Destination Toronto
Destination Toronto is Toronto's official non-profit, mission-driven destination marketing and development organization. Originally incorporated in 1926 as the Toronto Convention and Visitors Association, the organization has spent a century connecting local businesses to the city's thriving visitor economy. Today, Destination Toronto plays a critical role in driving economic growth, promoting the city globally to leisure travelers, travel trade professionals, and business event planners.
Core Purpose & Mission
Purpose: To ignite Toronto’s visitor economy to enrich and empower its communities. Destination Toronto acts as a primary catalyst for the city’s visitor economy. Rather than focusing solely on tourism, the organization takes a holistic approach to destination management. It supports and advocates for local businesses, stimulates economic activity, and ensures that the growth of tourism delivers direct, tangible social and economic benefits to Toronto’s diverse residents and neighborhoods.
Key Strategic Pillars & Functions
-
✓
Destination Marketing & Sales: Promotes Toronto globally to attract leisure travelers, international tour operators, and high-impact business meetings, conventions, and major events.
-
✓
Destination Development: Executes long-term strategic initiatives, such as the Toronto Destination Master Plan—a decade-long collaborative roadmap designed to elevate Toronto’s global competitiveness, sustainability, and visitor experience.
-
✓
Business Intelligence & Research: Provides the local hospitality sector with market performance data, visitor trend insights, and economic reports to help businesses scale and adapt.
-
✓
Community & Industry Collaboration: Offers free, barrier-free memberships to Toronto-based tourism and hospitality businesses, building a collaborable network of over 750 members.
Organizational Structure & Funding
-
✓
Governance: Destination Toronto is governed by a volunteer 18-member Board of Directors. This board is comprised of nine appointed representatives from the tourism and hospitality sector and nine community members elected by the membership.
-
✓
Funding Model: The organization's core funding is secured through a partnership with the City of Toronto, utilizing a portion of the Municipal Accommodation Tax (MAT). Funding is also supplemented by provincial and federal project grants (such as from the Ontario Ministry of Tourism and FedDev Ontario), alongside membership and cooperative marketing revenues.
Economic Impact
Toronto's visitor economy serves as a vital engine for the city's financial health. In a typical strong calendar year, Toronto welcomes over 28 million visitors who contribute more than $9 billion in direct visitor spending, helping to support thousands of local jobs and drive economic prosperity across the region.