Quote:
Originally Posted by Ozy_Flame
Think what you want, but people don't actively seek out Calgary as a destination without being told about it first. Calgary is and always has been a "here we are! Look at us!" type of city. And that's what we got with the Olympics.
When I was travelling in Australasia when I was younger, when people asked me where I was from and I said Calgary, anyone who heard of it (maybe about half) associated it with the '88 Olympics (and some Cool Runnings references, which is also about the Olympics). There is literally nothing else that makes us significant on the map to the average foreigner.
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I've traveled, worked and lived abroad quite extensively and more often than not, people from Europe to South America, Australia and Asia all know exactly where Calgary is and what is about, so I think what you're saying is misleading. Tourism relating to Banff/Jasper, Skiing, hiking, fishing, camping, oil production and the Stampede consistently come up no matter where I am. Naturally a few rubes bring up cool runnings and the olympics but that time has passed long ago for the most part.
Calgary isn't and likely never will be a major international city, but it certainly stands on its own globally compared to many places you'll go with the diversity of activities and natural sites at its doorstep. Another olympics isn't going to change that one bit.