Merritt tourism down 18 per cent according to city’s visitor centre

Photo: Herald file.

Merritt is suffering from a decline in tourists according to the newest report from the city's visitor centre.

In the Baillie House's latest quarterly count, a significant drop in the number of tourists was recorded last year compared to past statistics.

Through 2024, they found only 16,300 people visited their location on Voght Street and Nicola Avenue to ask for information.

It's a marked decrease in the number of tourists from the prior year. The decrease in visitors from 2023 to 2024 is an 18 per cent drop with nearly 20,000 visitors recorded in 2023.

The number of people visiting the centre has been in a steady decline for the last few years,  as according to the Baillie House reports, Merritt has lost nearly a third of their yearly tourists since 2022.

The decline has seemingly stayed within domestic demographics with the number of foreign tourists staying steady compared to prior years.

Still, the bulk of tourists in Merritt are coming from elsewhere in B.C., as they make up for 71 per cent of tourists.

In the report, Baillie House lists a number of possible reasons for the decline.

One of the main reasons was the bad air quality during the summer.

'The number of visitors from other parts of Canada was in slight decrease because of the fires and our air quality,” the report stated.

Other reasons include a lack of music festivals through the fourth quarter of the year and tourists finding it difficult to make a campsite around the city. 

The closure of the laundromat, renovations to the bowling lanes and toxic algae responsible for a swim ban in Nicola Lake were also listed as tourist deterrents.

But the report didn't solely list detractors to the city. Some features of the Baillie House were able to bring attention to Merritt. 

One such item that increased tourism in the city was the visitor's EV charging station. 

This was able to draw more visitors with electric cars and allow them to explore the city while they waited for their vehicle to charge.

One of the visitors centre's plans through 2025 is to increase wages for summer students, who helped run the Baillie House during the busy season last year.

The organization is looking forward to keeping the students and having a good 2025.