Tourism in Richmond County

On October 15th, another season came to an end for the St. Peter’s Visitor Information Centre. This season, off to a slower than usual start, saw fewer visitors during June and July. It did not take long to get back on track when summer temperatures finally arrived with the start of August and into September. There are always so many factors to take into consideration when looking at why the season unfolds the way it does; the untraditionally cold wet start to the season, the economic situation in the US and Europe , the high price of gas, and the high Canadian dollar. But it is nice to see that, in the end, the season turned our reasonably well. Numbers were down marginally, but not a bad season at all.

Now that the tourism season is over, we can again start planning for the upcoming season and there are already meetings scheduled for the Saltscapes Travel Expo in Halifax next spring. I just received a request for information from a bus tour company planning four tours. Even with the close of the St. Peter’s VIC, advertising of events will continue in order to bring as much attention to the area as possible. I will continue to update our events on the Tourism Spotlight Blog and in my columns, so if you have community events coming up please email me and I will be happy to add them to our list. My e-mail address is annmarieyorke@hotmail.com and to check the events on-line please go to tourismspotlight.blogspot.com for an up to date line up of events taking place in Richmond County, as well as the rest of Cape Breton.

Here are some of the local events taking place in Richmond County. On October 29th & 30th, come to a Halloween Haunted House at the Tara Lynne Center in River Bourgeois from 6-9pm. Admission is $3.00 a person. Also on Sunday October 30th, La Picasse will be holding a Giant 45’s Card Play at 2pm. Admission is $10.00 with prizes of $300.00, $200.00 and $100.00, as well as door prizes. Advance tickets are being sold at La Picasse. On Sunday, October 30th, there will be a 45s card play at the Riverdale Community Center starting at 8pm. On the 30th the St. Francis De Sales CWL Fall Fair will be held at the Riverdale Community Centre.