InnFocus Summer 2023
InnFocus magazine for hoteliers in British Columbia
InnFocus magazine for hoteliers in British Columbia
Create successful ePaper yourself
Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.
The Fraser<br />
Canyon and<br />
Manning<br />
Park<br />
More than a Stop<br />
for Gas<br />
by Carolyn B. Heller<br />
At the intersection of Highways 1, 3, and<br />
5, connecting the Lower Mainland to the<br />
Okanagan and the Canadian Rockies, Hope<br />
is a natural stopping point for road trippers.<br />
“For a small town, we have a lot of amenities,”<br />
says Sarah Brown, Visitor Centre Manager, at<br />
Hope, Cascades and Canyons, the region’s<br />
destination management organization. Whether<br />
you need to get gas, charge your electric vehicle,<br />
pick up a snack, or exercise your dog in the town’s<br />
dog park, you can find those services in Hope.<br />
However, as the highways skirt the town centre,<br />
many travellers aren’t aware of what this British<br />
Columbia community offers. And fewer still know why<br />
they should make a longer stop in the Hope, Cascades<br />
and Canyons region, which extends from Bridal Falls<br />
east to Manning Park, and north through the Fraser<br />
Canyon to Boston Bar.<br />
History, Outdoor Adventures, and Rambo<br />
One of the DMO’s objectives, says Brown, is to increase<br />
overnight stays, particularly by supporting events, such<br />
as summer concerts and the biennial chainsaw carving<br />
competition, that bring in overnight visitors.<br />
Other draws include local hiking trails, like the 5.8-kilometre<br />
Kw’okw’echíwel Stl’áleqem, or Dragon’s Back Trail, which<br />
opened in 2020, offering views across the mountains, and Syéxw<br />
Chó:leqw Adventure Park, with trails for mountain bikers and hikers<br />
on the traditional lands of the Sq’ewá:lxw First Nation.<br />
Hope gets its share of movie tourists, too. First Blood, featuring<br />
Sylvester Stallone as Vietnam War veteran John Rambo, was filmed<br />
Courtesy of Hope, Cascades & Canyons<br />
16 <strong>InnFocus</strong>