ABSTRACT
The author was recently given an opportunity to put some of these ideas into practice when the tourism industry of Greater Victoria, British Columbia, invited him to help reassess its structure and direction With sponsorship from the local chamber of commerce, a workshop was convened to initiate ideas from within the community that could later be brought before a larger forum for deliberation. Forty delegates were invited to the workshop, representing six major interest groups: attractions and festivals, community groups, economic support, government, hospitality, and transportation and in-bound travel. Several of these groups had a very broad base, for example the attractions and festivals included representatives of local arts and sports groups because of their growing interest in organizing festivals and events that could also appeal to the visitor as well as the resident, while the transportation and in-bound travel group included local transport companies and island representatives as well as members of the local visitors’ bureau
