By ANDY WALKER Special
CHARLOTTETOWN - Potential visitors seem to be reluctant to embrace the concept of the "gentle island."
During the spring legislature session, the P.E.I. tourism marketing advertisement campaign being mounted by Grey Worldwide came in for some rather pointed criticism.
Liberal tourism critic Carolyn Bertram pointed out that an advertisement in a national gardening magazine was in small print and the message was hard to understand. She also questioned why a commercial, showing an airport visitor who had lost his luggage receiving various items of clothing, was filmed in Toronto rather than P.E.I.
Tourism Minister Philip Brown said Wednesday the number of requests for information in April was down compared with the same period in 2005. But he said in a news release that doesn't come as a surprise.
The reason, said Mr. Brown, is that the province decided to begin its marketing campaign later this year. He said research has shown visitors tend to book their vacations later and later, sometimes waiting until virtually the last minute to decide where to travel.
The industry co-chairman of the Tourism Advisory Council, the joint industry-government group that oversees marketing, said he agrees.
"We are not comparing apples to apples," said David MacKenzie, the CEO of the Confederation Centre of the Arts. "In 2005 the campaign was in full swing for the month of April. In 2006, it has only just begun."
Mr. Brown said there are some encouraging signs. In comparison to 2005, air traffic is up 31 per cent and non-resident bridge traffic is up 12 per cent. But room nights sold for the month of April decreased 5.9 per cent, or about 1,000 room nights, from the previous year.
"Results from January to April are still quite positive, with bridge traffic up seven per cent, air traffic up 29 per cent and room nights sold for the period up 5.5 per cent, or 3,600 room nights," he said.
"Overall, year to date, we are pleased with the numbers, but we're also aware that we need to impact travellers now to encourage them to chose Prince Edward Island as their 2006 vacation destination."