With welcoming people, to-die-for sunsets and outdoor activities aplenty, Powell River has a lot to offer visitors, but statistics tell a mixed tale about how tourism is doing in the community.
Data, collected by Tourism Powell River, counting visitors to its office show an upswing. Numbers from July and June have increased by 25.3 and 10.1 per cent respectively when compared to 2011.
Tourism Powell River’s online presence has also been doing well, explained marketing director Paul Kamon. July alone boasted over 24,000 page views of the organization’s website, a seven per cent increase since 2011. In addition, both Facebook and Twitter followers of Tourism Powell River have doubled in the past year.
Though Kamon admitted the tourism office’s new location may play a factor in the number of visitors, he said statistics gathered by the office provide a fairly accurate gauge. “Clearly there’s more tourists coming,” he said. “I can tell you for a fact because I talk to them every day.”
BC Ferries’ traffic statistics, which are also indicative of tourism numbers, show a drop in riders.
The number of vehicles travelling to Powell River in July, which with August is generally peak tourism season, has dropped by eight per cent since last year for both the Little River-Powell River and the Earls Cove-Saltery Bay ferries. Total passengers for the month fared worse, dropping by 10 per cent for the Saltery Bay boat and 11 per cent for the Comox sailing.
Quickly escalating ferry fares, which have especially affected RV users, seem to be behind the problem. A report by the Northern Sunshine Coast Ferry Advisory Committee shows that between 2003 and 2010, the cost to travel to Powell River has increased by 46.7 per cent for regular fares, and 67 per cent for prepaid fares.
Sheryl Clark, caretaker of Willingdon Beach Campsite for over eight years, has felt this rise in fares acutely. Many repeat customers are cancelling their reservations, she said, because of the cost of transportation. “There’s been maybe 10 or 12 [cancellations this summer], and some of them were planning to spend a week here,” she explained. “That’s a lot of revenue.”
One woman Clark talked to said she found she could take a trip to Disneyland for less money than it would take to vacation to Powell River. “Our return customers are only coming once every two or three years now,” Clark said. “They just can’t afford it.”
Josaphine Scheifele, owner and operator of Desolation Resort, said she has also had trouble with a drop in occupancy, mostly due to the expensiveness of ferries and how long it takes to travel to Powell River. Scheifele described this July as the worst the resort has ever had. Normally, she explained, July occupancy rates are 80 per cent or more. This year, they have dropped to just above 50 per cent.
Nicholas Simons, MLA for Powell River-Sunshine Coast, said the ferry rates’ impact on tourism was inevitable. “Everybody knows that the impact of fares is less travel,” he said. “I think that the residents have been clear about making this point to government over and over, with little action resulting.”
Despite the jump in price, many return customers have remained loyal to the Powell River area. Former Powell River resident Dave Nellis and his wife Dawn, along with their two children, make the two-day trip from Fort St. John down to Powell River every year. Dawn explained that what keeps the family coming back is the city’s friendly, beautiful environment. “We love everything about it,” she said. “The view, the ocean, the people—it’s beautiful here.”
Chilliwack resident Joe Clouatre agreed. He and his family have been coming here every summer for the past 39 years and don’t plan on stopping the trend anytime soon. “We’ve always enjoyed it,” he said. “We find something to do every day.”
