Tourism Golden hosted its Annual General Meeting on June 5 at the newly completed Golden Skybridge pavilion. The event, well attended by local association members and key stakeholders, offered an in-depth look at the state of tourism in Golden and across British Columbia.
The key takeaway? Tourism is growing — in Golden and throughout BC — creating jobs and driving economic momentum.
Tourism Golden Executive Director Joanne Sweeting opened the meeting with highlights from the association’s 2024 annual report:
• Over 1 million people visited Golden in 2024, with 59% staying overnight
• Average length of stay increased to 2.9 nights per visit
• Tourism accommodation revenues reached nearly $70 million, a 13% increase from 2023
Tourism Golden played an active role in driving these numbers, delivering over 40 million digital impressions through Golden-focused video and photo campaigns. The association also hosted 40 media personnel and 13 content creators, resulting in 45 featured publications throughout the year.
Its event-hosting program supported four major events in 2024: the Freeride World Tour, the Golden Rush, the Golden Ultra, and the revived Psychosis downhill mountain bike race.
Additionally, the winter shuttle service (goldenshuttle.ca), operated in partnership with Kicking Horse Mountain Resort and the Resort Municipality Initiative, transported nearly 11,000 passengers to the ski hill.
For its part, the Golden Visitor Centre welcomed 14,472 visitors — a 35% increase over 2023.
Following the 2024 report, optimism in the room grew even further as Richard Porges, President & CEO of Destination BC, took the stage. He shared an encouraging outlook for provincial tourism and early indicators for 2025.
Porges noted a shift in Canadian travel trends, with more Canadians choosing domestic travel over U.S. destinations due to tariffs and other macroeconomic factors. Nearly 50% more Canadians surveyed said they intend to travel within Canada this year, while the intent to travel to the United States has dropped by 54%.
U.S. travel to BC is currently steady, with modest growth anticipated in 2025, despite a slight decline in Canadian sentiment toward welcoming American visitors.
Porges also emphasized tourism’s critical role in BC’s economy. Tourism now ranks as the province’s largest primary resource sector at $9.7 billion, outpacing mining ($5.3B), oil and gas extraction ($4.6B), agriculture and fisheries ($3.1B), and forestry and logging ($1.7B). The sector supports over 125,000 jobs across the province (Source: Destination BC).
Tourism Golden’s newly completed Value of Tourism Study showed that tourism supported 2,386 jobs locally, up 28% from 2019.
“Golden’s visitor economy continues to perform strongly, with over 1 million visitors in 2024, a 36% increase in direct tourism revenues since 2019, and growth in overnight stays and tourism jobs. These results reflect the dedication of our partners and the strength of our destination.
“But our focus isn’t just on numbers — it’s on managing growth responsibly. We’re committed to attracting visitors who share our values, respecting our community, and ensuring tourism continues to enhance the Golden experience for everyone,” said Joanne Sweeting, Tourism Golden’s Executive Director.
To learn more about tourism in Golden, visit tourismgolden.com or download the free Tourism Golden app.
