Trends in the Tourism Industry

The three fastest growing forms of tourism nationally are cruise ships, gambling casinos and very large family theme parks. The greater Ossipee area isare not positioned to take advantage of any of these three trends. Portsmouth is working to attract more cruise ships during the summer, which is the only opportunity currently available in New Hampshire.

The next two fastest growing forms of tourism are heritage tourism and eco-tourism. New Hampshire and the greater Ossipee area are well positioned to participate in these forms of tourism. The focus of heritage tourism is the history of an area including historic events, buildings and settlements. Increasingly this includes an interest in how average people lived as well as important national events and people. Genealogical research and visits to the home sites, villages and cemeteries of ancestors and relatives is an important part of heritage tourism. Also, just a better understanding of how this nation developed is of interest to many visitors from across the country and residents of Canada. Even Europeans are attracted to New England's older cities and smaller villages, even though they have no roots here.

Surveys of 1995 travelers to New Hampshire (United States residents only) by the United States Travel Data Center show that between ten and 15 percent of all visitors (depending on season) include heritage tourism activities while here. Research by the Institute for New Hampshire Studies indicates that interest in heritage tourism is much higher for visitors from outside New England than for residents of New England.

The greater Ossipee area offers historic villages, historic buildings and an interesting rural landscape often best seen on the back roads and by-ways of the area. Activities to undertake include putting construction date signs on older buildings, names of original owners of buildings and better informational signage in villages and cemeteries. It also includes setting up a genealogy section in each town library which includes histories and old maps of the town and copies of genealogies of long-time families and early settlers. The Chamber should actively participate in the state's Scenic and Cultural Byways Program through the Lakes Region Planning Commission. The greater Ossipee area also has a Native American image with the public because of the many Algonchian place names in the area and legends and stories associated with Native Americans whom early English settlers came in contact with. Visitors interested in heritage tourism often shop for local crafts and products, including Native American crafts.

The second growth area in tourism which the greater Ossipee area can participate in is eco-tourism. This is the educational component of what has long been known as outdoor recreation and the study of natural history. Some summer camps in the greater Ossipee area already undertake such activities and museums and visitor facilities in nearby towns such as Wolfeboro and Moultonborough are clearly oriented toward this growing market segment. Outdoor recreation has traditionally been the most important reason that tourists come to New Hampshire. The U.S. Travel Data Center reported that between 40 and 60 percent of all visitors to New Hampshire in 1995 engaged in outdoor recreation, depending on the season. Participation in the Scenic Byways Program and the encouragement of the New Hampshire Department of Resources and Economic Development and the United States Forest Service to offer more educational programs and informational facilities at their properties within the greater Ossipee area will attract more visitors interested in eco-tourism.

There is continued growth in outdoor recreation, but not as rapid as in the past. Some elements of outdoor recreation such as alpine skiing, fishing, hunting, snowmobiling, golf and tennis have shown little growth in New Hampshire over the past ten years. There has been growth in walking, hiking and bicycling and in water sports such as canoeing, kayaking and rowing. This indicates the need for more trails, wider shoulders along highways and small dock and boat launch facilities, including boat rentals. Trail systems could also be used for cross country skiing or snowmobiling in the winter.

As indicated in the survey conducted of visitors to the greater Ossipee area as part of this study, visitors find the area attractive for rest and relaxation purposes. This is one of the major reasons why tourists come to New Hampshire and why they are specifically interested in visiting the greater Ossipee area. It is important that this ambiance not be lost as the area grows.

Finally, retail shopping is an important part of a vacation to New Hampshire. While retail shopping by visitors has shown only a small increase over the past five years, it does appear that this does represent an opportunity in the greater Ossipee area. First, many visitors are traveling through the area on their way to North Conway or the seacoast regions of Maine and New Hampshire to shop there. These shoppers can be intercepted. Second, many visitors to the area indicated that while they spend their nights in the greater Ossipee area, they shop elsewhere during the day. These visitors also represent an opportunity for local retail and restaurant sales.

Winter and Spring Tourism Development

While tourism related businesses in the greater Ossipee area will continue to need to respond to the changes occurring in tourism reviewed above, the greatest challenge will be to increase the number of tourists during the winter and spring seasons. Following are some recommendations and observations as to how tourism might be increased.

The former Mt. Whittier ski area probably cannot be revived as a profitable ski area for a number of reasons. The most important reason is that new capital investment would exceed four million dollars, not including reassembly of two of the three parcels which made up the ski area. The area is not likely to attract enough skiers to pay for the operating costs and also repay the money needed for acquisition and improvements.

A smaller ski area which used a portion of the former Mt. Whittier ski area might work only if most of the employees needed to run the ski area were volunteers and the area strongly encouraged snowboarders. New capital investment would be around one million dollars and would not require land reassembly.

Existing snowmobile trail systems in the Greater Ossipee area should be viewed as a positive economic activity in the winter. Consideration should be given to the creation of a new cross country ski area with 15 to 25 miles of trail. This area might be in the National Forest, at Pine River State Forest or on private land such as in the Ossipee Range. A system of trails on private land would provide the most opportunity for commercial success. An inn to inn system is hard to operate successfully. A portion of this system will require snowmaking if continuity of operation is important.

Support for the existing snowmobile trail network should be continued by area organizations. Efforts should be made to determine if these trails can be used for walking and mountain biking during the summer. Signage along the trails should be improved.

A winter event such as a large ice-fishing derby should be considered. A spring event, probably during May, should also be created and undertaken. This might be a large crafts fair and/or antiques show that could have multiple, but coordinated sites.

Efforts should be made by the larger resorts, hotels and camps in the area to sponsor business conferences and corporate retreats during the fall, winter and spring seasons. This will increase the number of visitors to the region during the slower seasons. Many of these business travelers are currently driving through the area to reach conference centers further north in the state.

Proposed Tourism Brochure

As a part of this study two alternative brochures for the greater Ossipee area were designed by The Glen Group in consultation with the Economic Development Committee of the Greater Ossipee Area Chamber of Commerce. These two following brochures are mock-ups, but include alternative ideas as to the message and priorities which should be stressed. One of the highest priorities of the Chamber should be the creation of a new tourism brochure which can be distributed in the Boston, Portland and Providence markets using Joint Promotional Program funding from the New Hampshire Office of Travel and Tourism Development.

This new, four-color tourism brochure should focus on what there is to do and see in the area during all four seasons of the year. It should also include specific information on overnight accommodations and major events, but probably only generic descriptions on restaurants, shopping, attractions and activities. More detailed information and ads for the latter are better provided through a one-color directory distributed in the immediate area only.

The impact of such brochures in other places like the greater Ossipeee area is that the number of tourists should increase by at least one or two percent and that spending should increase by two or three percent per year. Thus, the total spending by tourists in the greater Ossipee area should increase by $600,000 to $900,000. This suggests that locally raised funds to match State Joint Promotional Program funding should be in the $20,000 to $45,000 range per year.