It’s full-steam-ahead for Rocky Mountaineer Vacations (RMV), despite the tough times facing the tourism industry.

With only a month to go before the first trains start rolling through the River City, the rail-tour company is optimistic this will be a successful season.

However, RMV acknowledged the global economic crunch has affected the company’s early bookings.

Hubert Wat, RMV’s vice-president of marketing, pointed out it’s too early in the booking season to know exactly where numbers are at, but, in speaking with partners in the industry, he said the drop could be anywhere from five per cent to 50 per cent.

“We’re certainly trying to measure what kind of impact the recession is going to play in the mindset as we move into the spring season,” Wat told KTW.

“We’ll have a better idea once we get a lot of our bookings in just prior to the season.”

RMV, which is entering its 20th season, offers three rail routes for travellers, two of which make overnight stops in Kamloops.

The company completed the 2008 season with flat growth.

Despite the gloomy projections, RMV said it has no plans to make any cuts to its core product.

It’s a far cry from the erroneous , that surfaced in December, suggesting the company was headed for receivership.

Instead, Wat said RMV is being proactive, ramping up its marketing budget, which will focus on attracting short-haul customers from Canada and the U.S.

And Kamloops remains a big part of RMV’s plans.

In an effort to enhance its entertainment experience, RMV has a new show this season, Rhythm on the Rails, which will be performed during its stops in Kamloops.

The company is already looking forward to 2010, which could include staggered departure times — instead of the current three overnight stays per week in Kamloops, the number could jump to six per week.

“We’re actually looking to see how we can enhance even more business generation into Kamloops,” Wat said.

The company also spent millions investing in its rail yard in Kamloops, with $1 million going into a new locomotive pit, while the city spent $300,000 to pave the Lorne Street parking lot where RMV unloads its passengers.

Source Link: By Jeremy Deutsch, Kamloops This Week