TORONTO — Cross-country travel is down again because of the second wave of COVID-19, but a report from Expedia shows that Thunder Bay stands to benefit if travel resumes next year.
Expedia's travel forecast includes a list of 2020's top 10 trending destinations for travel by Canadians.
Thunder Bay makes the list at number nine.
Expedia says the list is quite different from last year, as it has more rural and remote places as opposed to metropolitan centres.
In addition, unlike previous years when trending destinations included a mix of U.S. and other international locations, this year domestic destinations completely fill the top 10.
Among the places showing the greatest growth this year, Jasper, Alberta tops the list, followed by Gaspesie-Iles de la Madeleines,Quebec and Banff, Alberta.
Tourism Manager Paul Pepe says he's pleasantly surprised to see Thunder Bay in the rankings, "but at the same time not really," because it aligns with what the tourism department was seeing starting in July, through August, and into September.
In August, Thunder Bay recorded the country's fourth highest hotel occupancy rate, 69 per cent.
Pepe said that would be bad in a normal year where the figure would be in the 80s, but the Canadian average in August was only 42 per cent.
"It's good to see we're identified in that trend," he said, noting that the other communities in the top ten are in also in rural locations that are still drivable from major population centres.
Pepe believes what happened this year bodes well for Thunder Bay in 2021.
"We're in the second wave of the pandemic now, and we've really curtailed a lot of our strategies and our campaigns. When recovery begins...I think we're going to see that trend continue – that attractiveness to gateway cities that are outdoor cities, which is something we promote and do well at."
