SHiFT, Travel Alberta’s unique experiential travel training program, wrapped up yesterday in Drumheller. SHiFT is the only program of its kind in western Canada, acting as a catalyst for tourism operators and marketing organizations to craft compelling experiences.

The goal of SHiFT is to attract new customers and leave a legacy in the host communities, and its reputation is growing. The annual program in its third year and the 24 available spots fill up fast.
“Drumheller was chosen for SHiFT because tourism is a strong economic driver for the region; new experiences developed for the course will give travellers more reasons to visit the area and hopefully extend their stay in the Canadian Badlands.” said Shelley Grollmuss, Vice-President, Industry Development, Travel Alberta. “SHiFT encourages partnerships that inspire locally developed ideas for growth while fostering stronger partnerships within the community.”

To date, more than 70 tourism businesses and Destination Marketing Organizations have participated in training, leading to the development of 22 new experiences now available to the public. Refreshing existing experiences and building new ones that align with the needs of our travellers is critical to Alberta growing the visitor economy to $10 billion in tourism revenues by 2020.
“Investing in a destination is not just about marketing,” said Royce Chwin, Travel Alberta CEO. “It’s also about investing in our communities, supporting economic diversification, creating opportunities and providing memorable experiences.”
"Travel Drumheller is proud to partner with Travel Alberta on the SHiFT experiential travel training program," said Travel Drumheller board chair, Cindie Hughes. "By providing quality training programs, we are able to educate the community on the value of the visitor economy and support stakeholders in the success of their operations, while showcasing Drumheller’s unique landscape and history."
“We were thrilled to have had the opportunity to create a new experience for SHiFT Drumheller,” said Jay Russell, Acting Executive Director of the Atlas Coal Mine. “The coaching and support provided by Travel Alberta and the program facilitators was invaluable. Now, along with our new collaborative experience partner, the East Coulee School Museum, we are ready to launch an exciting new market-ready program called Mine & Dine for the 2017 season.”
Tourism contributes more than $8 billion in expenditure to Alberta’s economy, supports 19,000 tourism operators and employs 127,000 people across the province.
Information on Travel Alberta’ SHiFT program can be found online at http://industry.travelalberta.com/resources/industry-development/shift

    
A local restaurant has teamed up with the Morrin School’s Students Against Drinking and Driving (SADD) to promote not drinking and driving.
    A few patrons of Yavis who have decided to leave their cars overnight at the establishment received a friendly note on their cars.
    “It reads, ”We wish to thank you for leaving your car parked overnight-- we are not sure if you consumed alcohol last night, but we want to thank you for not drinking and driving.”
    The letter was also a free voucher for a free appetizer for next time the person visits.
    Restaurateur Amy Yavis explains she was approached by Katie Suntjens, REACH Wellness worker at Morrin School who was looking to partner in some way to promote this important message.
    “The goal is pretty obvious to make sure as many people as possible don’t drink and drive. Many lives are lost each year due to something that is so easily preventable, why not try and do as much as possible to encourage people to make the safe decision too?” said Yavis.
    She adds that as a business proprietor, she feels this is an important issue.
    “As an owner in this business, preventing people from drinking and driving is one of the hardest things to do and therefore one of the most important things in my business. Yes I want everyone to have a great time when they come here but still make the responsible choice when they leave to not risk their lives or any others,” said Yavis.
    She says they have only handed a few out each week, but already about 20 have been distributed, and they have been received very well.
    “The Morrin chapter of Students Against Drunk Driving and I plan to do this for a very long time and hopefully as more people become aware of this then more people will make the right choice to park their vehicles overnight,” she said.