Alberta Provincial Parks had a very busy and successful year.
With over 470 provincial parks and recreation areas, which include 250 campgrounds and almost 14,000 campsites, it's no wonder people travel here from around the world for their vacations.
According to a media release from Alberta Forestry and Parks, Alberta saw travellers from 36 different countries visit our wonderful province.
On top of that, they had over 254,000 camping reservations and received an 87 per cent satisfaction rating from visitors.
"Parks are for people, and clearly people are using our parks. With a provincial park or recreation area within an hour of virtually every community in the province, our parks system is accessible to every Albertan and attracts visitors from around the world. I’m very proud of the successful season we had," said Todd Loewen, Minister of Forestry and Parks in the media release.
This year, Alberta's provincial parks added $1 billion to Alberta's GDP, as well as almost 9,000 jobs and $400 million in labour income to the provincial economy.
Also, more than 110,000 visitors also participated in over 1,600 parks programs, including guided excursions, special events, and amphitheatre shows.
Soon, though, Alberta's parks will become even more inviting.
The Alberta government has committed $211.3 million over three years to improve and expand recreation and access to parks across Alberta.
Several capital projects have already resulted from this investment, including new boat launch sites, upgraded trails and signs within Dinosaur Provincial Park, backcountry campground refurbishments in K-country, and the reopening of Grassi Lakes day-use area and Winagami Lake Provincial Park wading pool.
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