The cancellation of business conferences and conventions across the country is costing cities hundreds of millions of dollars in lost revenue as the COVID-19 pandemic devastates the tourism industry.
Tourism Toronto says the city will be down 120,000 business visitors from April through June as major events such as the Collision tech conference are cancelled or postponed, depriving the metropolis of an estimated $250 million in spending. “Right now we have hotels in the single-digit occupancy range, borders closed and stay-home orders so visitor spending is effectively shut down,” said Andrew Weir, the marketing organization’s vice-president of destination development. “This is a complete halt to the tourism economy,” he said, with “all