Tourism Conferences and Best Practice Retreats in Community Tourism Development

Over the past decade we have been privileged to work with tourism industry professionals throughout Canada. Co-founder of the Edge, Todd Lucier was a course designer and facilitator for the Edge of the Wedge Experiential Tourism Program at Gros Morne Institute for Sustainable Tourism where he shared many stories of innovation and transformation from this community over the last decade.

Inspiring Tourism Conference Keynotes with Todd Lucier

A Conference Keynote delivered by Todd Lucier will be the most memorable and rewarding part of your tourism conference. Inspiring attendees to raise the bar and be extra-ordinary, keynotes are experiential and give attendees the inspiration, insight and incentive to reimagine their businesses and rethink the way their community delivers visitor experiences.

Tourism Conference Keynotes help attendees expand their vision of the visitor economy and inspire collaboration with regional partners to develop a shared vision of success working together to exceed guest expectations.

Key notes of Todd Lucier’s presentations can include:

• Be Extra-ordinary: How to deliver remarkable tourism experiences.
• 5 Secret habits of extra-ordinary tourism professionals.
• The Ex Factor: Doubling the market reach for new tourism experiences that no one can copy.
• Dream Teams: How to ensure your team is more productive, more creative, and delivers higher quality guest experiences.
• Instant Innovation: Creating new insights into experiential tourism possibilities with TourisMadlibs.
• Smile!
• How to support and encourage fresh thinking about your tourism offers.
• Celebrating what makes your community special by identifying community resources and assets.
• Making new community connections and expanding your vision of the visitor economy.
• Social Physics in Tourism: connecting a community of tourism ambassadors.

Request a Tourism Conference Keynote:
Call Toll Free in North America: 888.383.8320 or [email protected] 

Tourism Best Practice Retreats

Tourism Best Practice Missions Ignite community capacity building with the development of new and enhanced experiential tourism product for your region.  Stories are a great way to learn, but at the Edge, students engage with our team, partners and tourism allies from the surrounding community to experience and learn about new ways of engaging travellers. Based at our solar-powered nature retreat on the edge of Algonquin Park, travel and tourism students experience first hand how our team is crafting unique and targeted visitor experiences recognized as Canadian and Ontario Signature Experiences. From this base, we visit inspiring community stages, peak behind the scenes at business operations and most importantly meet fascinating people and discover the stories of our rural Ontario region, learning key success stories, lessons learned and understand the business of experiential tourism and sustainable community tourism development.

Today’s travellers have varied interests, motivations and desires when traveling. You’ll participate in a variety of program elements and meet facilitators who tailor experiences for a variety of traveller types. Participants come away with a deep appreciation for the value of infusing experiences will local flavours at mealtime and beyond, and inspiration to leverage their own resources to build new and exciting visitor experiences with an appreciation for the importance of community collaboration.

Northern Edge Algonquin is widely regarded as a global leader in sustainable tourism. The Edge is a provincial award winner in sustainable tourism and tourism innovation and three-time national award finalist in sustainable tourism, and outdoor/adventure tourism.  The Edge is also one of only a couple of Platinum Level Green Leaders (TripAdvisor) in Canada. Co-founder Todd Lucier has provided training for thousands of tourism professionals across Canada.  He co-produced the Edge of the Wedge Experiential Tourism Training for the Gros Morne Institute for Sustainable Tourism and co-founded Tourism Cafe Canada with Dr. Nancy Arsenault in 2011. See Todd’s Resume.

In 2014-2015, Northern Edge Algonquin hosted a 4-Day Best Practices Mission in Sustainable Tourism for Atlantic Canada Tourism professionals. From 2015 to today we continue to redesign and enhance our 4-day Best Practices in Experiential Tourism Training program called IGNITE.  First designed and delivered for Ontario’s Highlands Tourism Organization IGNITE is a one of a kind tourism training experience for a community of tourism professionals and allies.  IGNITE community tourism development projects encourage regional tourism allies to work together to create new, immersive tourism experiences that add value based on the unique opportunities of various travel regions.

Ignite programs are supported with pre-event program preparation, teleconference sessions and post-program coaching to ensure program participants take active steps to create new partnerships, innovate and enhance their tourism program offerings.

IGNITING Community Tourism Capacity

Program elements include:

• Identifying your ideal guest.
• Who’s Who in Travel and Tourism Development Process – destination marketing organizations, travel trade, travel media, the role of governments and more;
• Bringing together stages, animators, props and experiences;
• “Do what you do best, partner for the rest.” (TM Tourism Cafe Canada), identifying your ideal community partners, including non-traditional tourism allies;
• From farm to fork, understanding the role of regional food in authentic tourism experiences;
• Cultural and natural history and story-telling;
• Celebrating local flavours with community products;
• Identifying and leveraging community stages;
• Engaging with community partners in forestry, music and entertainment, food growers, brewmaster at Highlander Brew Co, guides and naturalists; trail organizations and more.
• 9 elements of successful Experiential Tourism products;
• Selling Tourism with words, photos, audio, video;
• Sustainable Trails and Minga – hands-on community enhancement projects.
• Moving from ME to WE.

Request an IGNITE Experiential Tourism Retreat Package:
Call Toll Free in North America: 888.383.8320 or [email protected]