The Aboriginal Tourism Marketing Circle (ATMC) has launched a new online website tool designed to help Aboriginal entrepreneurs, bands and organizations explore opportunities to benefit from the growing cruise industry. Canada’s cruise industry is both successful and thriving, with growth predicted for 2014 and beyond. Canada’s three main regions with strong cruise ship presences include Pacific Coast & Alaska, Atlantic Canada and the Saint Lawrence. Other cruise regions include the Great Lakes and Arctic Canada. Canada’s cruise industry holds many opportunities for Aboriginal entrepreneurs, bands and organizations located in coastal communities. These include land excursions, accommodation for pre / post cruise, sales of arts & crafts, and more.
“While the cruise industry has immense potential for Aboriginal tourism providers and products in development, the market is very complex and it can be difficult to recognize and understand the numerous opportunities and economic benefits available,” said ATMC Chair Keith Henry. “We wanted to provide the insight and tools needed to better understand and work with the cruise industry and I feel we have accomplished this with the website portal.”
This new web portal www.CruiseShipOpportunities.ca provides easy‐to‐use online tools offering an in‐depth understanding of the opportunities that need to be considered, prepared and marketed to the cruise lines. Organizations using this tool will be able to:
- Explore the map tool and review opportunities by clicking on a region or a port
- Understand the market size and cruise lines by port
- Understand the current and future opportunities by port
- Find out about industry size and trends
- Get a tool box on how to develop an export‐ready product for the cruise lines
- Understand the network of industry partners working jointly to service the cruise lines
“We are proud to have developed this website as it will not only be useful to our community members, but to tourism providers across the country wishing to work with the cruise industry,” said Trina Mather‐Simard, ATMC’s Executive. “On behalf of all ATMC members, I also want to thank Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada for funding this important project.”
In conjunction with the online web portal, ATMC has developed four cruise industry strategies to be implemented in support of product development specifically for cruises, as well as marketing those experiences that are cruise export‐ready. ATMC is working with Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada on this next phase.
