October 27, 2004 for immediate release

PrinceGeorge's attractiveness as a destination for tourism is the focus of asurvey being undertaken by a class in the University's ResourceRecreation and Tourism (RRT) program.

"The study is really the result of a debate that surfaced this pastsummer among a number of letters to the editor in the Prince GeorgeCitizen," says RRT professor Anne Hardy. "The debate started when ajournalist from Europe described the city in a way that was notcomplimentary. The comment generated a lot of response from localcitizens. People are very passionate about this community and we wantto capture their opinions in this survey."

All this week, the ten students in the fourth-year RRT class aresurveying residents and tourists at various locations around the city:Canadian Tire, City Hall, Parkwood, and the Airport. The students areplanning to collect 200 completed surveys from residents and another200 from visitors to compare visitors and residents' perceptions ofPrince George as a tourism and recreation destination. The final reportwill be completed in early December and is the major assignment for thecourse.

Anne Hardy came to UNBC this year from the University of Tasmania inAustralia and her main research interests relate to community andstakeholder involvement in tourism development. She also studies themotivations, behaviours, and impacts of tourists who drive their ownvehicles, a group that often has experiences distinct from those whofly or who participate in organized tours.