In early 2023 and in response to Destination Canada’s new and innovative Tourism Corridor Strategy Program, tourism partners in the Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Northern British Columbia (BC) came together to propose a unique concept for the two territories and province to become more interconnected within the tourism and visitor experience landscape. Destination Canada assessed various projects against detailed criteria such as business viability, stage of development, geographic coverage, investment needs, project type or theme, and settings. Subsequently, the Northern Indigenous Lodge Network was selected as one of the three Corridor projects for 2023.
This concept, named the Northern Indigenous Lodge Network, was centred around supporting the development of a fully Indigenous-owned lodging network that connects various lodges together and provides a support network for reservation, staff training, visitor experience, and quality accommodations. Throughout the planning phase, stakeholders and rightsholders were enthusiastic about the possibilities. The resounding consensus? This corridor project has the authentic potential across the three vibrant regions. This dynamic model can bring not only success in enhancing the visitor experience, but also immense value to each Indigenous community it touches. There was particularly strong sentiment that tourism within Indigenous communities has the possibility to be a universal opportunity as an industry that can be present regardless of natural resource. Unlike mining and other extraction industries, investment in tourism can be universally beneficial.
The project aims to meet the demand for Indigenous tourism experiences led by Indigenous communities while addressing the chronic shortage of accommodations beyond major cities. To this end, the Corridor Partners set to work with Destination Canada and JLL to analyze the business case for an Indigenous lodging network. As there are currently over 140 existing Indigenous-owned lodges across Canada, the proposed lodging network can include a combination of existing lodges and newly developed ones, tailored to the preferences of each Indigenous community, with a commitment to authenticity and uniqueness. As this work continues, the Corridor Partners’ vision for each lodge is that they would be authentic and unique, reflecting the priorities of the community it represents. Inspiration was drawn from successful accommodation networks such as Paradores in Spain and Logis Hotels in France, in addition to over 10 networks and 220 global case studies serving as benchmarks to guide the project.
To support Destination Canada and the Corridor Partners with the planning process, JLL's approach consisted of three phases. The first phase involved collaborating with the Destination Canada leadership team and the Corridor Partners to establish the project timeline, identify stakeholders and rightsholders within the Corridor, review existing data and statistics for the Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Northern BC, analyze the current state of lodging in the Corridor, and examine previous plans and documents.
Phase Two focused on reviewing 220 global Indigenous lodging networks and interviewing several network operators on the global scale. JLL also conducted in depth interviews with Indigenous relations experts and Indigenous tourism experts to gain a comprehensive understanding of the current landscape of community based tourism. Furthermore, a six-day site visit in the Yukon and Northern BC in October 2023 provided an immersive understanding of the Corridor, its diverse experiences, rich Indigenous Community history, and existing accommodations and lodging landscape. Phase Two also included engaging with 37 stakeholders and rights holders through in-person site visits and virtual means, providing valuable insights into the potential of the Northern Indigenous Lodge Network.
Phase Three involved reviewing the findings with Destination Canada and the Corridor Partners, and developing priorities, recommendations, milestone timelines, and action items. Throughout the planning process, the project team meticulously vetted these aspects and maintained stakeholder and rightsholder communication. In addition, a blog post was created to provide updates as the process neared completion, and a dedicated webpage for the Northern Indigenous Lodge Network project was created by Destination Canada to update the industry and local communities and foster further engagement.
The findings of this process are presented in this report. Before delving deep into the report, it is essential to highlight two consistent themes that continually emerged throughout the market study, engagement, and site visits:
The study's detailed findings, recommendations, and milestone timeline are presented in this report. It is evident that initial community interest exists, and global benchmarks validate the viability and feasibility of the Northern Indigenous Lodge Network. To fully realise the potential of this project, ongoing in-depth community engagement and a sustainable funding approach are imperative. The report underscores the importance of continuing this valuable work, empowering communities, and leveraging government incentives and support to create a network that first and foremost benefits each individual community, and provides a unique stay and authentic experiences for guests.
In early 2023 and in response to Destination Canada’s new and innovative Tourism Corridor Strategy Program, tourism partners in the Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Northern British Columbia (BC) came together to propose a unique concept for the two territories and province to become more interconnected within the tourism and visitor experience landscape. Destination Canada assessed various projects against detailed criteria such as business viability, stage of development, geographic coverage, investment needs, project type or theme, and settings. Subsequently, the Northern Indigenous Lodge Network was selected as one of the three Corridor projects for 2023.
This concept, named the Northern Indigenous Lodge Network, was centred around supporting the development of a fully Indigenous-owned lodging network that connects various lodges together and provides a support network for reservation, staff training, visitor experience, and quality accommodations. Throughout the planning phase, stakeholders and rightsholders were enthusiastic about the possibilities. The resounding consensus? This corridor project has the authentic potential across the three vibrant regions. This dynamic model can bring not only success in enhancing the visitor experience, but also immense value to each Indigenous community it touches. There was particularly strong sentiment that tourism within Indigenous communities has the possibility to be a universal opportunity as an industry that can be present regardless of natural resource. Unlike mining and other extraction industries, investment in tourism can be universally beneficial.
The project aims to meet the demand for Indigenous tourism experiences led by Indigenous communities while addressing the chronic shortage of accommodations beyond major cities. To this end, the Corridor Partners set to work with Destination Canada and JLL to analyze the business case for an Indigenous lodging network. As there are currently over 140 existing Indigenous-owned lodges across Canada, the proposed lodging network can include a combination of existing lodges and newly developed ones, tailored to the preferences of each Indigenous community, with a commitment to authenticity and uniqueness. As this work continues, the Corridor Partners’ vision for each lodge is that they would be authentic and unique, reflecting the priorities of the community it represents. Inspiration was drawn from successful accommodation networks such as Paradores in Spain and Logis Hotels in France, in addition to over 10 networks and 220 global case studies serving as benchmarks to guide the project.
To support Destination Canada and the Corridor Partners with the planning process, JLL's approach consisted of three phases. The first phase involved collaborating with the Destination Canada leadership team and the Corridor Partners to establish the project timeline, identify stakeholders and rightsholders within the Corridor, review existing data and statistics for the Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Northern BC, analyze the current state of lodging in the Corridor, and examine previous plans and documents.
Phase Two focused on reviewing 220 global Indigenous lodging networks and interviewing several network operators on the global scale. JLL also conducted in depth interviews with Indigenous relations experts and Indigenous tourism experts to gain a comprehensive understanding of the current landscape of community based tourism. Furthermore, a six-day site visit in the Yukon and Northern BC in October 2023 provided an immersive understanding of the Corridor, its diverse experiences, rich Indigenous Community history, and existing accommodations and lodging landscape. Phase Two also included engaging with 37 stakeholders and rights holders through in-person site visits and virtual means, providing valuable insights into the potential of the Northern Indigenous Lodge Network.
Phase Three involved reviewing the findings with Destination Canada and the Corridor Partners, and developing priorities, recommendations, milestone timelines, and action items. Throughout the planning process, the project team meticulously vetted these aspects and maintained stakeholder and rightsholder communication. In addition, a blog post was created to provide updates as the process neared completion, and a dedicated webpage for the Northern Indigenous Lodge Network project was created by Destination Canada to update the industry and local communities and foster further engagement.
The findings of this process are presented in this report. Before delving deep into the report, it is essential to highlight two consistent themes that continually emerged throughout the market study, engagement, and site visits:
The study's detailed findings, recommendations, and milestone timeline are presented in this report. It is evident that initial community interest exists, and global benchmarks validate the viability and feasibility of the Northern Indigenous Lodge Network. To fully realise the potential of this project, ongoing in-depth community engagement and a sustainable funding approach are imperative. The report underscores the importance of continuing this valuable work, empowering communities, and leveraging government incentives and support to create a network that first and foremost benefits each individual community, and provides a unique stay and authentic experiences for guests.
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