Labrador StraitsFuture Directions
The Newfoundland & Labrador Tourism Industry
In Newfoundland & Labrador we must never lose sight of the primary focus, the raison d'étre of our tourism industry: our cultural heritage and our natural environment. Indeed, these are not two separate entities, but are one. The history of human habitation in our province -- from the most ancient Palaeo-Indian inhabitants to modern day outport fisherfolk -- is inextricably bound to the natural environment. Without the fish, seals, whales, and caribou there would be no people called "Newfoundlanders" and "Labradorians". There would be no picturesque fishing villages, no city of St. John's, no folk music, no dictionary of Newfoundland English. We would quite literally not exist.
Yet we do exist, with thriving cultural traditions founded upon our relationship with our natural environment. It is this relationship, this centuries-old bond, that forms the heart and soul of our identity as Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. It is an intangible thing, exceedingly difficult to express, but possessed of great power. It is the incredibly good taste of tea made in a can over a fire in the country; the sight and sound of the first boats to weave their way across the harbour amongst the last of the spring ice; the aroma of salt fish packed away in the store.
Our provincial tourism industry must embrace this relationship between people and environment, and constantly strive to express it in all aspects of tourism development. It simply is not enough to focus attention and development upon one aspect of this relationship to the detriment of the other. It is true that our province offers spectacular coastal scenery and pristine subarctic wilderness, but so do other places. Whales frequent our waters and caribou roam the barrengrounds, but they do in other places as well. What Newfoundland & Labrador possesses that is truly unique is the diversity of its history, a saga of changing relationships between humans and environment.
Stone quarried five thousand years ago in northern Labrador by Archaic Indians was traded as far south as New England. Fifteen hundred years ago an Arctic culture occupied virtually the entirety of our province, from the northern tip of Labrador to the south coast of Newfoundland. Wherever they lived, they devised unique ways of coping with the local environment. The Beothuk Indians built a special type of birch bark canoe designed for seaworthiness, allowing them to travel the coast of Newfoundland. For centuries Newfoundlanders and Labradorians practised "winterhousing", the establishment of temporary winter communities inland, away from the coast, to allow access to forest resources. These are just a few examples of the kinds of relationships that developed between people and the environment in our province.
By focusing attention upon such relationships we can offer a unique kind of tourism, one that provides an education and an opportunity for personal exploration. Today's tourists are better educated and more knowledgeable than ever before. Through an increasing array of media and information systems they are more aware of the world and better informed about it. For our province to attract these tourists we must provide opportunities for them to gain an understanding and appreciation of the truly unique character of Newfoundland & Labrador.
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An extract from: Management & Coordination of the Labrador Straits Tourism Industry
Doug Robbins
February, 1995
Yet we do exist, with thriving cultural traditions founded upon our relationship with our natural environment. It is this relationship, this centuries-old bond, that forms the heart and soul of our identity as Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. It is an intangible thing, exceedingly difficult to express, but possessed of great power. It is the incredibly good taste of tea made in a can over a fire in the country; the sight and sound of the first boats to weave their way across the harbour amongst the last of the spring ice; the aroma of salt fish packed away in the store.
Our provincial tourism industry must embrace this relationship between people and environment, and constantly strive to express it in all aspects of tourism development. It simply is not enough to focus attention and development upon one aspect of this relationship to the detriment of the other. It is true that our province offers spectacular coastal scenery and pristine subarctic wilderness, but so do other places. Whales frequent our waters and caribou roam the barrengrounds, but they do in other places as well. What Newfoundland & Labrador possesses that is truly unique is the diversity of its history, a saga of changing relationships between humans and environment.
Stone quarried five thousand years ago in northern Labrador by Archaic Indians was traded as far south as New England. Fifteen hundred years ago an Arctic culture occupied virtually the entirety of our province, from the northern tip of Labrador to the south coast of Newfoundland. Wherever they lived, they devised unique ways of coping with the local environment. The Beothuk Indians built a special type of birch bark canoe designed for seaworthiness, allowing them to travel the coast of Newfoundland. For centuries Newfoundlanders and Labradorians practised "winterhousing", the establishment of temporary winter communities inland, away from the coast, to allow access to forest resources. These are just a few examples of the kinds of relationships that developed between people and the environment in our province.
By focusing attention upon such relationships we can offer a unique kind of tourism, one that provides an education and an opportunity for personal exploration. Today's tourists are better educated and more knowledgeable than ever before. Through an increasing array of media and information systems they are more aware of the world and better informed about it. For our province to attract these tourists we must provide opportunities for them to gain an understanding and appreciation of the truly unique character of Newfoundland & Labrador.
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An extract from: Management & Coordination of the Labrador Straits Tourism Industry
Doug Robbins
February, 1995