The man who sells New Brunswick

The mayor of Saint John might be the happiest person in New Brunswick this new year.

As CNN released its list of top travel destinations around the globe for 2024, Saint John found itself on the list with the likes of Indonesia, Turkey, Puerto Rico and Angola.

"I mean, it's an impressive list," said Mayor Donna Reardon.

"We know what we have, and we like what we have. But when someone else recognizes your wonderful qualities, just, I mean it's so gratifying."

At Envision Saint John, which promotes tourism in the region, spokesperson Jillian MacKinnon was just as excited.

"Well, we were thrilled obviously, because it's a fairly prestigious list," MacKinnon said, adding that Saint John was the only Canadian destination included.

But as Saint John was taken by surprise by the list, one man in the provincial government was less so — because it's his job.

Neil Hodge is the travel media representative for Tourism New Brunswick. His day-to-day work involves building relationships with travel writers and journalists from around the world, and pitching them stories about New Brunswick in hopes they'll choose to cover it.

"I knew CNN was working on, as they do every year, a list of great places to visit in the upcoming year, and they're always looking for kind of under-the-radar places," Hodge said. "And so I did give them this idea."

He doesn't know how many pitches about New Brunswick he's sent out in the past year, but estimates it would be about "a few thousand." 

But Hodge can tell you that 3,745 travel stories were written around the world about New Brunswick in the past year. That includes everything from small bloggers to CNN and the New York Times, he said.

Each year, Hodge travels to conferences for travel writers, where he gets to meet writers face to face and get them hooked on New Brunswick.

"If you want to be in the tourism game and get your fair share of the travel media coverage … the travel media needs to know you and they need to see your face and you need to have a presence," Hodge said.

Hodge said his position is not unique, and that "every province in Canada" has someone like him.

What he calls "third-party endorsement," like the CNN story, goes a lot further than regular tourism advertising from the government, Hodge said.

"They produce these travel stories about New Brunswick, and now it's not us in Tourism New Brunswick saying that we're great … We have somebody else saying that about us.

"And I think the message comes across much stronger as a result of that."

Why Saint John?

Hodge said some of his pitches come to fruition and others don't. His choice of Saint John came from the uniqueness of its location on the Bay of Fundy.

He said its proximity to other destinations such as St. Martins, the Fundy Trail Parkway, Fundy National Park, and the Hopewell Rocks makes it an attractive location as a tourist's home base for day trips.

When asked if any local tourism agencies or government officials have his ear when he decides where in New Brunswick to pitch, Hodge said no.

"Oh no, I just come up with these, the ideas of where to pitch," he said, adding he routinely pitches stories from all corners of New Brunswick.

"And then it just depends on which one they gravitate towards to pursue for a story."

Especially after COVID, Hodge said, tourists are more drawn to wide open spaces and the safety of being in nature, and destinations they can drive to instead of flying.

"And I think the Maritimes and New Brunswick in particular really, really fit that description."

CNN list the 'holy grail," professor says

Lorn Sheehan, a Dalhousie University professor who studies tourism strategies, called CNN's list "the holy grail" of getting attention for tourism.

"I would expect it's something that would not even be remotely possible given the budgets of most destinations," Sheehan said.

"I'm sure not even very large destinations in Canada would be able to afford the kind of media exposure that getting on the CNN travel list for 2024 gets you."

The creators of a list like CNN's, he said, are interested in off-the-beaten-path destinations that are unique, and Saint John's distinction as the only city on the Bay of Fundy is just that, he said.

"The Bay of Fundy offers something that no other destination can really offer," Sheehan said. "You can literally have people standing on the seafloor and tell them seven hours from now this will be 40 feet underwater.

"Well, that is a unique experience."

He called people who do what Hodge does "channellers," since they try to channel attention toward travel writers and others who have a big audience. 

"I suspect that CNN's travel writers, their inboxes are full of people wanting to be included on the list in the next year," he said.

"I think all of that must have resonated with one of the travel writers at CNN, and again, that's just a great outcome for New Brunswick.

"I'd say it's not really a random process, and yet in some ways it may feel that way."

Hopewell Rocks picture instead of city

Despite the title going to Saint John, CNN used a photo of the famous Hopewell Rocks, a two-hour drive away and much closer to Moncton.

Hodge thinks the photo choice comes from how he pitched Saint John's proximity to the Bay of Fundy. 

"This charming little city is an excellent base from which to enjoy the nearby Bay of Fundy, famed for having the world's highest tides," the CNN article reads. It goes on to highlight the city's architecture, history, accommodations, and food scene.

When asked why Moncton or the entire province wasn't pitched instead, his answer was simple.

"Saint John is the only city on the Bay of Fundy, and it was meant to be a Bay of Fundy pitch, so to speak," Hodge said.

"Moncton is not located on the Bay of Fundy."

MacKinnon, at Envision Saint John, is not disheartened in the least by the apparent photo snub.

"Hopewell Rocks is an important part of the Bay of Fundy story as well. Just as we are, you know, the only city on the Bay of Fundy, so they're all linked."

She said the city is on a tourism rebound as it recovers from COVID, and the city has plenty to offer on its own alongside the wider Fundy region.

Back at city hall, Reardon said the city has been putting more money into tourism and economic development, but "Saint John is a city that has limited resources. So we're doing the best we can with what we have."

As for the photo of the Hopewell Rocks instead of a snapshot from her own city?

"It's very close," Reardon said, laughing, of Hopewell Cape.

"It's very close."