2025 will be a momentous year for the Tourism Industry Association of Canada (TIAC).  In our desire to bolster the Canadian tourism sector, we’ve launched the Regional Tourism Roundtable Series—an initiative to deepen connections, foster dialogue, and drive collaboration across the Canadian tourism industry.

This series is designed to bring together industry stakeholders to address key challenges, explore opportunities, and share strategies to strengthen the resilience and competitiveness of Canada’s tourism sector.

By creating a space for local and regional voices, TIAC and its partners aim to better understand how current initiatives impact various regions and identify how national, provincial/territorial, and sectoral organizations can work more effectively together.

The first of such roundtables took place in St. John, New Brunswick, from November 12 to 14. A collaboration between TIAC and the Tourism Industry Association of New Brunswick (TIANB), this prototype proved a tremendous success in convening local and national representatives to facilitate an exchange of successes and concerns on both sides.  

In total, 120 delegates participated throughout the day, part of the agenda of TIANB’s 2024 Tourism Summit & Awards Gala. Two morning panels were held—both focused on leveraging national tourism opportunities for growth in New Brunswick. Though they shared subjects, the sessions varied in the composition of their panels. This distinction resulted in myriad opinions being shared and syntheses being produced. As a member of one of these panels, I am sure that, with time, these learnings will bear a prosperous tourism landscape for the urban and rural destinations of the province.

The afternoon was then open to roundtable discussions. On the docket were labour needs, infrastructure and business investment, sustainability in tourism, innovative approaches to drive tourism growth, and collaboration among sector stakeholders. Other topics explored during the discussions were ways to extend the tourism season and the need for access to knowledge and resources for tourism operators. The nature of the small groups encouraged participation and granted attendees an important platform from which to speak and permitted others a chance to really listen. Moreover, it instilled a rapport among its participants and encourage real communication and co-operation.   

In the wake of this success, future in-person roundtable sessions will be held in at least five key locations across Canada, ensuring broad geographic representation and inclusivity of industry players, from small businesses to major tourism associations:

• Western Canada
• Prairies Canada
• Eastern Canada
• Northern Canada
• Atlantic Canada 

These interactive sessions will also offer tourism stakeholders an opportunity to meet with representatives from TIAC and other key national, regional, and sectoral organizations, ensuring a comprehensive approach to addressing the specific needs of each region.   In my role with TIAC, I’ve witnessed time and again that consultation and dialogue are at the heart of effective and impactful advocacy—not only with those public figures who can directly influence the direction of our industry, but within the industry itself. Through a greater number of forums for dialogue in 2025, we can better achieve our goals and fully embraces tourism as a vital component of our country’s economy and character. These roundtable sessions are a step in this direction.