The summer of returns | The Press

Quebecers will finally be able to explore the world in the summer, but many will be vacationing here again, current reservations suggest. The $500 flights may even convince new vacationers to explore the regions furthest from major centres. And the – anticipated – return of tourists from elsewhere arouses a lot of enthusiasm…

Simon Chabot
The Press

The beaches of Maine or the Maritimes will compete with those of Gaspésie next summer, but for the moment, nothing suggests that Quebecers will desert the peninsula. Compared to the same date last year, reservations are even slightly ahead, reports Tourisme Gaspésie. Free chalets are already rare for construction holidays…

“We are pleased to see Quebecers’ interest in Gaspésie,” says Joëlle Ross, General Manager of Tourisme Gaspésie. The signals so far are very encouraging. Visitors have started to plan their stay, but there is still availability, particularly in hotels, motels and private campsites, even at the height of the season. Now is the perfect time to plan your vacation. »

Same story in Charlevoix and on the North Shore. “Summer promises to be excellent,” writes Martin Dufour, president of Tourisme Charlevoix. Some of our members are expecting a season as strong as last year, if not more, based on the number of reservations they have been receiving for quite some time. »

“The statistics on our website really show us that there is interest,” says Paul Lavoie, general manager of Tourisme Côte-Nord. We expect another good tourist summer. »

Although they will be offered in limited numbers from 1^er June, and according to criteria that have yet to be specified, the $500 round-trip plane tickets for remote regions, recently announced by Quebec, will also fuel summer tourism. In the Magdalen Islands, where everything is full for July and August, the impact could be almost immediate. “In June, it becomes interesting to come and spend four days on the Islands,” says Jacky Poirier, from Tourisme Îles de la Madeleine.

On the North Shore as in Gaspésie, many airports are also targeted by the program. The two regions, however, expect above all fallout… after the summer. “I think it can have an effect as of June, but where I see the main interest in it, it’s more to stretch the season, said Paul Lavoie. There is great potential, in Minganie, for example, for people who don’t want to go on the road…”

“It’s already not easy to rent a car at Gaspésie airports,” says Joëlle Ross. For the summer, people will no doubt fly to join friends here, but it is especially an advantage for winter tourism, when driving to ski in the Chic-Chocs, with the storms, can be long and difficult. »

Europeans are coming…

On the other hand, the impact of the return of Canadian, American and European tourists should be felt there as early as the summer, if the first signs are to be believed.

Each week brings its share of reservations from French-speaking Europe, announces Le Québec maritime, an organization that deals with the promotion outside Quebec of the Bas-Saint-Laurent, Gaspésie, Côte-Nord and Îles-de- Madeleine. Of course, there’s still a lot of uncertainty on the horizon, with inflation and the war in Ukraine seeming to dampen travel momentum across the Atlantic, not to mention the surprises that may still reserve the pandemic, but many tour operators have “well-stocked reservation books for 2022, which suggests a good revival of the tourism industry for the French market”, explains spokesperson Suzie Loiselle.

No one expects to see as many Europeans as in 2019, a record year. But everyone is eager to find them again, especially in August and September, as usual. Including in cities, where visitors from elsewhere reappear. During the long Easter weekend, several hotels were full – or almost – in the metropolis.

“The lean years are a thing of the past,” adds Manuela Goya, vice-president of Tourisme Montréal. We are beginning to reconnect with growth. There are times when we are full for conventions this summer. And the travel intentions of the French show that Montreal attracts them as much if not more than New York…”

The only downside, the shortage of labor may prevent the opening of all rooms. Montreal hotels are increasing their efforts to recruit new staff.

The labor situation is similar in Quebec City, where the summer promises to be busy nonetheless. “We hope for occupancy rates of 70%, 75%,” says Éric Bilodeau, director of communications and marketing for Destination Québec cité. “Yes, there will be Europeans, but not like in the good years … the return to normal, it will take another two, three years”, despite a new Quebec-Paris link with Air France starting next month. The additional tourists will come from the United States, predicts Mr. Bilodeau, and also from a hundred international cruise stopovers, which are resuming these days in the St. Lawrence.