Influenced by the surging Canadian dollar, Tourism Toronto is looking past the US by launching in two major international awareness campaigns designed to attract travelers from the UK and Mexico.
“Toronto is the number one Canadian urban destination for travelers from both the UK and Mexico,” said Tourism Toronto president David Whitaker. “We are confident this next push will continue to keep Toronto top-of-mind, and continue to increase international visitors to Toronto as we target high-value customers who stay longer and spend more when they travel.”
The UK was Toronto’s top international market with nearly 300,000 overnight visitors in 2006, while overnight visitation from Mexico remains one of Toronto’s fastest-growing markets, up 41.3% since 2001.
New for this year is dramatic imagery of the Toronto night-time skyline, to be displayed on scrolling backlit posters across London in mainline rail stations. The campaign is the largest to date.
Similarly, Tourism Toronto is stepping up marketing in Mexico and aims to attract even more visitors during the fall and winter. This marks Toronto’s first major consumer campaign in Mexico.
Toronto welcomed more than 65,000 visitors from Mexico in 2006, up six percent from 2005.
Tourism Toronto is complementing the Mexican campaign with the launch of a new Spanish web site that includes a Spanish visitor’s guide to assist visitors and tour operators in planning travel to Toronto.
At the same time, the Toronto-based Mexico specialist GoSeeMexico is touting a number of Caribbean Mexico properties, including stays at Cozumel’s Playa Azul resort. A seven-night stay there is available for $723, plus taxes.
The tour operator also has seven-night packages on the mainland’s Viva Wyndham Maya – an all-inclusive – and Grand Coco Bay, another all-inclusive. Those packages also include Toronto-Cancun air travel.
Report by David Wilkening
