Ingrid Jarrett's hospitality career started humbly at the age of 14 as a chambermaid at the Beacon Beach Resort in Kelowna.
The Beacon Beach property would eventually be rebuilt as Manteo Resort and Jarrett would go on to a storied career.
It includes director of operations at the Fairmont Empress Hotel in Victoria, general manager of the Cove Lakeside Resort in West Kelowna, chair of the Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association, general manager of Watermark Beach Resort in Osoyoos, general manager of The Royal in Kelowna, CEO of the Canadian Vacation Ownership Association and president & CEO of the BC Hotel Association.
Jarrett's tenure at her latest gig with the BC Hotel Association comes to an end March 30 as she hands over the reins as president after five years.
The BC Hotel Association is based in Vancouver and Jarrett is from Kelowna, so the transition will allow for a homecoming of sorts to the Okanagan.
For years, Jarrett has also had her own hotel management consulting business, which she intends to kickstart to do more project work and destination development in conjunction with Destination BC and Destination Canada.
Some of that work will definitely be in the Interior, which can capitalize on highway connectivity to its biggest source of tourists in the Lower Mainland.
When Jarrett finishes up at the BC Hotel Association, she will play tourist herself for a while.
She'll seek warmth with her family on a holiday to Mexico and then ski at Big White as much as possible until the end of the season.
"It was quite a ride," said Jarrett of her five years at the BC Hotel Association.
"When I took over the pandemic was right around the corner and the 1,800 accommodators in BC from big hotels to small bed and breakfasts had to go into survival and resiliency mode."
Jarrett is happy with her legacy as she moves on from the hotel association.
"I've been proud to contribute," she said.
"I have a pure belief in hospitality. It's a very human business. Hospitality is in every community, big or small. If there's a need to stay overnight, whether it be for business or leisure, to sightsee or ski, take in local attractions or for a medical appointment, there's a need for hospitality."
In December 2019 there were 82,084 hotel rooms in BC and after the worst of the pandemic, in December 2020, there were 80,184, a loss of almost 2,000 rooms.
The majority of those 2,000 rooms were purchased by the provincial government to house the most vulnerable, and has created a need in many communities for additional motel/hotel infrastructure development.
By December 2024, the room count was 81,879, so the industry is almost back to where it was before COVID.
But, of course, there have been more challenges since the pandemic.
Runaway inflation, supply chain problems, a labour shortage, wildfires, highway closures and a crackdown on short-term rentals like Airbnb have combined to make things tough on accommodations and curb tourism.
In 2024, Kelowna, as well as the province as a whole, felt the impact and effect of inflation.
The hotel sector managed a pretty decent year, tourists still came, but their stays were shorter and they spent less and more opted to camp or stay in RVs.
The provincial government targeted short-term rentals with a provincial registry to force units into the long-term rental pool in communities with severe shortages of affordable housing.
That led to a change in the Kelowna short-term rental regulations to align with the provincial regulations.
As a result, for the first time in many years, the available rental housing is over 3% availability.
The BC Hotel Association supported the move, due to the lack of available rental housing for seasonal workers for restaurants, wineries, retail and construction.
"There will be tweaks (in short-term rental rules)," said Jarrett.
The City of Kelowna is already looking into easing some short-term rental rules to allow more units to come on stream.
"Overall, the future looks good for accommodations of all kinds in BC," said Jarrett.
Coldwell Banker Richard Ellis and Smith Travel Research, both professional financial measurement firms, are predicting continued growth for tourism in 2025 and beyond.
The key disrupter is the looming tariffs, which is the great unknown although we are seeing additional choices for Canadian travellers to stay home and support local Canadian owned businesses.
"The BC brand is strong. More and more tourists will continue to come here because we're safe and clean and friendly and beautiful and interesting and active."
