Government spending $750M to bolster tourism, get Quebecers 'to fall in love with Quebec this summer'

The Quebec government is pulling out all stops to encourage Quebecers to travel within the province this summer giving the go-ahead to zoos and other attractions to reopen and injecting close to $750 million into the hard-hit tourism sector to keep it afloat until travellers from Europe, the U.S. and the rest of Canada return.

"We can, from now on, dream of having a beautiful summer," said Tourism Minister Caroline ProulxThursday, inviting Quebecers "to fall in love with Quebec this summer."

"We are allowed to move around," Proulx said,"but what we ask all Quebecers is to show that they are careful to take all the necessary precautions to minimize the risk of transmission."

Treasury Board President Christian Dubsaid the intent of the tourism bail-out package is to "provide a bridge for tourist attractions and for hotels to get to next summer," by which time the government hopes international tourists will be able to return.

Among the investments, the government is making available$446 million in loans"with extremely advantageous conditions," said Proulx, tomore than 30,000 tourism-related businesses 80 per cent of which are small- to medium-sized operations.

The province has also earmarked $200 million to help hotels and inns renovate over the coming two years, she said. An additional $25 million will go to supporting regional tourism associations.

'Quebec is not a consolation prize'

To help persuade Quebecers to explore their own province, Proulx said more than $20 million will go directly into the pockets of local travellers through three main initiatives.

The province will offera 25 per cent discount on selected vacations through a program called "The Explorers' Route," which encourages tourists to drive topopular destinations, from the Laurentians to Abitibi-Tmiscamingue.

"You will be able to visit Quebec safely and in a structured way," Proulx said. "All of these packages will be made up of two nights and two tourist attractions."

• Quebec tourism industry struggles to stay afloat as pandemic shuts down summer travel

Discounts will also be applied to passports that give Quebecers access to two, three or four tourist attractions, she said. The larger the package, the larger the discount, up to 40 per cent.

SEPAQ, the government agency that manages provincial parks and wildlife reserves, isalso halving theprice of an annual park pass, starting June 22.

Every pass, which will be able for purchaseon the SEPAQ website, will come with one free night at a campsite, Proulx said. However, anyone who has already purchased their 2020 pass will not get the discount.

Proulx acknowledged that even if everyone in Quebec takes to the roads this summer, it won't make up for the loss in tourism dollars from the rest of Canada, the U.S. and Europe.

"But I do believe Quebecers will discover, maybe for the first time, Quebec," Proulx said. "Quebec is not a consolation prize."

"People are fighting to be able to come here, to fish here in Quebec."

'People need vacations': Arruda

Quebec's public health director, Dr. Horacio Arruda, said the rate of COVID-19 transmission is going down in the province, and he is confident that as long as people continue to follow physical-distancing measures and other public health directives, travelling can be done safely this summer.

"People need vacations," Arruda said. "They've been stressed a lot."

He said even people over the age of 70 shouldn't feel that they must stay in their homes all summer, saying that everyone needs to manage their own level of risk and their comfort level.

Arruda said he doesn't want people to let their guarddown, however.

"I think nowthe perception of risk is going down. I don't want it to go down," he said, but people can still travel as long as they respect public health guidelines.

Public health is working with businesses to ensure those guidelines are followed, he said, and with summer here, "there's less risk of transmission."