"It Might Be Time for Gull Lake to Re-evaluate Its Tourism Potential," I wrote in August of this year. But how large is the potential? It is noteworthy, according to Tourism Saskatchewan's 2018/2019 Regional Profile information for Southwest Saskatchewan. In 2019, 1.44 million Canadians visited Southwest Saskatchewan. An estimated 208 million dollars was spent by visitors who stayed an average of 2.3 nights in the region in 2019. Overnight visitors spent an average of $229.00, while day visitors spent $93.00. Their top three expenses were lodging, meals and beverages, and car fuel and maintenance. The Regional Profile highlighted sightseeing as the most popular visitor activity, followed by visiting a national or provincial park, camping, and visiting historic sites.
The Saskatchewan government invested $5 million this fiscal year to help the province's tourism industry grow. Cypress Park's attractions and capacity have grown in recent years. Every year, more people visit the Grasslands National Park. The Great Sandhills appear to be gaining prominence as well. An historic train for short rail trips will soon be available in Eastend, which is doing a fantastic job of attracting visitors.
The most popular visitor activity was sightseeing. Gull Lake is located in the heart of Southwest Saskatchewan, which is far too vast to explore in a single day. Gull Lake's location makes it a perfect place to stay for travellers doing day trips in Southwest Saskatchewan.
Thousands of potential visitors travel through and by our town every day. We only need to give them a reason to stop and spend some time in Gull Lake.
Blake Campbell