Our guest is Ellen Walker Matthews, CEO of Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association, TOTA.
With more than 40 years in hospitality, travel, and tourism, Ellen has seen the industry from just about every angle. Hotels. Marketing. Travel trade. Destination development. Industry development. Stewardship.
Now, from the CEO’s chair at TOTA, she’s helping shape the future of tourism across the Thompson Okanagan. And that future includes small towns and rural communities.
In this episode of the EH BC’s of Rural Tourism Podcast, we ask some big questions.
- What role do small towns and rural communities play in the region’s overall tourism strategy?
- How can TOTA help level the playing field for smaller communities and independent tourism businesses that don’t have the resources of larger destinations?
- What can be done to build shoulder season and winter tourism opportunities?
Because tourism doesn’t stop where the four-lane highway does. Sometimes, that’s where the real adventure begins.
Join us October 1st, 2026 at 10 AM.
Featuring Ellen Walker Matthews and Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association.
The EH BC’s of Rural Tourism Podcast is a partnership between the Tourism Industry Association of BC, TIABC, and EH Canada Travel.
Published on EH Canada Travel Facebook, YouTube and Greg Girard LinkedIn, plus TIABC Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn.
New episode published every first of the month.
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