Victoria is teaming up with Saskatoon and St. John's as part of what's being touted as "a landmark initiative" called " Cities in Sync", a plan aimed at boosting conference tourism.
The three cities are popular destinations for the conference/tourism sectors. But planning meetings and conferences in those destinations can be difficult as facilities can often be booked years in advance.
Now a new initiative dubbed "Cities in Sync" will allow meeting planners to book all 3 cities in a natural rotation through Western, Central and Eastern Canada -- simplifying the conference planning process.
It also allows each destination city to know they have future business on the books, which provides some predictability for the tourism sector.
The initiative was announced at the Tête-à-Tête Tradeshow in Ottawa, Canada's largest annual gathering of association executives, businesses and government executives that work in the conference industry.
Miranda Ji, Tourism Victoria’s Director of Sales for the Victoria Conference Centre and Business Events, says it's a competitive business and any edge they can create to bring meetings business to the cities is a win for the regions.
The Cities in Sync initiative also has a marketing component that will be funded by the three cities’ marketing organizations, and includes incentives designed to appeal to planners.
There is also consideration given to associations with bylaws requiring an additional province in the mix, creating a four-year cycle.