MONTREAL, Feb. 6, 2014 /CNW Telbec/ - Tourism, an important economic sector and job creator for the city, continues to do very well and is even showing growth, as is demonstrated by statistics compiled by Tourisme Montréal between the months of January to December 2013. In fact, Greater Montréal hotel occupancy rates, Québec border crossings and air passenger traffic at the Montréal airport have all increased.
For the period of January to December, Greater Montréal hotel statistics1 show that the average hotel occupancy rate was 67.92%, an increase of 2.05 percentage points over last year. The average daily room rate rose by 3.22% to $141.48 from $137.06 last year.
"After a difficult 2012, we can optimistically say that tourism has regained its momentum", underlined Yves Lalumière, President and Chief Executive Officer of Tourisme Montréal. "Montréal stands out in several markets, such as business tourism, cultural tourism and gastronomy. International cruises and sporting events present incredible growth potential and it is on these areas that we intend to focus so as to boost business opportunities for Montréal."
"The increase of the occupancy rate in 2013 is good news in itself for hoteliers, especially after a particularly difficult year. We hope that the Montréal hotel experience will build tourist loyalty and motivate them to come back in 2014", added Eve Paré, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Hotel Association of Greater Montréal.
For the months of January to November, international tourist arrivals (United States and other countries) across the Québec border2 rose by 1.1%. Within these arrivals, American tourists having entered Quebec by a method of transportation other than an automobile rose by 2.5%.
Air passenger traffic to the Montréal-Trudeau3 airport, arrivals and departures combined, increased by 1.9% from January to November 2013. This increase is derived for the most part from the number of cross-border travellers, which rose by 4.3% over last year. Furthermore, the Aéroports de Montréal (ADM) surpassed the milestone of 14 million passengers for the very first time in its history this year.
Several factors contribute to Montréal's profitable year in tourism. For example, the business tourism sector was particularly dynamic in 2013. For Tourisme Montréal, no less than seventeen multi-hotel conventions were held in the city in 2013, in contrast to only seven last year. These events contributed largely to attracting some 46,400 delegates to the city's businesses and attractions. In addition, in 2013, the organization confirmed a record number of 330,000 room nights for future years on the convention market.
For its part, the cruise market drew over 61,000 passengers to the port last season alone. As such, Montréal has established itself as a first-rate embarkation/disembarkation destination for passengers travelling along the Saint-Lawrence River.
Several city attractions and festivals also experienced an unprecedented success this year. Among others, the Montréal Museum of Fine Arts, the Francofolies, the OSHEAGA festival and Igloofest all beat previous attendance records. The Mosaïcultures Internationales de Montréal horticultural competition and exhibition drew close to a million visitors alone. Other new attractions, namely the Rio Tinto Alcan Planetarium and the Grévin Museum, opened this year, consequently enriching the city's tourism landscape and showing without a shadow of a doubt that Montréal's tourism offering is as dynamic and vibrant as the city itself.
To view Tourisme Montréal's complete 2013 report: www.octgm.com/toolkit/fr/statistiques/bilan-2013-annee-a-date-janvier-2014.pdf (available in French only)
About Tourisme Montréal
Tourisme Montréal is responsible for providing leadership in the concerted efforts of hospitality and promotion in order to position the "Montréal" destination on leisure and business travel markets. It is also responsible for developing Montréal's tourism product in accordance with the ever-changing conditions of the market. For more information, please visit www.tourisme-montreal.org.
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1 Source : Hotel Association of Greater Montréal
2 Source : Statistics Canada
3 Source : Aéroports de Montréal (ADM)
SOURCE: Tourisme Montréal
Alexandra Graveline
Manager - Corporate Public Relations
Tourisme Montréal
514 844-3558
[email protected]
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