With the abandonment of many health restrictions and the reopening of borders, the tourism industry is picking up. At the start of the construction holidays, a wind of optimism is blowing over this environment hard hit by the pandemic. The summer of 2022 thus marks a return to a certain normality, although the threat of COVID-19 has not completely dissipated.
In Estrie, tourism has resumed pre-pandemic airs. No more capacity reductions in restaurants and accommodation services. “In April and May, we reached records in terms of the number of occupied rooms and occupancy rate compared to the last five years. Forecasts for the construction holidays and the rest of the summer point to traffic closer to 2019 levels,” said Lysandre Verreault-Michaud, director of communications for Tourisme Cantons-de-l’Est.
The organization does not have precise data on the presence of foreign tourists, but certain signs do not deceive. “On our website, we see a really significant increase in the number of visitors from Ontario, the United States and abroad, but a decline in Quebecers,” says Ms.me Verreault-Michaud.
It will be remembered that in 2020, the Gaspé had been taken by storm by summer visitors who were not always respectful, causing tension on the ground. Regions such as the Côte-Nord and Charlevoix had also experienced a certain effervescence, recalls the president of the Alliance of the tourist industry of Quebec, Martin Soucy. The start of the season seems more “normal” this year, however, he says.
Inflation and the cost of gasoline
Mr. Soucy warns that it is still too early to take stock. “There is no one telling us that the season is going to be catastrophic, quite the contrary. For the season, we should have very good results which, in some respects, will surpass 2019, which was our record year,” he said.
According to him, it remains difficult for the moment to measure the effect of inflation and the rise in the cost of gasoline. “We will perhaps see the effect in a few months, because people who had planned vacations will go to the regions. »
In terms of economic benefits, the industry does not expect to achieve the results of 2019, which amounted to $16.4 billion. These benefits could be limited to 10 billion this year, believes the Alliance. “We have just gone through two years of a pandemic. We were one of the hardest hit industries [par les mesures sanitaires et aux frontières]. We still did well,” says Martin Soucy.
The support programs have also made it possible to save the day by helping industry players get through the ordeal, admits Mr. Soucy.
According to data from the Ministry of Tourism provided by the Alliance, 51 of the 1,856 accommodation establishments, or 2.7%, have closed their doors or suspended their activities in Quebec since the start of the pandemic. The health crisis has hurt the restaurant sector more: some 738 of the 14,700 tourist-oriented restaurants in Quebec have had to cease their activities.
April and May set records for the number of occupied rooms and occupancy rates over the past five years.
In the metropolis
Optimism is also in order in Montreal. For now, the hotel room occupancy rate remains the main indicator of the upturn in tourism there.
In the metropolitan area, the occupancy rate of accommodation establishments reached 75% in June, while it was only 25% at the same period last year, indicates the Association of hotels of the Grand Montreal, which includes 111 establishments. In 2019, before the pandemic, this rate was around 84%. “We are 10% lower, but it’s not bad under the circumstances,” said the CEO of the association, Jean-Sébastien Boudreault.
On the other hand, the average room price — around $272 — has increased from 2019, when it was $230. “It ends up being equivalent: we have fewer rooms rented, but each room brings in a little more,” notes Mr. Boudreault. We really feel the recovery. People are there despite problems at the airport and random testing this week. »
Grand Prix weekend was also the star event at the start of the season, resulting in a 97% occupancy rate downtown.
At Tourisme Montréal, confidence is returning. “We are cautious, but we are savoring the present moment,” says Manuela Goya, vice-president of destination development and public affairs at the organization. “We believe that 2022 will be a pivotal year for the success that we will have in the years to come. »
She says that Montreal has managed to maintain its power of attraction and its reputation as a “festive, welcoming and uninhibited” city despite the pandemic. “We were the epicenter of COVID two years ago; we were pilloried. But I’m happy to see that, even though we were the epicenter of COVID, we are now the epicenter of recovery. It’s sweet revenge,” she says.
We are cautious, but we savor the present moment. We believe that 2022 will be a pivotal year for the success we will have in the years to come.
Business tourism
Like other Quebec tourism associations, Tourisme Montréal had to set out to win back foreign markets by focusing first on the French, Ontarians and Americans. It now remains to seduce other Europeans and Mexicans, among others.
The metropolis is betting heavily on the manna of delegates, with events such as the Congress of Lions International Clubs, which was held in June, and the 24e International AIDS Conference, due to take place from July 29 to August 2. Various obstacles — the difficulty of obtaining visas for visitors, problems at the Pierre-Elliott-Trudeau airport and the resumption of random testing for COVID-19 in air transport — are causing headaches, however. at Tourism Montreal.
“Between Montreal and Los Angeles, delegates will perhaps prefer Los Angeles, not for the attractiveness of the city, but because there are no barriers to entry,” emphasizes Manuela Goya. We have concerns about this. »
As for the return of health measures related to COVID-19, although it is unlikely in the immediate future, its specter remains, especially for the fall. “At some point, we’re going to have to stop talking about waves and start living with them. [le virus] “, believes Jean-Sébastien Boudreault, of the Hotel Association of Greater Montreal.
However, the tourism industry is not at the end of its troubles. The labor shortage, which has been affecting many other areas in Quebec for months, will take time to resolve. It would miss up to 22,000 employees in the middle for the summer season, according to Martin Soucy, of the Alliance of the tourism industry of Quebec. “After two years of the pandemic, there is a fatigue that has set in among entrepreneurs, as in the population,” he said.