Montreal’s tourism board hopes a new partnership with Cirque du Soleil will “get people thinking about Montreal” in areas where the circus troupe performs, said Tourisme Montreal CEO Yves Lalumiere on Wednesday.
The two-year deal – which comes with an optional third – is what Cirque president Stéphane Lefebvre called a “win-win agreement.”
On the tourism side, the organization hopes the Cirque’s touring will provide outreach and advertising for the city. In return, the circus is getting Tourisme’s online infrastructure and promotion. Both are hoping to make back some financial losses caused by two pandemic years.
“We are looking to attract six to seven million tourists this year,” said Lalumiere.
Other details of the deal are still getting ironed out as the organizations plan their event schedules – so far, “KOOZA,” an acrobatic clown show, is set to open its tent doors to the public in mid-May in Montreal’s Old Port.
— This article was produced with the financial support of Meta and The Canadian Press news fellowships. It was first published in French.