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Cranbrook, BC (June 7, 2022) -- The City of Cranbrook and local tourism leaders have launched a process to develop a Tourism Master Plan. Designed to complement the City’s Official Community Plan and Downtown Revitalization Plan, Cranbrook’s Tourism Master Plan will create a vision and path forward for Cranbrook to achieve a community-supported set of tourism objectives and become a year-round destination for travellers from near and far. 

Chris Andrews, Chair of the Board of Cranbrook Tourism comments, “Cranbrook has come a long way as a tourism destination.  We have so much to offer travellers as the gateway to the Kootenay Rockies with access to incredible outdoor recreation at our doorstep and a vibrant history and culture that first recognizes the Ktunaxa homeland, followed by more recent colonial and rail history.  This tourism master planning process will allow us to build on our strengths to achieve a set of community-informed goals.”

Led by a Steering Committee comprised of Cranbrook’s Business Development office, Cranbrook Tourism, the Cranbrook Chamber and the Ktunaxa Nation and supported by an Advisory Committee representing a wide and diverse range of local interests, the process will include visitor intercept research as well as significant community engagement.

Darren Brewer, the City of Cranbrook’s Business Development Officer notes, “While it is important to understand the visitor perspective in developing Cranbrook’s Tourism Master Plan, it is also imperative that we understand and respect the values and aspirations of our residents and business owners.  This community provides a ‘social license’ to tourism operators allowing them to share Cranbrook with the world. The Tourism Master planning process provides a platform for residents of Cranbrook to contribute their ideas and we look forward to hearing what our community has to say about our tourism future.”

A resident survey is the first step to this community engagement – all residents of Cranbrook are encouraged to complete the survey online here.

Resident intercept surveys will also occur over the summer at the Cranbrook Farmers’ Market.    

For more information visit https://www.choosecranbrook.ca/ and follow Tourism Master Plan progress on our Facebook page.

Tourism Fast Facts:

•    British Columbia’s tourism industry generated revenue of $22.3 billion in 2019, an increase of 5.8% over 2018, and a 67.8% increase from 2009.
•    In 2019, British Columbia’s tourism industry employed 130,300 people. This means that tourism provided a job for roughly one out of every 16 people employed in the province.
•    In 2019, tourism contributed more to GDP than any other primary resource industry. (Tourism: $7.4B, mining: $5.0B, oil & gas: $4.8B, forestry & logging: $1.6B, and agriculture & fishing: $3.3B.)
•    Tourism has been a key economic driver and one of BC’s competitive strengths in the world economy.
•    Tourism strengthens international perceptions of British Columbia, which has positive impacts on trade and investment, international education, and immigration.
•    Most tourism businesses buy goods locally, hire locally, and retain their profits locally. The economic impact is and will continue to be significant.