Toronto 
The federal government has announced a significant investment to enhance tourism in Eastern Ontario.
Credit: SS-Keetawin
On behalf of Minister Filomena Tassi, MP Mark Gerretsen revealed over $3.7 million in funding through the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario) for 27 organizations across the region. This initiative aims to diversify tourism offerings and attract more visitors, including support for five Indigenous tourism projects.
During the announcement at Kingston’s Great Lakes Museum, MP Gerretsen highlighted the restored S.S. Keewatin. This 1907 Edwardian-era steamship, which arrived in Kingston in October 2023, opened for tours in May 2024 after a $250,000 restoration funded by the Tourism Growth Program. The ship is now a key attraction, drawing international visitors.
The Great Lakes Museum also received over $77,000 from the Canada Cultural Spaces Fund to renovate the historic Pump House. These renovations improved energy efficiency and accessibility and preserved the Victorian-era steam engines, enhancing the visitor experience.
The $3.7 million investment supports a variety of projects across Eastern Ontario:
- 1000 Islands History Museum: $175,000 for digital tourism applications in Gananoque.
- 4th Line Theatre Company: $175,000 to improve and extend programming in Millbrook.
- Ahoy Rentals: $10,500 to expand bike rentals in Kingston.
- Canadian Canoe Museum: $200,000 to develop cultural and recreational activities.
- The County Cooperage: $200,000 for an accessible tourism center in Cherry Valley.
- Fort Treehouse Company: $200,000 to increase glamping accommodations in Haliburton.
- Friends of Bon Echo Park: $180,000 to refurbish boat dock and increase accessibility to a walking trail at Bon Echo Provincial Park’s Clifftop Trail.
- The Grove Theatre: $200,000 to expand musical theatre in Fenelon Falls.
- Haliburton Sculpture Forest: $65,000 for enhancements in outdoor sculpture garden, trails and exhibitions.
- Kingston & Area Association of Museums, Art Galleries & Historic Sites: $120,000 for the March of Museums festival.
- Municipality of Mississippi Mills: $20,000 for a tourism marketing strategy.
- Municipality of Tweed: $80,000 for a rural tourism campaign.
- Ontario’s Highlands Tourism Organization: $250,000 for travel routes and $78,235 for trail promotion in Renfrew County.
- Prescott-Russell Community Development Corporation: $200,000 for a tourism strategy.
- Quinte Museum of Natural History: $200,000 for exhibition programming.
- Railway Museum of Eastern Ontario: $150,000 to convert a locomotive into an interpretive attraction.
- Region 9 Regional Tourism Organization: $250,000 for a tourism research plan.
- Reset: $80,000 for a marketing campaign in Palmer Rapids.
- Trent Hills and District Chamber of Commerce: $55,000 for tourism development.
- Tweed & Company Theatre: $90,000 for improvements at Marble Arts Centre.
Indigenous tourism projects include:
- Ginawaydaganuc Village: $239,172 for a strategic tourism plan and curriculum in Almonte.
- Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte: $30,500 for a historical concert series in Deseronto.
- Moonlight on the Bay: $82,979 for lodging enhancements in Tyendinaga.
- Poptronic: $9,727 for virtual reality tourism promotion.
- WBFIT Indigenous Center: $200,000 for renovations and programming in Balderson.
Since 2015, the Government of Canada, through FedDev Ontario, has invested over $415 million in nearly 1,450 tourism-related businesses and organizations, estimated to have supported over 24,500 jobs.
