Minister says new tourism funds will benefit Westman

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This article was published 08/04/2025 (269 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

More money will be allocated to promote the Westman region this summer to travellers from near and far, says Sport, Culture, Heritage and Tourism Minister Nellie Kennedy.

The Manitoba government is providing Travel Manitoba an additional $4.5 million to showcase the province, with 10 per cent earmarked for Indigenous tourism, Kennedy announced on Monday during a news conference in Winnipeg.

“We heard from Travel Manitoba and folks within the tourism industry that this type of funding increase would be able to make us more competitive,” Kennedy said.

Kennedy told the Sun in a phone interview that she grew up in a small town in rural Manitoba and understands concerns people may have about the majority of the marketing money being spent on the province’s capital city.

“I know all the amazing parts of Manitoba that aren’t within Winnipeg,” Kennedy said.

“For example, in Westman there is the Riding Mountain National Park and Clear Lake, Spruce Woods Provincial Park and the Keystone Centre.

“It’s Travel Manitoba, right? Not Travel Winnipeg. So it’s going to be a response to ensure that the whole province really does benefit from tourists taking in all parts,” she said.

The decision to increase funding came from discussions within the NDP government about Manitoba’s responses to the tariffs, Kennedy added.

“This was something that was on the table, because we know how big of an economic driver tourism is for our province,” she said.

In 2023, the tourism industry generated about $373 million in revenue for Manitoba, said Travel Manitoba CEO and president Colin Ferguson, who co-hosted the news conference, which also included the kickoff of National Tourism Week.

The $4.5 million is in addition to Travel Manitoba’s annual budget of $13.8 million.

The timing couldn’t be better, Ferguson told the Sun, since every province will also be stepping up their tourism game.

“This is a huge opportunity for us,” Ferguson said. “The increase in funding provides us with the runway to be more aggressive marketers to address three primary areas from a marketing perspective.

“One is encouraging Manitobans to stay at home and travel in Manitoba — so shop local.”

The other two other marketing goals that Travel Manitoba has set are to assist Indigenous tourism in the province and to promote Manitoba to Canadians, Americans and other international tourists.

“Americans come specifically to Churchill and the wildlife experiences of polar bears, beluga whales and northern lights. They also come for our hunting and fishing, which is absolutely world class,” Ferguson said.

“As it stands right now, our numbers are holding from the U.S., and we anticipate that will hold but things can change. There’s a lot going on between the two countries right now.”

There is no formula for how the new marketing funds will be allocated to communities across the province. It’s less about the geographic boundaries and more about the attractions and opportunities, Ferguson said.

“It won’t be, well, Brandon’s going to get this much, or Westman is going to get this much. What we will do is make sure that there is fair representation of money spent throughout the province,” he said.

“Obviously, Brandon is a key centre for us that does a very good job at attracting major events. We know that, and we recognize that.”

The announcement for more funding to promote Westman and Brandon is welcome news, said Lanny Stewart, Brandon Tourism’s director of marketing and communications.

More people — even locals — need to be made aware of all the locations and nature-based activities in and around Brandon, he said.

“There are a lot of hidden gems in the city,” Stewart said. “Consider coming to Brandon for a two-day stay, not just to do your shopping, because there’s so much more to the city.”

Stewart said the Riverbank Discovery Centre, with its trail network along the Assiniboine River, is one of the city’s primary destinations. It has year-round activities for fat bikers, cross-country skiers and snowshoers. In the summer, there are also nature programs for kids.

Also on Stewart’s list of places to see and things to do are the Brandon Hills, with its bike and walking trail network, the Commonwealth Air Training Plan Museum, the Hologram Zoo and Crow’s General Store on 17th Street East, a vintage ice cream shop with nature trails.

“So there are things that people tend to disregard, that are actually pretty significant to the area and do draw tourism from outside of just the people who live here,” Stewart said.

Travel Manitoba has adopted the slogan, “Canada’s heart is calling,” which Ferguson said is “perfectly suited,” considering the events that are happening around the world and between Canada and the U.S.

It’s also a call to action for people who have travelled to the same places over and over again to get out and explore their own backyard.

“Canada’s heart is calling says all the right things,” said Ferguson. “We’re a welcoming community, we’re in the heart of the country, we’ve got all kinds of incredible opportunities for people to experience, and now we just have to convince them to come.”

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