Oh Canada, Come on Down

(ED. NOTE: The three articles below are a collective effort of the Herald staff to explore the ramifications of high gasoline prices on the Canadian tourism segment of this county’s tourism economy.)
By JACK FICHTER
ERMA –– The Canadians are coming! The Canadians are coming!
In a few weeks, our county’s campgrounds will be filled with vacationing Canadians undaunted by high gas prices.
Dave Robinson, and his wife Maggie, owners of Holly Shores Campground on Route 9, told the Herald the Canadian dollar is stronger than the American dollar, which is an advantage for Canadians visiting the U.S.
“They are used to high gas prices. They have had them for years, so the fuel is not going to stop them from coming in,” he said. “I know for a fact our campground is full for July and August with French Canadians primarily.”
At press time, the gas price in Canada was equal to $6 per gallon although in Canada, where it is sold in liters.
Robinson said about 90 percent of the campground’s business in summer is with French Canadians. He said goods in the U.S. are much less expensive for Canadians to purchase than in Canada.
“Everything up there is about 40 percent more than it is here regardless of the exchange rate,” he said.
At press time, the Canadian dollar was worth two cents more than the U.S. dollar. Two years ago, the Canadian dollar was worth 35 percent less than the U.S. dollar.
Robinson said he started receiving reservations for the summer season in January and Canadians often book one year in advance due to limited availability at campgrounds. He said Canadian visitors stay here one to two weeks.
“They love the beach, they love Cape May and they love Wildwood,” said Robinson.
He said some Canadian campers go to Virginia Beach, but he suspected high gas prices would send them to the Jersey shore.
“We’re going to have a great summer,” said Robinson.
He said Canadians start arriving here in early July.
Canadian visitors in the campground tend to cook at their campsite rather than eat in restaurants, said Robinson.
The Robinsons have owned Holly Shores Campground for 10 years.
Contact Fichter at (609) 886-8600 Ext 30 or at: jfichter@cmcherald.com
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County to Promote Shore to French-Canadians
By SUSAN KRYSIAK AVEDISSIAN
CREST HAVEN — Oooh la la. The beauty and charms of Cape May County will soon be touted in French, the language of love, as county tourism officials work to woo back those capricious objects of desire: Canadian tourists.
Freeholder Leonard Desiderio told freeholders June 10 that county tourism officials met with a producer to prepare a promotional CD for distribution to French-speaking Canadians.
There are over 9.5 million French speakers living in Canada and 6.8 million Canadians whose native language is French. That amounts to approximately 22 percent of the country’s population, according to the Canadian Office of the Commissioner of Languages. Of those, close to 4.1 million Canadians speak only French.
Quebec province, just north of the eastern seaboard of the United States, has the greatest concentration of French speakers in Canada, with 86.3 percent of the population. It takes 8.5 hours to drive to Cape May from Montreal.
Even though French and English are both official languages of Canada, this is the first time a promotional piece for the county has been produced in French, according to Desiderio, county freeholder in charge of the department of tourism.
Desiderio returned last week from an overnight trip to Montreal he paid for on his own dime with county tourism director Diane Wieland and Debbie Baff from that office, to promote the county as a tourist destination to Canadian automobile association representatives and Canadian journalists.
The Jersey shore has a long-standing allure for Canadians. With its warm waters, and drivable distance, it has become a regular destination for summer vacationers over the years. Canadians comprise an integral component of the tourist economy here. But last year saw fewer than normal visitors from the north. Desiderio said previous to last year, Canadian visitors represented 25 percent of tourists visiting Cape May County, but that figure dropped last year to 5-6 percent.
“The reason they were not coming back was the value of our dollar,” Desiderio told freeholders.
Things might be looking up this season as French-Canadians are booking early at one local campground. Dave Robinson, owner of Holly Beach Campground, attributes that to the parity of the U.S. dollar and the Canadian dollar, again. (Please see related story).
Desiderio said the county would attempt to get a grant to produce the CD.
“It was a good tour,” said Desiderio, whose only complaint about the trip was the loss of his luggage by U.S. Airways and the two-hour wait to fill out the form to get it back.
Contact Avedissian at (609) 886-8600 Ext 27 or at: savedissian@cmcherald.com
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Wildwoods Want Piece of Canadian Market
By LAUREN SUIT
WILDWOOD — Parlez-vous français?
French-speaking visitors to the Wildwoods now have an all-French version of the Web site www.wildwoodsnj.com.
Operated by the Greater Wildwoods Tourism Improvement and Development Authority (GWTIDA), the French version of the site was launched March 19 and has been increasingly popular with our neighbor’s to the north.
According to a press release, the new version mirrors the authority’s primary English language site presenting information on planning a vacation, accommodations, dining and attractions. There also are pages describing the Wildwoods’ amenities such as the midway amusements, waterparks, boating, water sports, historic sites and eco-tourism interests.
The new site expands the authority’s Canadian marketing campaign, which targets prospective visitors from Montreal and Quebec with print and radio ads and travel publication articles.
In response, GWTIDA has also increased its advertising spending in Quebec, to $60,000 in 2007 from $20,000 in 2006, with ads in publications such as, Le Journal de Montréal and La Presse.
Contact Suit at: (609) 886-8600 ext. 25 or lsuit@cmcherald.com
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