Kootenay region gears up for tourism boom alongside new short-term rental requirements

Photo: Samantha Holomay

Tourism organizations are expecting more travellers this year while STR numbers start to decrease.

Tourism season in the Kootenays is underway and is expected to be far busier than last year.

"We are expecting a lot more regional and interprovincial travel than previous years," said Sarah Benson-Lord, the Trail Museum and Archives Visitor Centre manager.

With expected tourism boots amid changes to short term rental (STR) regulations, more visitors may arrive while the number of available accommodations continues to shrink.

The B.C. Real Estate Association called for changes to the new STR exemptions just as the tourist season kicked off. In a press release, they urged the government to consider adding new legislation given that the current geopolitical environment is expected to drive up domestic tourism this summer.

Karen Belland is a STR owner who was forced to switch to either medium or long-term rental model due to the new rules.

"The thinking seems very skewed when you have purposely built an accommodation for tourists," she said.

Hosts are now required to obtain and display their provincial registration number and a local business licence number on all of their listings that require them.

The government said that the new rules are aimed at freeing up housing by limiting the ways STR can operate.

Come June 23, platforms will start to remove STR listings that are unregistered, and cancel their existing bookings. However, Belland said that has already started.

The goal of the new rules stemmed from the need to place more long-term rentals back on the market, but many STR owners have argued that the properties were built for tourists rather than for long term living.

STR living is typically defined as a stay under 90 days, where mid-term and long term rentals (LTR) are from 90 days to six months or longer. For small tourist towns like Nelson, these rentals are a key part of the economy.

It may be too early in the season to tell what impact the changes will truly have on the tourism sector as a whole, but Belland thinks there will be less STR supply in Nelson.

"I really feel that the limited amount of STR that are available will be booked up. I think guests will be looking for that option even more after hearing that hotels have gone up so much in price."

According to a 2025 regional tourism profile, the Kootenay Rockies’ tourism industry generated $1.1 billion in gross spending in 2022 and accounts for roughly 6.2 per cent of the province's total overnight spending.

The Kootenay region represented 10 per cent of the entire regional tourism share in 2023.The post-pandemic rebound of international travel, in conjunction with some choosing to stay in the country this year, has added to the predicted boost in tourism revenue.

Despite predictions about STR supply decreasing while visitor numbers rise, there is also an important balance that needs to be maintained when attracting visitors while simultaneously preserving the local quality of life.

"Overtourism" is when too many visitors flock to a destination. As a result, the region or municipalities have to decide how to sustainably manage the influx of people.

Increased demand can sometimes lead to negative impacts such as overcrowding, and housing strains that end up forcing out locals.

“Some in this region might say it is already happening; that they can’t get a seat at a restaurant or find a parking or camping spot,” said Martin Keyserlingk, chair of the School of Hospitality and Tourism at Selkirk College.

He said that strains on infrastructure, impacts on the environment, rent prices, noise pollution, and crowds sizes can be used to assess the effects that tourism has on a municipality.

Keyserlingk added that Nelson has the luxury of not being as easily accessible to the masses. The city is also geographically small, which could add to a greater sense of tourism pressure when compared with larger ones.

“We are a tourist destination and for good reason; much of our community depends on it and welcomes it.”

These attitudes often vary depending on who you ask and what time of year it is.

According to Destination B.C., 71 per cent of Kootenay residents agree that the positive impacts of tourism in their community outweigh the negative impacts.

Those attitudes shift slightly in the summer months though, with 54 per cent of respondents agreeing that their communities have too much tourism from June to August.

“Everyone in every community would have a different perspective on when the effect of tourism becomes too much and is overcrowded and uncomfortable," said Keyserlingk, adding that social media has also had an impact on “secret destinations or hidden gems.”

“Word spreads so fast now that no 'secret' destination is probably safe. It could also help, though, if the message can be controlled and shared responsibly."