July tourism stats up over 2012

Tourism in Yorkton was up significantly for July over the same month last year. A total of 774 people visited the Yorkton Visitor Centre compared to 697 in July 2012, an increase of 11 per cent.

"We're very pleased with that," said Randy Goulden, executive director of Tourism Yorkton. "The thing that's really interesting is where they're coming from."

Some 13 countries were represented among the visitors, not including Canada and the United States.

The countries were: Spain, the United Kingdom, Denmark, Holland, France, Australia, Ireland, Mauritius, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, the Republic of Panamá and the Philippines.

From the U.S. and Canada, the centre counted 14 states and every province and territory except Nunavut.

Also very interesting, said Goulden, is how many motorcyclists, especially women, they are seeing. The Visitor Centre does not keep statistics on types of vehicles, but anecdotally she has seen a significant increase. One group from Dublin, Ireland, was travelling across the country on bikes and included a woman from Mauritius, a first for the centre.

Goulden said feedback from visitors indicate people are actively choosing Highway 16 as an alternative, in part because of the efforts of the Yellowhead Highway Association, which claims as its mandate to "to advocate for the development, maintenance, use and prosperity of the Yellowhead Corridor.

"It's a very scenic route, much more so than the Number 1," Goulden said.

The new hotels that have opened recently haven't hurt matters either. Tourism Yorkton views the hotel room capacity as a great opportunity to bring more conventions and conference to Yorkton over the coming years.