Collaboration for the sake of increasing tourism in the Kawarthas region was one of the key takeaways during the inaugural Regional Tourism Summit, hosted by Regional Tourism Organization 8 (RTO8) on Tuesday (October 21) at the historic Capitol Theatre in Port Hope.
Called “Stronger Together: Shaping the Future of Rural Tourism,” the summit invited tourism operators and industry partners of the Kawartha Northumberland tourism region and beyond for a day spent learning about the key opportunities and challenges shaping the regional tourism landscape through panel discussions, a keynote, and networking.
RTO8 is funded by the Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Gaming to promote regional tourism activity in Kawartha Northumberland, which is inclusive of the City of Peterborough, Peterborough County, the City of Kawartha Lakes, and Northumberland County.
RTO8 hosts programs and mentorships to help tourism operators scale their business and promote initiatives that draw in tourism, like the Trent-Severn Trail Town program, the first of its kind in Canada.
That was one of the initiatives spotlighted by RTO8 throughout the summit, alongside the Taste of the Trent-Severn Waterway, the Butter Tart Tour, and the Partnership Funding Program.
Following a generous grazing table breakfast from Milly’s Market, the summit kicked off with introductions and warm welcomes from RTO8 board chair Elizabeth King, who introduced Port Hope Mayor Olena Hankivsky and RTO8 executive director Brenda Wood.
Wood walked the audience through the “tourism ladder,” which was repeatedly referred to throughout the event. The ladder outlines the organizations supporting and promoting local businesses at every level. from Destination Canada and Destination Ontario down to regional tourism organizations like RTO8 and local destination marketing organizations (DMOs).
She urged business owners to connect with their own DMOs, of which there are four in the region: Northumberland County, The City of Peterborough, Peterborough County, and Kawartha Lakes.
The first panel of the day called on audience members to reflect on their partnership with Indigenous businesses. Moderated by Dr. Hayden Kind, executive director of Toronto Metropolitan University’s Yellowhead Institute, the panel featured Eliza Braden-Taylor, a cultural interpreter at Curve Lake Cultural Centre, Robyn Ivory Pierson, the founder of Indigenously Infused, and Keri Gray, the owner of Shades of Gray Indigenous Pet Treats.
The three panellists spoke in-depth about how Indigenous businesses are not just about cultural showcasing or focused on past trauma, but rather are modern and “forward-thinking.”
Pierson highlighted that tourists are more likely to visit an attraction if there are cultural components to it, and spoke about the systematic obstacles faced by Indigenous business owners, including a lack of access to First Nations communities.
Braden-Taylor spoke about the need for non-Indigenous businesses to not only build partnerships but develop genuine friendships when wanting to work with an Indigenous business, while Gray emphasized the importance of not only doing so to “check a box.”
Summit attendees expressed interest in building these partnerships and asked questions on approaching collaborations, where to find resources, and how to learn more about the Seven Grandfather Teachings.
For the keynote address, Tourism Industry Association of Ontario president and CEO Andrew Siegwart spoke on the topic of “Tourism, Tariffs and Trends.” He shared that Ontario has returned to 2019 tourism sales volume after recovering from the pandemic, though he suggested there is a need for growth at a faster rate.
Siegwart highlighted other opportunities, such as shop local campaigns that many businesses have used as part of their marketing over the past several months, as well as challenges the industry continues to face. These include the reduction in international students entering the workforce, extreme weather events impacting how people spend their time, and rising living costs causing consumers to be more discretionary in their spending.
To conclude, he noted how a lot of what “global travellers” are seeking is available in the Kawartha Northumberland region, including cool escapes, conscious travel, film tourism, noctourism (tourism after dark), nostalgia tourism, Indigenous experience, and digital detox, among many others.
Siegwart’s keynote was followed by a panel on agritourism moderated by Trevor Jonas Benson, managing partner of Toronto-based travel and tourism consulting firm Bannikin, with panellists Wanderlight Alpaca Experience founder Katie Maitland, Agritourism Ontario CEO Kevin Vallier, and Topsy Farms co-owner Jacob Murray.
Vallier spoke about how the pandemic helped people become more aware of the outside world around them, leading to more agritourism success, while Murray and Maitland talked about their respective businesses and shared stories of connecting with people through “authentic” experiences on their land.
When discussing the need to show people where there food comes from, Murray received applause from the audience when he said, “We’re expecting the youth and kids to preserve what’s left of the natural world, but if they’re never exposed to it why would they?”
Following a lunch from Cobourg’s Craft Food House, Capitol Theatre managing director Erin Peirce welcomed the audience to a live performance that offered a sneak peak to a show that will be part of the venue’s 2026 theatre season.
A panel on content marketing then followed, moderated by Birchbark Media content marketing specialist Matt Snell and featuring Chantal Sweeting, senior manager of content and UX for Destination Ontario, Liisa Sefton, corporate communications manager at Destination Ontario, and Caroline Morrow, a Bannikin partner.
The panellists discussed the need for consistency in storytelling, and how those stories should be adapted and must evolve to fit contemporary trends and topics. Sefton also spoke in detail about business owners needing to be ready to talk to media by having their stories and visual assets available and by sending out detailed media releases.
The final panel of the day was focused on strengthening partnerships when curating events, moderated by Municipality of Port Hope event supervisor Jeannie Maidens and featuring RTO8 special projects manager Hillary Flood, City of Quinte West manager of communication and community engagement Rebecca Cotter, Harmony Marketing head of marketing and partnerships Victoria Mahoney, who is the co-producer of the Toronto Waterfront Festival and Sugar Shack TO.
The panellists discussed how to navigate communicating necessary event changes that audiences might resist or fight back against and provided tips on looking for event partners.
Cotter spoke on the benefit of including the municipality as a partner, as they can aid with parking, waste management, and other supports, while Flood spoke about the importance of approaching community organizations with a mapped-out plan for an event rather than just an idea.
When asked what event types RTO8 hopes to see more of in the region, Flood said she’d like to see more winter festivals to strengthen tourism in the off-season and have community members wanting to embrace even the coldest weather.
To offer opportunities to begin developing the partnerships that were discussed throughout the day, the summit provided many networking breaks and held a “Taster’s Market” in the upper level of the theatre.
With shopping and sampling available, the market was a celebration of producers and makers who travelled from across the region, with products coming from Millbrook, Campbellford, Brighton, Peterborough, Cobourg, and beyond.
