Greater Victoria is the winner of the 2024 Eco Family Escape Travel Award from Good Housekeeping Insitute, boosting local tourism, says Astrid Chang, executive director of corporate communications and community relations at Destination Greater Victoria.
Good Housekeeping described the Greater Victoria area as having the ocean at its doorstep, wilderness in its backyard, a world-class science and natural history museum, and a blooming public park with plenty of peacocks.
“It is really great to share what Victoria has to offer for families, not only to our local audiences but around the world,” she said.
The tester was taken all over Greater Victoria, from Saanich Peninsula, Victoria, to Malahat. The visit included a stop at Beacon Park and the carbon-neutral certified Parkside Hotel and Spa.
“We’re really proud that our region has something for every member of the family,” she said. “Family travel is a really important segment of the visitor economy and keeping it as a diversified visitor economy.”
Over 100 testers were used by Good Housekeeping to select the winners, with travel agents, travel writers, engineers and scientists all getting a chance to have a say in the proceedings.
The testing lasted eight months, and hundreds of submissions from all over the world were reviewed.
“It is important for visitors to know that we have something for everyone in Greater Victoria. We’re known as a hub for sustainable tourism, wonderful family travel experiences, arts and culture.”
The Greater Victoria team was first made aware of the award by their PR agency, MMGY/NJF, she said, and the team who worked on the project put in a fantastic amount of work to win.
The visitor economy brings $2.3 billion annually to Greater Victoria and has become one of the most popular tourist destinations globally, according to Tourism Victoria.
Paul Nursey, CEO of Destination Greater Victoria, said in a statement that he was incredibly proud of the passion and expertise that the team brought to the project.
“This achievement wouldn’t have been possible without their hard work and creativity. We’re excited to continue sharing our award-winning experiences with families and travellers from around the world.”
Chang said that people who have never come to Victoria will be amazed at what Victoria has to offer and blends old-world charm with new-world innovation.
Small businesses around Greater Victoria will get the most benefit out of this award, she said. “We’re really happy for the small businesses. Because we know that every visitor counts for them, and this publicity is tremendous for the region and for the businesses that operate within it.”