June is National Indigenous History Month in Canada. During this month, the Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada (ITAC) encourages its members, partners and Canadians more broadly to commemorate this celebration.

This is the time to recognize the rich history, heritage, resilience and diversity of First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples across Canada. From coast to coast to coast, experiences and opportunities to learn and celebrate Indigenous cultures will shine a spotlight on the outstanding achievements of Indigenous communities to share with Canadians.

Indigenous Tourism in Canada

In 2021, ITAC created The Original Original mark of excellence; a key component of The Original Original is a brand mark to help travellers better identify and book experiences from Indigenous-owned tourism businesses across Canada.

The Original Original mark identifies businesses vetted by ITAC, including four key criteria:

  • At least 51 per cent Indigenous-owned;
  • Embraces the values of Indigenous tourism;
  • Offers a market or export-ready experience; and
  • Current ITAC member.

2022 was a year of great growth and continued rebuilding towards ITAC’s ultimate goal of returning Indigenous tourism to the peaks of GDP and employment seen in 2019. The association is actively working daily towards $1.9 billion of direct GDP contributions, 1,900 Indigenous tourism businesses, and more than 39,000 Indigenous tourism employees by 2025.

Get Involved

ITAC has many ways for partners and industry to get involved, such as:

Watch this video to learn more about ITAC’s 2030 Vision of making Canada become the global leader in Indigenous tourism.

Pledge your support and join #IndigenousTourismTeamCanada to help Canada become the global leader in Indigenous tourism by 2030. Consider signing and sharing it on your social media using #IndigenousTourismTeamCanada.

Become an ITAC member. Any person or organization (Indigenous and non-Indigenous alike) interested in advancing Indigenous tourism in Canada is welcome to apply to become an ITAC member.

Visit DestinationIndigenous.ca to find and visit Indigenous tourism experiences across Canada.

Follow Destination Indigenous on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Welcome the land of the #TheOriginalOriginal.

Watch The Original Original video series.

Learn more about National Indigenous History Month.