Tourism Week | The Economic Thread of a Single Visit
Brewloops
Frank Luca
Every April, National Tourism Week gives the industry a moment to step back and recognize what it does. The national campaign theme this year, Canada: Powered by Tourism, says it plainly. Tourism is a main driver of the Canadian economy, and the people who work in it power communities in ways that often go unacknowledged.
In Kamloops, that story is worth telling clearly.
Picture someone arriving here for the first time. Maybe they drove in from the coast, or flew in for a conference, or followed a trail recommendation from a friend. They check into a locally owned hotel, grab coffee from a shop on Victoria Street that's been here for fifteen years, and spend the afternoon on a trail above the Thompson River with a guide who's been leading people through these valleys for years. That evening, they find a restaurant that's packed on a Tuesday in July, order something made from ingredients sourced an hour away, and make a reservation to come back the following night.
That's one visitor. One day. And the economic thread running through it touches a dozen local businesses before they've even checked out.
In 2024, Kamloops welcomed nearly 2 million people like that. They generated $316 million in direct visitor spending, a record for a city of just over 100,000, supported 2,645 local jobs, and produced a total economic impact of $528 million across British Columbia. Between 2022 and 2023 alone, tourism in BC grew nearly 10 percent year over year. Early indicators from 2026 suggest that momentum hasn't slowed.
Some of those visitors came for a weekend. Others came for a week-long event, discovered something they didn't expect, and came back the following summer with their families. That compounding effect, the return visit, the referral to a friend, the social post that lands in front of someone who has never heard of Kamloops, is one of the most valuable things tourism creates, and one of the easiest to underestimate.
What makes Kamloops distinct in that story is also what makes it worth protecting. This city sits on the territory of the Tk'emlúps te Secwépemc, and their connection to this land is woven into the character of every experience visitors find here. That's not a footnote. It's foundational to what Kamloops is as a destination, and it shapes how we think about doing this work responsibly.
National Tourism Week is a moment to say that this work matters. The trails people use, the events that fill our venues, the restaurants that are still here because tourism gave them the revenue to stay, all of it is connected. Tourism builds communities. It funds the things that make a city worth living in, not just worth visiting. In Kamloops, that's not a tagline. It's something we can measure, and a commitment we carry into every decision we make.
Behind every visitor experience in Kamloops are people who care deeply about what they do. They are the early risers opening café doors, the guides who know every turn in the trail, the housekeepers, servers, event crews, and front desk teams who keep things running seamlessly, often behind the scenes. This industry asks a lot of them, long hours, busy seasons, and an unwavering commitment to making others feel welcome. They show up anyway, and they do it with pride. To the people who make this visitor economy what it is, thank you. Your work shapes how this city is experienced, remembered, and talked about long after a visit ends.
To every person and business that powers the visitor economy in this city: this week is yours.