Beyond the Visitor Economy | Investing in the Community We Call Home
Tourism is about more than just visitor spending. Investing in attractions, recreation, arts, and culture creates a vibrant community, strengthens local businesses, and improves residents' quality of life, while shaping a Kamloops that people will want to visit, live in, and work in for years to come.
By Erik Fisher, CEO of Tourism Kamloops
Part 6 of 6 in the “What Tourism Builds for Us” series
When we talk about tourism, the conversation often begins with visitor spending, local jobs and economic impact. These are important measures of a successful visitor economy, but they only tell part of the story. Tourism also contributes to community pride, creates opportunities for investment and entrepreneurship, and supports the amenities and experiences that make Kamloops a vibrant place to live. A successful visitor economy doesn't just generate wealth. It helps create a more vibrant, confident and resilient community.
Tourism encourages us to recognize, celebrate and invest in what makes Kamloops unique. Our landscapes, culture, outdoor recreation and people define us as a destination, but they are also central to our community identity. The qualities that attract visitors are often the same qualities that attract residents: vibrant neighbourhoods, recreation, culture, great public spaces and a strong sense of place. A great place to live is often a great place to visit, and a great place to visit can become somewhere people imagine building their future.
Investing in Tourism, Investing in Community
This connection is particularly clear when we look at tourism infrastructure. Trails, parks, waterfronts, sport facilities, arts venues and public spaces are enjoyed by residents long before and after visitors use them. Our trail networks are an excellent example. Mountain biking and outdoor recreation attract visitors, but those same trails support residents' health, recreation and connection to nature. When amenities serve both residents and visitors, the broader user base can strengthen the case for investment and support long-term operations. The best tourism infrastructure is infrastructure that residents would want even if another tourist never arrived.
The same applies to the experiences that bring our community together. Events, festivals, sport, arts and culture create connections, celebrate local talent and strengthen civic pride. The value of an event isn't just measured by how many visitors attend. It's also measured by what it leaves behind, whether that's greater local participation, stronger community organizations, improved facilities or shared experiences that last well beyond the event itself.
A strong visitor economy also creates opportunities that might otherwise not be viable. Visitor demand helps sustain restaurants, entertainment, cultural institutions and recreational experiences that residents enjoy year-round. It supports new businesses, attractions and private investment, creating more choices, more experiences and a stronger local economy.
Quality of Life Is an Economic Advantage
These opportunities help attract and retain the people who will shape Kamloops' future. Professionals, families, entrepreneurs and skilled workers consider lifestyle, recreation, culture and community amenities alongside employment opportunities when deciding where to live. Destination marketing is also place marketing. The stories we tell about Kamloops reach more than potential tourists. They can influence prospective residents, entrepreneurs and investors considering where to build their future. Businesses attract people with career opportunities, but communities retain them through quality of life.
As Kamloops grows, we have an opportunity to complement our exceptional natural assets with distinctive, year-round attractions that encourage longer stays and create new experiences for residents. Through our Room to Invest initiative, we've explored concepts such as a Nordic spa, an iconic tower and adventure park, and a hoodoos skywalk. These examples demonstrate how destination research can identify opportunities, develop business cases and engage potential investors in what could be possible for Kamloops.
Continued investment in a vibrant downtown, activated public spaces, cultural experiences, recreation facilities and event venues will also be important. Alongside improved transportation connections and accessibility, these investments can strengthen local participation while making Kamloops an even more compelling destination.
Building a Shared Vision for Kamloops
Destination development is about more than identifying opportunities for growth. It requires us to consider how our city feels and functions, not simply how it looks in advertising. We need to align tourism with broader community planning, so investments contribute to livability, economic opportunity and long-term prosperity. Residents should help shape those priorities, and we shouldn't measure tourism's success solely by what visitors take away from Kamloops. We should also measure what tourism gives back to the people who live here.
Achieving this requires collaboration. No single organization builds a great destination. Tourism Kamloops, the City of Kamloops, Tk̓emlúps te Secwépemc, businesses and community organizations all bring important expertise, resources and perspectives. For example, Indigenous leadership and respectful collaboration with Tk̓emlúps te Secwépemc are essential to supporting Indigenous-led tourism, cultural understanding and experiences that reflect the identity and history of this place.
When we align tourism, economic development, infrastructure planning and community priorities around a shared vision, we make better investment decisions and create opportunities that extend beyond individual projects. Our greatest potential lies in working together to build a stronger Kamloops for the next generation.
Looking Ahead: The Kamloops of Tomorrow
Looking ahead ten or twenty years, I hope we can say that tourism helped Kamloops become a more vibrant, livable and prosperous community, not simply a more popular destination. That we moved from promoting what we already had to investing in what we could become. That we helped create new attractions, experiences and amenities that benefited generations of residents while protecting the natural landscapes, recreational assets, cultural heritage and authentic identity that make Kamloops special.
Most importantly, I hope we can say that tourism helped bring people together. Through collaboration, community pride and a shared vision, we have an opportunity to build a city where people want to visit, live, work, invest and raise their families.
Twenty years from now, I don't want people to simply say that Tourism Kamloops helped bring more visitors to the city. I want them to say we helped make Kamloops a better place to call home as well.
Author: Erik Fisher
Erik is Tourism Kamloops' bold leader responsible for strategic direction, community relationships, and tourism development.