In May 2018, Halifax will have the honour of being next year’s Rendez-vous Canada (RVC) host city. RVC is the country’s biggest travel trade event of the year, and connects international travel trade buyers with Canadian tourism industry partners.
Close to 1,800 international tourism industry leaders will gather at the Halifax Convention Centre for the conference from May 13-16. During the speed-dating-style part of the conference known as Marketplace, travel trade (buyers) and tourism partners (sellers) will meet through a series of brief, pre-organized one-on-one appointments to discover the best of the best Canadian travel experiences.
“Hosting Rendez-vous Canada is a rare opportunity and the timing is great for Nova Scotia,” says Tourism Nova Scotia CEO Michele Saran. “Nova Scotia’s tourism industry has worked hard to develop compelling world-class visitor experiences and high-quality travel products and services. This event is our chance to show international travel trade partners, such as travel agents and tour operators, what our province has to offer their clients. We’re thrilled to be hosting this event.”
Beyond the Marketplace, RVC offers attendees networking opportunities, presentations from various Canadian destination marketing organizations, and pre- and post- familiarization tours for visiting travel trade partners.
Interested in Rendez-vous Canada?
Tourism operators are eligible to register for RVC as a seller by invitation only. To be considered for invitation, operators must meet Rendez-vous Canada’s selection criteria and express interest to Tourism Nova Scotia’s Peter Johnson, Manager of Market Development, by email (Peter.Johnson@novascotia.ca) or by phone (902-798-6922) by Friday, November 10. Approved operators will be invited to register after November 13. Registration fee information is available online.
A Rendez-vous to remember
RVC 2017 was hosted by Tourism Alberta and Tourism Calgary in May. Tourism Nova Scotia will host next year’s event with support from funding partners, including Discover Halifax. We will also work closely with Events East and the Tourism Industry Association of Nova Scotia to make this an RVC to remember.
“We put Nova Scotia on the map every year at Rendez-vous Canada, but the fact that we get to host in 2018 means we can go beyond telling our guests that Nova Scotia is an amazing travel destination. By hosting, we get to show them in our own, warm, unforgettable Nova Scotia way,” explains Joann Fitzgerald, Tourism Nova Scotia’s Chief Marketing Officer.
Tourism Nova Scotia’s mission is to market Nova Scotia’s tourism experience to the world through innovation and collaboration, and RVC 2018 is the place to connect, build relationships, and champion our province.
“To reach $4 billion in tourism revenues by 2024, Nova Scotia needs to profile market-ready, world-class experiences to national and international travel trade partners," says Darlene MacDonald, Director of Sector Development at Tourism Nova Scotia. "Rendez-vous Canada is our opportunity to do this, and to ultimately attract more tourism business to the province.”
Tourism Nova Scotia invites you to visit RVC’s homepage and consider attending the signature travel trade event of the year.