Manitoba welcomed 10.4 million visitors in 2023 who spent a record $1.82 billion throughout the province, Travel Manitoba reported at its recent Annual General Meeting. Visitation exceeded 10 million for the first time since 2019, a positive sign the industry is moving beyond recovery to growth.
“Whether you’re visiting for the first time or coming back to get one more look at a polar bear, Manitoba is making itself known as an incredible place to come visit,” said Nellie Kennedy, Manitoba’s new Minister of Sport, Culture, Heritage and Tourism. “With our hundreds of lakes, stunning skies and our amazing mosaic of peoples and cultures, I’m excited to work with Travel Manitoba to welcome new and returning folks and highlight the benefits of tourism to all Manitobans.”
“Manitoba has eclipsed 2019 visitor spending levels and we are making headway on recovering visitation,” said Colin Ferguson, President and CEO of Travel Manitoba. “However, we must remain aggressive in our efforts. Critical and targeted investments will enable the industry to continue to grow. We will need to focus our efforts on international markets to attract more long-haul visitors who are seeking exceptional tourism experiences like ones that Manitoba has to offer,” Ferguson noted.
Many international visitors are looking for authentic Indigenous tourism experiences. Thanks to the work of Indigenous Tourism Manitoba, the Indigenous tourism industry is seeing incredible growth, with 170 Indigenous-owned businesses operating in the province today compared to 81 businesses in 2019.
Major events have strong and demonstrated economic returns and Travel Manitoba is advocating for a province-wide investment strategy to remain competitive in attracting meetings, conventions and events to Manitoba’s cities and rural destinations.
“The major events Manitoba has secured for 2025, like the Grey Cup and Rendez-vous Canada – the country’s biggest global marketplace for the tourism industry, consistently demonstrate a strong economic return for the province,” said Ferguson.
Travel Manitoba’s innovative and targeted marketing delivered millions of dollars in gross bookings along with 320,000 leads to the tourism industry in 2023.
“Travel Manitoba’s campaign absolutely knocked it out of the park this year,” Jon Schmiemann of Expedia said in a video released at the AGM. “Outperforming the nation by double or even triple in terms of incremental room night growth – those results are phenomenal,” Schmiemann said.
Travel Manitoba is on target to reach $2.5 billion in spending from 12.8 million visitors annually by 2030.
“Tourism is an economic multiplier and all Manitobans benefit from the $373 million in annual provincial tax revenue that is shared across the province,” said Tim Johnston, Vice-Chair of Travel Manitoba’s Board of Directors. “Tourism creates over 25,000 direct and indirect jobs in Manitoba and fosters local pride in our vibrant cultures and attractions.”
