Tourism in BC is a growing, dynamic industry. Following is a snapshot of what the tourism industry means for our province:

• British Columbia hosts more than 22.5 million overnight visitors a year
• Tourism generated $13.8 billion¹ in revenues in 2008 ¹
• Tourism returns approximately $1 billion to the provincial treasury in the form of taxes and fees every year
• Tourism is a labour intensive industry, directly employing 131,000 British Columbians¹, and has been one of the fastest growing industries over the past decade 

There are nearly 18,000 tourism-related companies in British Columbia, with between 300 to 500 new tourism businesses started each year. Getting more background information on the industry will help you to better position your business moving forward or help you to identify the wealth of career opportunities. The articles in this section will tell you more about the industry and changing trends, such as the emergence of culinary tourism and the growth of adventure tourism, as well as provide an overview of the industry, its sectors, and the news about the 2010 Olympic Games.

¹ From BCStats' Tourism Business Indicators, July 2009