Celebrating the people who make visitors feel at home
I first came to Halifax as a 12-year-old sea cadet. I was a visitor, and this city made me want to stay. That is what hospitality does at its best: it turns a trip into a future. I have been building my life here ever since.
Hospitality, events, and tourism are the front door to our economy. Every conference delegate, concertgoer, and weekend traveller meets Halifax through the people who serve them: the front desk clerk, the caterer, the event crew, the server who knows exactly which dish to recommend. Those first impressions travel home with our guests. Some become repeat visitors. Some become residents, employees, and business owners. I know because I was one of them.
The economic impact reaches well past the venue. When a visitor books a room, a table, or a ticket, that spending moves through the whole community to suppliers, producers, staff, and the shops next door. Much of it lands with small businesses and entrepreneurs. I believe our hospitality sector is one of the clearest examples of how local enterprise creates prosperity for everyone around it.
The numbers show what our warm welcome is worth. Events East Group reports that 2025-2026 was its best year yet at the Halifax Convention Centre and Scotiabank Centre, with its highest attendance to date and $147 million in economic impact across both venues. Since 2018, those venues have welcomed more than 3.5 million guests and hosted more than 1,900 events. The Convention Centre alone hosted more than 190 events last year, many showcasing Nova Scotia’s leading sectors, including life sciences, aerospace and defence, and oceans.
Summertime brings the world to our waterfront. According to SailGP, its June race weekend on our harbour drew around 12,000 ticketed spectators, with thousands more watching from the shoreline, and generated over $64 million in total economic impact for Halifax. More than half the spectators came from outside the city, and non-local attendance rose 31 percent over 2024. Those visitors spend in our hotels, restaurants, and shops.
Wintertime brings the celebrations home. The holidays are among the busiest times for the people who run our venues, kitchens, and event spaces. Their work is physical, demanding, and often invisible to the guests enjoying the result.
The Chamber exists to support the businesses behind those experiences. We advocate for the conditions that let them grow, connect them with each other and with new opportunities, and make sure decision-makers hear what the sector needs. This issue of Business Voice puts a spotlight on operators from across hospitality and events. Read their stories, and notice how much of what makes Halifax feel like home is built by their hands.
The holiday season is here. Book the venue in Halifax. Hire the local caterer. Buy the tickets, reserve the table, and bring your out-of-town guests to see what we have built. Every dollar you spend this season supports a neighbour and shows the world what this city does best: welcome people.
