Early international visitors have P.E.I. tourism industry hopeful

June may have been cool, but visitors from around the world are already arriving on P.E.I. and operators are looking forward to another strong season.

"We've had a lot of traffic in from different parts of the world Australia, England, Austria, United States and all over Canada," said Marlene Grant of Island Traditions in Richmond, P.E.I., during a panel discussion on Island Morning.

"Things are looking good up west."

P.E.I. marked its fourth record tourism season in a row in 2017, and growth in the total number of overnight stays by visitors from outside Canada has played a significant role in that.

• American visitors: +6.9% in 2017.
• Other international visitors: +19.1% in 2017.

Rick Renaud at Rick's Fish & Chips in St. Peters, P.E.I., thinks he is already seeing more American customers this year.

"I just noticed in the past couple of days in the till we're seeing a bit more American currency," said Renaud.

"There's going to be more Americans, I think, this year."

Corryn Clemence from the Port of Charlottetown, who also sits on the board of the Tourism Industry Association of Prince Edward Island, said there is a sense of optimism in the industry as the high tourism season begins.

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