Work continues on major-events strategy for Manitoba’s tourism sector

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 24/01/2025 (297 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Coming soon to a place near you: more events, maybe.

A panel of Manitoba tourism leads called on local businesses to invest in future events by hosting, sponsoring and volunteering. Meanwhile, Manitoba’s tourism industry is working with government on a major events strategy and increased funding to bid on big attractions.

“You’re talking about a multibillion-dollar sector for Manitoba,” Loren Remillard, president of the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce, said Thursday.

“We’re always looking for which sector presents the best growth trajectory. This is one where the return on investment and its growth trajectory is proven and is encouraging for the future.”

Remillard’s remarks followed a chamber luncheon about the future of tourism. Panelists from Travel Manitoba, Economic Development Winnipeg, City of Winnipeg and Tribal Councils Investment Group highlighted upcoming events — and made their pitch to get involved — to a ballroom full of business personnel.

Travel Manitoba clocked a record $1.82 billion in tourist spending in 2023. International visitors can spend almost $1,000 to $2,000 more per capita than local tourists, the Crown corporation shared in December.

So far, event rosters for 2025 and 2026 look good, said Natalie Thiesen, Economic Development Winnipeg vice-president of tourism. There’s now a need to focus on 2027 and beyond, she added.

Big events are often solidified years in advance. The COVID-19 pandemic halted event sourcing; catch-up for 2027 and later years is ongoing, Thiesen said after Thursday’s panel.

“Post-COVID — really in the last year — is when we’ve really doubled down (on events),” Thiesen stated.

Economic Development Winnipeg has been working with Travel Manitoba and the provincial government on a major events strategy over the past year. A publication date hasn’t been finalized, Thiesen said.

Manitoba is among the last provinces to build such a strategy, she added. The document aligns with Manitoba’s tourism plan, revised in 2023, which called for a province-wide events strategy and an “agile funding mechanism” to support major bids.

“Beyond the (2025) Grey Cup (at Princess Auto Stadium), we don’t have another major event on the books,” Thiesen said. “We know how important those events are to Manitobans from an economic impact, from a social legacy impact.”

Related Articles

Blueberry Inn adds 16 new, much-needed rooms to Churchill offerings amid increasingly busy tour seasons

Belugas, bears and lights: Churchill tourism industry contributed estimated $99.8M to Manitoba GDP in 2023

Ottawa earmarks $20 million for Prairies arts groups

Land guardians step into the spotlight Our city shouldn’t shy away from embracing big ideas

Ghost (town) of a chance? Second Hudson Bay port plan seeks traction Tourism spending in Manitoba ticks up to new high

EDW claims national honour

Winnipeg will play host to the CFL title game in November. The Canadian Elite Basketball League, which includes the Winnipeg Sea Bears, will run its Championship Weekend at the Canada Life Centre in August.

Such events cost money, including bidding fees. Manitoba has less money earmarked for event attraction than its provincial counterparts, Thursday’s panelists noted.

Tourism organizations are talking with the province about expanding funding, Thiesen said. The City of Winnipeg has a mechanism for event attraction Economic Development Winnipeg manages, she added.

Thiesen labelled the call for business participation “strategic positioning.”

“It’s a very competitive landscape,” she said, adding people with pull in their respective industry — and put in good word about Manitoba for a conference — “go a long way.”

Perception of Manitoba can be an added hurdle to event attraction, Thiesen noted.

The number of conferences and events in Winnipeg hasn’t yet reached pre-pandemic heights. That’s projected to come next year, Thiesen said. Still, hotel bookings have surpassed 2019 occupancy rates.

Increased uncertainty globally has meant more risk in the event business, Thiesen said.

“The feeling is we’re going to see more Canadians staying a little bit closer to home,” said Remillard. “Not just (because of the U.S. political landscape), but also economically.”

A weaker dollar in Canada may draw some United States organizations north for events, Thiesen shared.

Winnipeg Free Press | Newsletter

Business Weekly

Monday Mornings

The latest local business news and a lookahead to the coming week.

Sign up for Business Weekly

Sign Up

I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

Economic Development Winnipeg has placed bids for events as far away as 2032.

Rendez-vous Canada, Manito Ahbee Festival and the Family Medicine Forum are among the events slated to draw thousands of people to Manitoba in 2025.

The World Indigenous Business Forum is set to run in Winnipeg next year. The event will impact all of Manitoba, said Dennis Meeches, president of the Tribal Councils Investment Group.

He predicts Indigenous tourism — and the events to come along with it — will increase in the coming years.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com

Gabrielle Piché
Reporter

Gabrielle Piché reports on business for the Free Press. She interned at the Free Press and worked for its sister outlet, Canstar Community News, before entering the business beat in 2021. Read more about Gabrielle.

Every piece of reporting Gabrielle produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.