Canadian visitor traffic has been softer here in recent years, tourism officials say, but there’s no real consensus about just how much blame for that decline should be placed on a recently widening gap in the U.S.-Canadian currency exchange rate.

For some time now, the Canadian dollar, known informally as the loonie for the loon engraved on the Canadian $1 coin, has been decreasing in value. As of Nov. 2, the Bank of Canada lists the Canadian dollar as being worth 76 cents in U.S. currency.

Federal Reserve history shows the gap in the exchange rate increasing steadily since January 2014, hitting the 1.3 mark in July of this year, with $1.00 U.S. equaling $1.30 Canadian. 

Although the Canadian dollar is weak at the moment, it’s not as low as it has been. The Bank of Canada lists the Canadian dollar’s lowest-ever comparative value as 62 cents U.S. in January of 2002. In the last three months, the rate has hovered between 74 and 76 cents to the U.S. dollar. 

A larger gap in the exchange rate means goods and services here become more expensive for Canadian visitors, which usually means a decrease in tourist traffic. 

Peyton Scheller, Visit Spokane’s communication manager, says that, in general, the number of visitors coming here from Canada has decreased over the years, only recently showing an increase. 

Scheller says so far in 2015, Visit Spokane showed a total of 488 Canadian visitors, up slightly from last year’s 439 for the same time period. “Keep in mind this is only a record of people we actually speak to in person,” says Scheller. 

“We’ve increased our effort to speak with visitors and collect travel data, so that may account for the increase,” says Scheller. “Visitors to our downtown kiosk and our mobile visitor information center have also doubled since last year.”

Visit Spokane President and CEO Cheryl Kilday is also reluctant to rely too strongly on data just from those sources, preferring to trust numbers tracked by hotel and business owners. 

“It’s hard to measure in the middle of the year, but we know anecdotally that Canadian traffic is softer this year and sometimes the value of their dollar does affect us,” says Kilday.  

As part of a 2014 tourism study, Visit Spokane found that visitors to Spokane County spent $893 million last year overall, which the organization asserts creates jobs for nearly 10,000 residents and generates $60 million in state and local taxes.

Kilday says data on visitor traffic varies from hotel to hotel, based on factors such as proximity to shopping and tourist sites. 

“It would appear the softening in Canadian traffic has been happening over the last two years,” says Kilday “Because we’re up this year from 2014, but down both this year and last from 2013.” 

Meredith Rainville, general manager for the Best Western Plus City Center, at 33 W Spokane Falls Blvd, says that in spite of the current exchange rate, the hotel has still seen a good amount of Canadian visitors this year.

“When the (Canadian) dollar fell apart, we were concerned not as many would come down, but we do still get Canadian guests,” says Rainville. “It’s still worth it for them to come down even with the dollar where it is. They still want to travel, and our prices are better.” 

Rainville, who has worked at the hotel for 19 years, says she hasn’t noticed the rate of visitors change much lately.

“We were really busy over the summer, so if it was down, we didn’t notice,” she says. 

She says the fall and winter will tell the true story, as those are slower seasons for the hotel. 

“If we do see a decrease I would say it might be because of the dollar,” she says. “Canadian guests have mentioned the exchange rate affecting their travel costs, but at the same time our area has a larger variety in shopping and better prices, so fortunately they’re still coming down.”

Kilday agrees that while the exchange rate could be contributing, it’s probably not the only reason for the decrease in Canadian tourism. 

“I think some of it has to do with the type of Canadians that are visiting,” she says. “It depends on what they need, when they need it, and whether it’s a better value to purchase it here instead. Visitors may just be making fewer trips, or purchasing differently than before.”

She says Visit Spokane does some geo-targeting, tracking visitor ZIP codes and marketing to provinces that provide the most visitors, such as British Columbia and Alberta. The organization also has several television commercials that reach Canadian audiences. 

“A lot of things play into that marketing,” says Kilday. “We’re always gathering information, talking with our partners, finding out what’s working and what’s not. We have input sessions in the spring and summer, devising a plan for what we can do in the next year to reclaim some of that Canadian traffic.” 

She says Visit Spokane has asked its partners about creating a marketing campaign geared toward Canadian tourists, but so far no one has pursued the idea. 

“We’ve talked about offering discounted rates or special deals, but there’s also a challenge in that,” says Kilday. “It’s difficult to offer a discount on something we’re already offering a good value on. We can’t offer discounts as the solution without alienating other visiting populations.” 

She says the goal is to keep overall visitation strong, rather than compensate for a decline in one area.

“We’re not going to stop marketing to Canadians, but we’ll probably look at doing it a bit differently,” she says. “We look at what they have available for retail options. For example, they just got a Nordstrom in Calgary not too long ago. What does that mean for us? We need to consider these things when promoting our retail offerings.”

Kilday says Visit Spokane also looks at data from other border cities Canadians could be choosing to visit instead. “There could be multiple factors at play. Softer traffic doesn’t mean they’re not coming. They just might not be coming here.” 

Bob Bostwick, director of public relations for the Coeur d’Alene Casino Resort Hotel, says the key is in emphasizing value.

“We always want to give visitors the best value for their dollar, and that means quality lodging as well as reasonably priced food and golfing packages,” he says.

Last summer, Coeur d’Alene Casino Resort Hotel’s offered discounted rates as well as stay-and-play packages for Canadian visitors.

“I’ve met a lot of Canadians here, particularly on the golf course,” says Bostwick. “From talking with them, I think they lament the change in the dollar more than anything else.” 

While golf in particular still seems to be popular with Canadian visitors, Bostwick says he feels the Inland Northwest still has a lot to offer as far as reasonably priced travel and shopping experiences. 

“Compared to Seattle or other large cities, we offer good value on food, lodging, and activities,” he says.

He says the resort also sometimes offers Canadian guests $20 toward fuel. “That’s one advantage they have when they travel down here, as our gas prices are three times less than theirs.”

Bostwick says that while changing weather probably has the greatest effect on the casino resort’s Canadian business, buses still come in from British Columbia and Alberta.