Nova Scotia Tourism Sector Strategic Plan 

Collaboration between communities, government, and industry is necessary to support sustainable tourism growth, maximize resource effectiveness, and avoid duplication of effort. Applying a tourism lens to decision making and planning will ensure investments and initiatives support strategic tourism goals. 

Goals:

• Increase collaboration across government, communities, and industry to foster sustainable tourism growth. 
• Work to align marketing efforts to maximize reach and minimize duplication. 
• Adopt and integrate a tourism lens into all decision-making by all stakeholders that may affect the sector. 

Through development of transportation access, tourism infrastructure, and sector development, there is an opportunity to improve conditions to encourage and retain investment in the provincial tourism industry and cultivate business viability. 

Goals: 

• Improve accessibility to Nova Scotia leveraging road, air and marine connections and ensure consistent, year-round access to the province. 
• Improve connectivity within the province, leveraging public transit and ensuring traveller services are available throughout the province. 
• Invest in tourism infrastructure across the province to improve local community prosperity and increase visitor dispersion. 
• Cultivate business access to capital. 

This is a community-first approach. Tourism development and marketing must be grounded in Nova Scotia’s natural and cultural strengths and prioritize resident and community wellbeing. 

Goals: 

• Leverage Nova Scotia’s cultural strengths to develop new product and drive tourism receipts. 
• Demonstrate commitment to reconciliation by building Mi’kmaw cultural tourism capacity. 
• Ensure tourism development and marketing is grounded in Nova Scotia’s natural assets, and its historical and cultural strengths. 
• Prioritize resident and community well-being in decision making. 

Taking collective action to address seasonality, and to protect the province’s natural assets, will make a positive contribution to communities across Nova Scotia. 

Goals: 

• Align resources to support off-peak tourism product and experience development and marketing. 
• Embrace innovation and cross-sector collaboration to increase year-round employment opportunities. 
• Foster community capacity for housing. 
• Develop conditions to support year-round operation of key tourism assets, including an open-for-business mindset and policy alignment. 
• Leverage environmental stewardship in four-season product development. 

There is an opportunity to address ongoing labour challenges and support business viability through a commitment to workforce development and technology adoption. 

Goals:

• Improve workforce development initiatives to enhance retention and the image of tourism as a rewarding career path. 
• Accelerate the talent pipeline by leveraging innovative and best-in-class education models and fostering strong industry partnerships. 
• Embrace digital transformation to enhance productivity, improve business models, enhance the visitor experience, while maintaining the highest quality service culture.

Sustainable tourism growth requires nurturing an economic climate that future-proofs the tourism industry and cultivates business profitability. 

Goals:

• Ensure data-driven decision making to strengthen tourism planning and improve experience quality.
• Develop and promote best-in-class, immersive tourism experiences that respect local cultures and the environment. 
• Nurture an economic climate that future-proofs the tourism industry and improves business profitability. 
• Expand domestic and international market share.