Osoyoos Tourism Market Development
Plan Unveiled

On May 15 Destination Osoyoos unveiled a major new three-year Tourism Market Development Plan for 2008-10 that sets bold new goals to increase tourism and make Osoyoos an even more popular year-round resort area for visitors from around the world.

Destination Osoyoos CEO Glenn Mandziuk released the plan – developed over the past year by TourismBC’s Community Tourism Foundations® program. He says it will guide the spending and projects undertaken with the more than $200,000 per year available to the Osoyoos tourism sector generated by the two-per-cent Additional Hotel Room Tax (AHRT) which began to be levied at Osoyoos accommodations last Dec. 1.

“This is really cause for celebration,” Mandziuk says. “This new Plan positions Osoyoos extraordinarily well because it complements our community’s Resort Development Strategy and because of the overwhelming support for the Plan from the local tourism industry and government.”

Development of the Plan included input from local tourism stakeholders. Resort owner Ron Stephens, chairman of the local hotel/motel association, said he and his group are very pleased with the Plan. Stephens is also head of the local Tourism Advisory Committee which, together with Destination Osoyoos, will help oversee new local tourism projects funded by the AHRT.

The Plan’s facilitator, TourismBC consultant Jennifer Houiellebecq, says, “Osoyoos is a really good example of private/public partnerships.” And TourismBC Partnership Marketing Director Peter Harrison applauded Destination Osoyoos, the Town, and the local tourism business community for their co-operation in developing such an impressive foundation for future growth.

The Plan says Osoyoos must develop meaningful tourism experiences which respect the area’s natural and cultural heritage, and its economic health, aesthetics, and quality of life. Among dozens of planned initiatives are:

• Building awareness of the new brand: ‘Osoyoos – Canada’s Warmest Welcome’.

• Developing web-based tourism marketing.

• Positioning Osoyoos as a destination of choice for meetings and conferences.

• Generating increased media exposure for Osoyoos as a resort destination.

Osoyoos now hosts 350,000 visitors each year, who spend $72 million. By 2010 the Plan aims to boost that to 374,500 visitors and $79.2 million.

'Warm and Fuzzy' Critters at the Visitor Centre

Much of the life and colour brightening up the large open space in the new BC Visitor Centre @ Osoyoos comes from the B.C. merchandise on display – and some of the brightest, most popular items are the three fuzzy stuffed-animal mascots for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Whistler and Vancouver.

Jo Knight, the Centre’s Tourism & Visitor Experience Director, says the three – sasquatch ‘Quatchi’, sea-bear ‘Miga’, and animal-spirit ‘Sumi’ – have been on sale since March and are proving to be a real hit with visitors (and also with the Centre’s staff!). The cuddly mascots range in price from $25-$40.

Knight says the Centre also carries more than 100 types of Olympic pins and Super Natural British Columbia clothing and products – “and both lines are very popular, especially with visitors from other countries.”
She also plans to bring in a line of the 2010 Olympic clothing in the next few months.

Knight says that despite the warm greeting the mascots have received, the most popular item in the Centre’s retail outlet last month was the book ‘Cactus in Your Shorts’, a lively illustrated history of Osoyoos by George Matheson.

Resort Agreement will spark local Tourism Projects

The May 15 launch of Osoyoos’ new Tourism Market Development Plan follows the designation earlier this spring of Osoyoos as one of B.C.’s 13 official ‘resort municipalities’ – entitling it to additional funding for tourism-related infrastructure developments.

Community Services Minister Ida Chong met at the BC Visitor Centre @ Osoyoos on March 17 with Mayor John Slater and MLA Bill Barisoff to sign the resort declaration under the B.C. Resort Municipality Initiative.

It is estimated Osoyoos and area will receive $1 million over five years. The funds will be used by the Town, through Destination Osoyoos, to launch a number of projects to enhance the area’s growing tourism industry and support a greener, healthier environment for residents and visitors.

Destination Osoyoos CEO Glenn Mandziuk says, “The planned new projects and community amenities will increase our appeal as a four-season destination and help us attract more shoulder- and winter-season business – particularly for getaways and the small-business meetings market.”

The projects planned as part of this new resort initiative include:

• Build a network of multi-use trails connecting Osoyoos’ downtown, lakefront, and outlying natural areas.

• Create affordable tourism employee housing.

• Improve traffic-route signage, to encourage more traffic to visit and shop in Osoyoos.

• Create an annual ‘Art in the Park’ festival in the waterfront area to develop a legacy of public art and increase the area’s appeal as a gathering place for the community and its visitors.

• Work towards establishment of an energy-efficient shuttle service between Osoyoos and the Penticton and Kelowna airports.

• Purchase a ‘green technology’ beach-cleaning machine to regularly clean Osoyoos’ beaches.

Tourism Trends

• The city of Richmond, B.C. is testing an alternative lighting system which uses local renewable energy and reduces emissions of greenhouse gases. The wind-turbine and solar-powered lighting system was installed May 14 and the trial will run for a few months. Engineering & Public Works Manager Robert Gonzalez says if the test is a success, the city will look at using this type of power for other applications around Richmond.

• Tourism Vancouver recently opened a new satellite visitor centre in the downtown Vancouver Art Gallery plaza – the first of 12 such centres that will be ready in time for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The 2.4-by-3.7-metre structure provides travel information and is equipped to sell Tourism Vancouver products. Tourism BC is funding the $500,000 capital cost, with each structure worth about $40,000. After the games are over, the visitor centres will be redeployed to communities throughout B.C. for use as seasonal visitor centres.

• The Ecotourism and Sustainable Tourism Conference 2008 (ESTC 2008) will be held in Vancouver this Oct. 27-29. It will present innovative strategies for sustainable tourism development in the U.S. and Canada, and will bring together more than 500 experts, industry leaders and community stakeholders from across the region. See www.ecotourismconference.org.

• A new 2010 Olympic Business Guide has been published to help businesses see how they can get involved in the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. The guide highlights stories from B.C. entrepreneurs who have successfully bid on Games-related contracts. The Guide includes updated resources, contacts and details about where to find more information on Games-related business opportunities. It also includes ideas about creating strategic relationships and partnerships, and writing winning proposals. The Guide is available through B.C. government offices and RBC branches around the province. An online edition is also available at www.2010CommerceCentre.gov.bc.ca and www.rbcroyalbank.com/olympicbusiness/.

• The Tourism Media Association of Canada will hold its 2009 annual general meeting at the River Rock Casino Resort in Richmond, B.C., Feb. 3-7, reflecting its setting as an Olympic host city. The organization hopes to make the Olympic Speedskating Oval in that city one of the venues for its AGM sessions.

'Hip' BiBo Wine Bar & Restaurant opens on Main Street

Osoyoos continues to see new businesses open to serve visitors and local residents alike. One of the latest is ‘BiBo’, a wine-bar and restaurant at 8316 Main Street, next to the Osoyoos Credit Union – and it has already created some buzz in the dining media.

A recent issue of CityFood magazine notes that BiBo is a “hip” 50-seat establishment opened May 8 by Brad Lazarenko and his partners in the Edmonton-based Manduco Restaurant Group. That’s the group that owns and operates the upscale Passa Tempo restaurant at the Spirit Ridge Resort & Spa in the Nk’Mip resort area on the east side of Osoyoos.

CityFood notes that BiBo manager Shelley Couture calls the decor of the 50-seat-capacity room "dark, sultry and romantic", with wood-panelled walls, barn-plank floor and ceiling, dark chocolate brown leather seating and low-glow lamps.

BiBo features wines from South Okanagan boutique wineries as well as other domestic and international labels. The food starts with lunch at 11:30 a.m. and tapas until 10 p.m. Mondays through Wednesdays and until 12 midnight Thursdays through Saturdays. Appropriately, in Latin ‘BiBo’ means “to drink” or “to quaff”. It can be reached at (250) 495-6686.