YORKTON - Tourism Yorkton has submitted its annual report, working plan, budget and financial statements to city council.
Tourism Yorkton is a non-profit membership-based organization founded in 1985, and governed by a Board of Directors.
The organization operates with two full-time staff and summer information councillors.
The report noted travel and tourism generated an estimated $42.2 million in travel receipts in the Yorkton constituency, according to numbers from the province. The dollars include ppending on services: accommodation, food/beverage, transportation, attractions, business travel etc..
Out of the 71,800 people employed within Saskatchewan, there were 1,718 people employed in the tourism-related industries in Yorkton.
Tourism Yorkton is one of four stand-alone visitor information centres in Saskatchewan and the only year-round visitor information centre open on the Yellowhead Highway between Winnipeg and Saskatoon and in the eastern portion of Saskatchewan.
“Visitors at the information centre provide economic spin-off and funnelling effects to the City of Yorkton and area. The visitor information centre offers visitor services including travel literature, maps, events, attractions, highway conditions, crop information, souvenirs, telephone, washrooms, water supply, sewer dumping station and more,” detailed the report.
The centre operates during normal business hours but has extended hours from May to the end of the Labour Day weekend in September, when it is open daily from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays, and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends and holidays.
Information requests totalling 2,703 were received by telephone, email, website and mail. Information about Yorkton and its businesses and attractions was sent to potential visitors from all 10 Canadian provinces and three territories, as well as to the United States and overseas.
Tourism Yorkton has the second-largest membership (after Saskatoon) of a destination marketing organization in Saskatchewan.
