The waterpark at Hartt Island Campground in Fredericton is closed for the season, mini-golf figurines put away, and the docks up on dry land for the winter. A handful of campers remain on site to enjoy the last of the fall colours overlooking the St. John River, but for the most part, the season has come to an end. It’s a welcome bit of downtime for owner Michael Kileel, who said the 107-site campground was full almost every night, with young families booking up the bulk of the summer months, while more retirees and long-term travellers stayed during the shoulder seasons.“This year really was our best year ever,” he said. “We had increases in the campground and also at the water park. Weather helped an awful lot, and I think the general mood about travelling within Canada certainly helped.”The Hartt Island Campground in Fredericton saw a record number of visitors this past season, with the 107 campsites full for most of the summer. (Outreach Productions)That “mood” spread across the country last spring, as Canadians vowed to spend their travel dollars at home amid growing tensions over U.S. tariff policy and heightened border security. It might be one factor behind some of the booming business being reported this past season. By the end of August, provincial attractions had welcomed more than 670,000 visitors, which was a 20 per cent increase over last year, according to the Department of Tourism, Heritage and Culture. Provincial revenues for that same period totalled $1.8 billion, an increase of more than seven per cent over last year. And provincial parks saw more than one million visitors as of Oct. 5, which was an 11 per cent bump from last year. But Americans cut back on their border crossings too. The number of visitors from the U.S. who stayed at least one night in New Brunswick between January through the end of August reached over 151,000. That’s a drop of five per cent compared to the same period in 2024.Kileel noticed a similar decline at his campground but said it didn’t hurt his season. WATCH | ‘This year really was our best year ever,’ campground owner says:N.B. travellers contribute to considerable jump in tourismTourism operators are tallying up a big season for the industry in New Brunswick, with double-digit increases for attractions and provincial parks, thanks in part to more Canadians spending their travel dollars at home.“I think we made up the difference big time from within the country and the province and even the European traveller that’s coming.”He said the European travellers he sees are usually well-researched, often spending months touring through the country in rented RVs, happily filling up with fuel that’s significantly cheaper than what they pay at home. “When they come, they seem to have a travel plan,” he said. “They don’t just wander and it’s a good thing because it seems like Fredericton is on the map for them.”Kileel said he also hears a lot of praise for the trail network that sweeps along the St. John River, and through the campground itself, giving easy access to the city’s other downtown attractions.Stacey Russell, Fredericton’s tourism and events manager, said the newly refurbished Officers’ Square was one of those downtown attractions that had a big draw, with movie nights, concerts and events happening all summer long.That included a packed show by Canadian musician, Alan Doyle, which saw close to 4,000 people in attendance.Canadian musician Alan Doyle drew close to 4,000 people for a show at Fredericton’s newly refurbished Officers’ Square in July. (Cameron Fitch/UNB Media Services)All of that contributed to another record-breaking year for the city. Spending was up nine per cent as of the end of August, while accommodation numbers increased four per cent over last year. “Canadians chose to stay home and not to travel to the U.S., so that helped a lot for tourism,” she said, with many visitors coming from Quebec and Ontario. It was a tough year to predict what the Americans would do.- Tourism Minister Isabelle ThériaultTourism Minister Isabelle Thériault said, “it was a tough year to predict what the Americans would do,” but a combination of efforts helped make it a successful season.“We focused on our targets, which are Quebec, Ontario, New England,” she said. “We also did some promotion in Atlantic Canada because we knew that maybe people would like to discover more of their country and their province. So I think it’s a mix of initiatives like that from all the tourism industry.”Thériault said the provincial government’s 25 per cent discount on daily and seasonal provincial park passes for residents announced in May certainly helped with the increase in park attendance. That promotion will continue indefinitely, she said. “It’s not everybody that has done all the 13 parks that we’re operating or the 25 that are operated by third parties. So it was a really good year for that.”Meanwhile, the federal government’s Canada Strong pass that made entrance to Canada’s historic sites and parks free, ended after Labour Day. Kingsbrae Garden in Saint Andrews is also marking a memorable season with close to 40,000 paid visitors, not including season memberships or people who dine at the restaurant. That’s a 23 per cent increase over last year, which held the previous attendance record.Managing director Brad Henderson said the springtime rain meant a slow start, but the forecast turned around.Brad Henderson, the managing director of Kingsbrae Garden, said the Saint Andrews site welcomed close to 40,000 paid visitors this season, 23 per cent more than last year. (Submitted by Brad Henderson)“July, August, September was really, really sunny,” he said. “The weather was sensational. And then of course, with the political climate in the world right now, it does feel like a lot of Canadians stayed, whether it be in New Brunswick or the East Coast or just in their own country.”Henderson said 50 per cent of Kingsbrae visitors typically come from within the province, while about 20 per cent come from the United States. And he said early indicators are that those American tourists still visited this summer. “We knew that we’d probably see an increase in Canadians, but you just didn’t know what the impact is on the U.S. with some of the rhetoric that’s out there. But I would say that it had minimal impacts on us as a business.”Planting the seeds for the next season The seasonal attraction closed earlier this month after the town-wide Indulge Food and Wine Festival, a season-finale of sorts for summertime sites like Kingsbrae. But Henderson said workers are now busy with off-season maintenance, trimming back and winterizing the grounds so they’re in good shape for the reopening in May. Meanwhile, Kileel will finish his own year-end upkeep before he starts accepting new bookings in November. And he’s hoping for that same “steady stream of reservations” that poured in the last time. “We were pretty much booked up by June,” he said. “So in our world there’s a lot going on in the offseason.”“You’re basically planting your seeds for the next season and once the season comes, it’s execution time.”
Tourism numbers for N.B. tallied: Attractions see 20% jump this season
