelevelsand

trends

•StatisticsCanadachangedsurvey

methodologiesin2005,andhasnot

releaseddomestictraveldatasince2004

•52%ofauditrespondentsdonotmanage

theirlowseason

•Hoteloccupancyfallsto58%infirstquarter

•Furtherconsidergapsandissuesand

determinestrategiesforaddressing

•Considerstrategiesforincreasinghotel

occupancyduringlowseasons

92 93

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No.

Priority

Appendix2:PR

TDSteering

Com

mittee

SECTOR

REPRESENTATIVE

CityofToronto:

CouncillorMichaelThompson,Ward37–ScarboroughCentre

TourismTorontoandCommitteeCo-Chair:

GinoGiancola,VPIndustryRelations

MeetingVenuesandCommitteeCo-Chair:

JohnHoughton,VPSalesandMarketing,MTCC

GreaterTorontoHotelAssociation(GTHA):

TerryMundell,President

Accommodations:

JeffWaters,GeneralManager,

RenaissanceTorontoAirport

AttractionsOntario:

TroyYoung,President,AttractionsOntario

AttractionOperators:

ShannaYoung,ExecutiveDirectorMarketing&

Communications,TorontoZoo

AttractionOperators:

JackRobinson,ChiefOperatingOfficer,CNTower

OntarioRestaurantHotel&Motel

Association(ORMHA):

RobEvans,PresidentandCEO

Restaurants:

MikeO’Connor,VicePresident,JoeBadali’sRistoranteItaliano

Education:

JoanneGellatly,AcademicCoordinator,Hospitality

OperationsManagement,GeorgeBrownCollege

Nightlife/EntertainmentVenues:

NickDiDonato,President&CEO,LibertyEntertainmentGroup

SightSeeingTours:

JohnRyan,President,TorontoTours

Transportation:

BrianCrow,President,OntarioMotorCoachAssociation

Retail:

SusanWilliams,Director,NationalResearchandMarketing,

TheCadillacFairviewCorporationLimited

PerformingArts/Entertainment:

JacobaKnaapen,ExecutiveDirector,

TorontoAssociationofthePerformingArts(TAPA)

Neighbourhoods:

JohnKiru,ExecutiveDirector,TorontoAssociationofBIAs

Festivals&Events:

MichaelDowney,President,TennisCanada

VisitorServices:

AmyCollier,HeadConcierge,TheHazeltonHotel