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Ottawa Citizen

Canada Day tourism season looks strong as bookings climb in Ottawa

Article content 'There's so much to do for everyone's tastes in Ottawa,' he said. Article content Article content As the director of public affairs for Ottawa Tourism, Miousse knows that Canada Day typically brings in an influx of tourists from across the country. Leading up to this year's festivities, he says he's expecting 'a lot of traction.' Article content Article content 'It should be a very good one,' he said. 'We're looking forward to it. Especially with the current context, there's a lot of Canadian pride.' Article content Article content Canadian residents returned from 2.7 million trips to the United States in March — a 24 per cent decrease from the previous year, according to Statistics Canada. Flights to the U.S. were also down by 5.5 per cent. This decrease in travel comes amidst an ongoing U.S. tariff war. Article content It's unclear whether tourism numbers will exceed record years in 2019 and Canada's 150th birthday in 2017, Miousse says, but he's optimistic so far. Article content 'We're already seeing more hotel bookings than last year,' he said, adding that Ottawa has seen 10 million tourists in the last year alone, who have generated an estimated $2.6 billion for the local economy. Article content 'It's igniting a sense of your civic pride, right, to want to visit your capital city to celebrate the national day of your country.' Article content Article content Article content Miousse says 90 per cent of Ottawa's tourists are Canadian, accounting for a 'niche market' that Ottawa tends to attract. Along with a heightened sense of Canadian pride, he cited initiatives like the Canada Strong Pass as incentives that make this year's Canada Day special. Article content Article content 'We've all seen what's happened in the world and in Canada these past few months,' he said. 'It's all about making the most of these trends, and that's our advantage here in Ottawa.' Article content 'Obviously, Canada Day is an uptick to that.'