The Government of Saskatchewan recently celebrated Saskatchewan Tourism Week, bringing attention to the impact of the province’s tourism sector and the economic opportunities available through travel and tourism. Tourism brings many economic benefits to our province and our city, but also adds colour and quality of life to our residents. Welcoming new people visiting Moose Jaw and Saskatchewan can result in lifelong friendships.
The most popular leisure and tourist activities in our province are camping, visiting parks and going to the beach. Sport and cultural events also contribute to attracting tourists and making our province a great place to visit and to live.
We might give fans from our neighbouring provinces some good natured teasing when they come to watch their teams play against the Saskatchewan Roughriders, but the dollars they spend on food and accommodation when they’re here add to our provincial economy. The same happens in Moose Jaw when fans come to watch rival baseball or hockey teams play the Millers or the Warriors.
For a city the size of Moose Jaw, we certainly are “Notorious” for having great attractions and events. Our top-notch attractions like Mosaic Place, Temple Gardens Mineral Spa, the Mae Wilson Theatre, the Casino and our museums bring large numbers of tourists to our city. These are also great places for local residents to visit. We see visitors, and locals as well, enjoying our historic buildings, unique shops, parks and eating establishments or just stopping to see our world famous ‘Mac the Moose.”
There’s a lot going on in Moose Jaw this summer, starting with the Moose Jaw Hometown Fair, June 21-23. Great events follow one after the other. ParkArt will add to the Canada Day festivities. Sidewalk Days will still be going on as we begin to enjoy two days of a full-fledged Air Show for the first time in 14 years. The following weekend the best of our international cultures will be on display at Motif. Many who love literature will arrive to participate in the Saskatchewan Festival of Words, one of Canada’s most recognized author and book festivals. The Western Development Museum will host Brickspo, for kids, and all the young at heart who love Lego and Lego construction.
Tourism statistics for Moose Jaw are nothing short of impressive. More than 430,000 tourists come to visit Moose Jaw annually, spending about 75 million dollars – and the numbers keep growing. Visitors during this past month of May were up 30 percent compared to May of 2018.
Provincially, the industry contributes significantly to the Saskatchewan economy:
- Annually, tourism generates more than $2.37 billion in travel expenditures.
- More than 13.6 million visits are made to and within the province each year.
- There are 63,800 Saskatchewan residents employed in tourism or tourism-related jobs.
- Saskatchewan’s tourism sector is 95 per cent small- or medium-sized businesses, and many are independently owned or operated.
Our government supports the tourism industry through Tourism Saskatchewan, a Crown corporation with the goal of connecting people with quality Saskatchewan experiences and advancing the development of successful tourism operations. Together with businesses and the dedicated employees and volunteers who attract tourists to our province, we will continue to see the tourism industry benefitting Moose Jaw and Saskatchewan in many ways.
In the days and months ahead, keep in mind the value of tourism and be sure to welcome those tourists to our Notorious Friendly City.
