Richmond’s proximity to YVR, its Asian attractions and food, as well as Steveston, continue to be the driving forces behind Richmond’s tourism revenue stream.
Last summer, between May and September, 1.9 million visitors set foot in Richmond, bringing with them $400 million in loose change, according to a Tourism Richmond report sent to the city this week.
Promoting the city to Asian markets, particularly China, remains a priority according to Tourism Richmond CEO Tracy Lakeman.
Last year, Tourism Richmond staff visited China to promote the city. Why, however, would Chinese people want to travel across the Pacific to see Chinese things, one may ask?
“Travel for Chinese visitors is relatively new, so they like being comfortable when they’re travelling. They like they’re own food and aren’t overly adventurous,” explained Lakeman, noting the city’s Asian experience, including several Buddhist temples, is also a novelty for North American visitors.
The Olympic oval was noted to be an increasingly popular visitor’s destination and there are hopes the Richmond Olympic Experience museum will be a financial success come fall.
Adding to Richmond’s public profile was film and television production. This week, the city reported it exceeded projected targets in 2013. Last year, 11 feature films (including Godzilla) and 16 TV series were shot in Richmond.
In the summer months, it was estimated overnight visitors using hotels accounted for half of all visits to Richmond and two-thirds of all expenditures.
According to city data, tourism accounts for seven per cent of jobs in Richmond.
And in 2012, Tourism Richmond took in about $2.5 million from a two per cent hotel room tax, representing 80 per cent of its gross revenue.
Its total budget was roughly $3 million. Each year, until 2016, the organization will transfer $900,000 of its tax revenue to the city, with $2.5 million going to the construction of the $5.7 million Olympic museum.
Visitors by location:
• Other provinces — 25 per cent;
• United States —24 per cent;
• British Columbia — 17 per cent;
• Europe and others — 18 per cent;
• Asia Pacific — 16 per cent.
