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Directions: News from Destination BC
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The Trionda splashes in the water under Kinuseo Falls in Tumbler Ridge.
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Destination BC Launches Home Pitch at FIFA Fan Festival™ Vancouver
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Destination BC's Home Pitch has opened at the FIFA Fan Festival™ Vancouver. Home Pitch is a large-scale, immersive activation at the festival, designed to inspire province-wide travel and connect fans with the diversity of British Columbia experiences.
At the core of Home Pitch is a 12,000 sq ft live activation featuring a fully playable, immersive five-a-side soccer pitch surrounded by 360° LED screens that simulate British Columbia’s iconic natural landscapes. The experience invites visitors to play football within awe-inspiring environments—from coastal shorelines to alpine settings—bringing together the energy of the game with the beauty of the province.
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Located in a prime, high-traffic area of the Fan Festival site—The Plaza, adjacent to the PNE Amphitheatre and Gate 10—Home Pitch is positioned to engage a significant share of attendees throughout the tournament.
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An estimated 350,000 spectators are anticipated to pass through downtown Vancouver during the tournament.
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Destination BC FIFA World Cup 2026™ Industry Resource
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Destination BC has created an industry resource for British Columbia’s tourism industry—operators, frontline staff, and visitor services teams—helping guests navigate the FIFA World Cup 2026™ this summer. It covers the key information you’ll need, with links to official partner sources for the details that continue to evolve. The resource includes guidance for visitors, essential information, details on Home Pitch at the FIFA Fan Festival™ Vancouver, celebrations across the province, and a detailed frequently asked questions section.
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Destination BC Launches New Australia & New Zealand Campaigns to Support FIFA World Cup 2026™
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In the lead up to FIFA World Cup 2026™, which is now underway, Destination BC expanded its international marketing and public relations efforts in Australia and New Zealand—key visitor markets with strong cultural and sporting connections to British Columbia. Through a coordinated strategy combining an extension of the Beautiful Seats marketing campaign and a new Australia-focused PR initiative, Destination BC is leveraging the global momentum of FIFA World Cup 2026™ to inspire future travel to BC and position the province as a must-visit destination during, and long after the tournament.
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Australia remains one of BC’s most valuable international visitor markets, with approximately 225,000 Australians visiting BC annually and more than 16,000 Australians calling BC home.
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The programming begins with a dedicated Tourism Showcase today, at the Vancouver Convention Centre.
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Destination BC Participates in BC Business House During FIFA World Cup 2026™
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Destination BC is proud to participate in the Province’s BC Business House activation during FIFA World Cup 2026™. BC Business House, launched by the Government of British Columbia, is designed to leverage global attention towards the tournament to advance trade, attract investment, and showcase the strengths of our province across sectors including technology, agriculture, transportation, and tourism. Today, June 12, tourism will be showcased as a key economic driver for British Columbia, highlighting the world-class experiences, destinations, and partnerships that make our province a compelling place to visit and invest in.
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FIFA World Cup 2026™ Media Kit
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During the tournament, international media are coming to Vancouver, and our Travel Media team has created a FIFA World Cup 2026™ Media Kit with curated story ideas, travel inspiration, planning information, and media-ready resources highlighting the many ways to experience British Columbia during the tournament.
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The media kit includes a flatsheet with media resources and story starters, a fact sheet with context and key facts about BC, image asset banks, pitch ideas and much more.
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Destination BC's President and CEO Richard Porges and Vice President of Global Marketing Maya Lange with Destination Canada's President & CEO Marsha Walden at RVC.
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RVC 2026 Recap: BC Connects with the World in Toronto
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After three days of back-to-back meetings at Rendez-vous Canada (RVC) 2026 in Toronto, one thing is clear: the world wants more of British Columbia. From May 27 to 29, Destination BC led a delegation of 221 tourism sellers to RVC 2026 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, making BC the second largest provincial delegation at the event. At RVC 2026, there were 221 BC tourism sellers represented, 9 Indigenous-owned businesses, 517 international buyers from 24 countries, and 6 Accelerator graduates completing their first RVC.
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Building Stronger Visitor Services: Highlights from Spring 2026 Regional Sessions
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This spring, Destination BC successfully concluded a series of in-person regional sessions across the Visitor Services Network, bringing together Visitor Centre teams, partners, and industry representatives from across British Columbia. Held between mid-April and late May 2026, the sessions took place in Prince George (April 14–15), Salmon Arm (April 22–23), Nanaimo (April 28–29), Rossland (May 6–8), and Langley (May 20–21). Over the course of five meetings in six weeks, the sessions welcomed visitor centre managers and supervisors, sponsor organizations, and regional destination management organizations (RDMOs).
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These gatherings created valuable opportunities for participants to connect, share knowledge, and explore solutions to common challenges—reinforcing the strength and importance of BC’s visitor services network.
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The 2026 Travellers’ Choice Awards: Best of the Best Hotels are part of Tripadvisor’s overarching Travelers’ Choice Awards umbrella. Winners were determined by the quality and quantity of Tripadvisor reviews and ratings from January 1, 2025, to December 31, 2025.
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BC Winners in Tripadvisor Traveller Choice Awards 2026
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BC has won big the at the Tripadvisor Traveller Choice Awards 2026, with hotels and attractions from across the province winning in both international and Canadian categories. Winners include Abigail's Hotel in Victoria, Best of the Best Hotels, in the International category at number 7, and Homalco Grizzly Bear Tours at number 11, Best of the Best Things to Do, in the International category, under Once in a Lifetime.
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DESTINATION BC INDUSTRY TOOLS
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Accessible Tourism Resources
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National AccessAbility Week in Canada was at the start of this month, celebrating the valuable contributions and leadership of persons with disabilities in Canada, the work of allies, organizations, and communities that are removing barriers, and the ongoing efforts to become a more accessible and disability-inclusive Canada.
Accessible tourism resources, such as a disability inclusive language guide, a guide and service dog fact sheet, an accessible attributes checklist, an accessible graphic design guide, an accessible website design guide, and think accessibility tip sheets, are all available in Destination BC's learning centre.
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| The market profiles include information about arrivals in BC, air arrivals to YVR, BC's share of arrivals, and air bookings. |
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World Cup Market Profiles
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As Vancouver hosts seven matches during the FIFA World Cup 2026™, British Columbia’s tourism industry has a unique opportunity to welcome visitors from around the globe—and turn once-in-a-lifetime trips into lasting connections. With confirmed teams including Canada, Australia, Qatar, New Zealand, Egypt, Switzerland, and Belgium, alongside potential European qualifiers, Vancouver will attract a diverse mix of international visitors, each bringing distinct travel behaviours, expectations, and opportunities for BC’s tourism sector. Learn more about these markets in the market profiles.
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Upgraded airports support economic development and tourism potential by getting goods and people faster to destinations throughout the province. At the Ganges Outer Harbour on Salt Spring Island, expanded dock moorage facilities will allow floatplanes to land more often, supporting the local economy and tourism needs.
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Airports Will Get Upgrades through BC Air Access Program
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Eighteen BC communities will benefit from upgrades to land and water airports through an investment of more than $8 million from BC Air Access Program. The investment will include upgrades to air facilities to support wildfire suppression, air ambulance and other emergency-response services. For example, the Anahim Lake apron expansion project will improve access for medevac and expand the wildfire operations base for a large, isolated area.
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