Submitted by the Huntsville Municipal Accommodation Tax Association
This year, as part of our COVID-19 Recovery Plan, the Huntsville Municipal Accommodation Tax Association (HMATA) Board commissioned two surveys from the polling firm Pollara Inc. One survey was distributed to the general Ontario population living in key areas of the province such as Toronto, the GTA, and the Greater Ottawa region. The second survey was sent out to a database of previous visitors to Huntsville.
The purpose of these surveys was to learn about the travel intentions of Ontarians during and post-COVID and to discover insights about the perception the Town of Huntsville has within the Province and in the minds of those who have previously visited. The two surveys have provided some very actionable data—some positive and some less so.
Positive insights include:
• Most Ontarians have cancelled out-of-country fall and winter travel plans, saying they will travel within Ontario or stay home. Potential travellers say they are extremely concerned about COVID safety measures and most will be looking for areas with smaller populations.
• Scenery and tranquility are most important to travellers to Huntsville. They are interested in options like quiet locations with scenic views and areas they can spend time with family.
• Previous visitors to Huntsville were overwhelmingly positive about their experience and extremely willing to return.
• Muskoka as a region is Ontario’s most popular summer destination, with 28 per cent of Ontarians planning to travel. Huntsville is the second most popular region in Muskoka as a summer and fall destination, behind Algonquin Park.
Areas where Huntsville can improve:
• While over half of Ontarians have at least passed through Huntsville, 64 per cent of the province say they are unfamiliar with the town.
• Huntsville’s cultural activities, shopping and dining are not well known compared to outdoor activities.
• 42 per cent of Ontarians have never heard of Downtown Huntsville shopping while 57 per cent have never heard of the Algonquin Theatre; 73 percent have never heard of Hunters Bay Trail, which is part of the Great/Trans-Canada Trail, while 41 per cent have never heard of Arrowhead Provincial Park.
• While Huntsville is a reasonably competitive destination versus other areas of the province, 42 per cent say they are much more or somewhat more likely to travel to Niagara Falls, 40 per cent to Prince Edward County, 38 per cent to the Greater Ottawa region, and 37 per cent to Collingwood/Blue Mountain
• The top two reasons given for being less likely to visit Huntsville are that they are not familiar with Huntsville (21 per cent) or they feel other destinations offer activities that may be more interesting (20 per cent).
• Huntsville is far less known as a winter destination, with only nine per cent of Ontarians considering the region for winter travel. Travellers this winter say they are much more likely to travel to city centres such as Toronto and Ottawa, as well as other tourism destinations such as Collingwood/Blue Mountain and the Niagara area over travel to Huntsville, though this may change as the second wave of COVID progresses.
The HMATA Board has created a summary document of the survey findings which we would like to share with the entire community to help us better understand our position and to be able to market ourselves more effectively to potential travellers. Going forward, these results will form the basis of future marketing efforts and product development.
The organization strongly believes that, if we work together, we can help each other grow and prosper through these unprecedented times. To this end, we have scheduled a webinar to present the results and findings of the surveys. The webinar will take place on Friday, November 6, 2020 from 10:00-11:00 a.m. Sign up here to receive login information. After the webinar the summary report will be posted to the HMATA website. If you have further
questions or requests, send them by email to [email protected].
Don’t miss out on Doppler!
Sign up here to receive our email digest with links to our most recent stories.
Local news in your inbox three times per week!
0 Comments