2025 was a record year for tourism in Friendly Manitoba.
Angela Cassie, Interim President and CEO of Travel Manitoba said the number of tourists and visitors was higher than any before, and it marked a huge boost in the Provincial economy.
"11.1 million visitors, coming from across Canada, the U.S, and the world, and they left behind about $2.4 billion in the tourism economy," said Cassie.
Income from tourism does a lot for smaller and rural municipalities. Cassie said with the number of family-owned businesses in these smaller areas of the province, those tourism dollars mean more.
"These are entrepreneurs, a lot of them are family-owned, that are creating incredible experiences for our community, and by welcoming visitors from around the world, it's creating economic opportunity, so we know that tourism creates jobs," said Cassie.
Here in Dauphin, Northgate Trails is a prime example. After receiving a $1.5 million grant from the Province, they're expanding their networks into Riding Mountain National Park, with the goal of marketing Northgate Trails, and by extension the City of Dauphin, as a premier worldwide mountain biking destination. Investments from the Province show they know how important tourism is for local economies.
"With that $2.4 billion, around $450 million goes back in Provincial tax revenues, so we know that this money supports jobs and businesses in every corner [of Manitoba]," said Cassie.
Though with the record number of tourists in 2025, Cassie said she doesn't want to take away from this year's struggles, especially here in the Parkland.
"While we celebrate this progress and recognize the economic impact for the Province, [we] don't want to diminish the negative impact that a lot of people have experienced this year with the flooding, and hope we can continue to work with the region to drive travelers back through the winter and again next year," said Cassie.
One contributor to less tourism in the Parkland this year was the cancellation of Canada's National Ukrainian Festival.
