Colorado Will Continue to Welcome Canadians

There was an elephant in the room at the Colorado event in Toronto Tuesday night and Andrea Blankenship, Deputy Director, International Tourism, Colorado Tourism Office faced it head on.

“We’re really excited to be here and we understand the news that has transpired over the weekend,” she told Travel Market Report Canada at the event. “Colorado has a long relationship with Canada, we’ve been marketing to Canada for over 25 years. I believe there’s a very important tie and we don’t want to run from bad news.  We’re here regardless, we want Canadians to come visit.  Despite things, Colorado is a very inclusive and welcoming place.”

Tuesday night’s event brought together a delegation of representatives from across the state at the SteamWhistle Brewery in downtown Toronto to showcase the latest happenings in the colourful state. The timing of the event was tricky, with Canadians on edge because of the ongoing US tariff debacle.

“This is the largest delegation we’ve ever brought together,” Blankenship told the crowd. “I’m so excited to have so many partners with us this evening. We have a lot of variety in the state; anything someone is looking for, we promise we can deliver on it.”

Canadians are a strong market, contributing around 176,000 annually, with 2023 figures recovering by 6% compared to pre-pandemic years. Colorado is accessible from seven airports across Canada with most travellers arriving from the Eastern provinces. Although Canada ranks fourth in the international ski market, Blankenship clarifies that skiing is not the primary draw. In fact, 75% of visitors, both domestic and international, come during other seasons.

The state boasts more than 150 wineries, more than 400 craft breweries and more than 100 craft distilleries.  The state received new MICHELIN star awards for its restaurants in 2024. For nature lovers there are 960 different wildlife species, 7 mountain ranges and 10,000 miles of rivers and lakes. Oh, and there are also 1,500 ghost towns.

“I think that’s what always surprises people to find out that though our ski industry is so famous, people come to Colorado because they want to be in the outdoors,” Blankeship said. “We have our biking, our hiking; it’s what we like to call our Colorado unique, Western identity. We’re just uniquely Colorado. We love our visitors.”

Tourism marketing and sales is handled in Canada by The Kai Group,  who Blankenship says is more than willing to do whatever advisors need. Part of that education is having the tourism board visit Canada at least once a year, and they will continue to host events and training. Advisors can choose from the organization’s list of webinars and contact The Kai Group directly with any questions they may have.

“We truly appreciate every single one of you coming here this evening,” said Sana Keller, President, Pulse Communications and Travel Marketing who represents Colorado in Canada. “Colorado will always be there for you regardless of the current situation. Even far beyond tourism, Canada is Colorado’s number one trading partner for all events and services.

Tourism is an incredibly important economy in our state, so we thank you all for having supported us in the past. We know it may not be immediate, but you will support us again in the future, and we thank you very much.”