This summer, Ontario’s Highlands Tourism Organization (OHTO) is leaning into one of the strongest travel trends shaping our region: shorter, more spontaneous trips rooted in meaningful local experiences that connect consumers with small town Ontario. 

Launching in May 2026 and running through the end of September, OHTO's Small Town Ontario campaign is designed to position Ontario’s Highlands as the go-to destination for day trips, road trips, and easy overnight getaways.

For operators and partners, this is more than a campaign. It’s a coordinated push to drive visitation, increase exposure, and connect travellers directly to your experience and community. 

Here’s what you need to know. and how to be part of it.

Why This Campaign (and Why Now)

Traveller behaviour has shifted, and it’s not shifting back. Whether it's rising costs, political temperature, or just the newest trend, the data is telling us that visitors are increasingly:

  • Choosing day trips and short stays over long vacations
  • Planning last-minute, low-friction getaways
  • Seeking authentic, close-to-home experiences

The Small Town Ontario campaign is built directly around these behaviours, positioning the region as an easy “yes” for urban visitors from the Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal areas.

OHTO data shows that small town and rural community content consistently delivers some of the highest engagement across ComeWander.ca, with strong performance on:

  • “Best of” small town lists
  • Day trip itineraries
  • Walkable community features

This campaign scales that success, turning high-performing content into a coordinated regional push. 

The Core Idea: Make Small Towns the Destination

At its heart, the campaign positions Ontario’s Highlands as a collection of driveable small towns, each offering access to the unique small and rural communities experience for which the region is so famous. 

The campaign will include a dedicated campaign landing page on ComeWander.ca to anchor the small town experience, featuring stories highlighting small town itineraries, day trip inspiration and road trip planning resources. 

This means your community, and potentially your business, becomes part of a larger, cohesive story celebrating the unique contribution our towns make to our collective culture and sense of connection, discovery, and belonging.

What This Means for You

This campaign is built to connect visitors directly to operators and small town experiences. Every piece of content - from itineraries to social posts - is designed to:

  • Drive traffic to ComeWander.ca and operator websites
  • Encourage trip planning and exploration
  • Increase time spent in your community
  • Turn day trips into overnight stays

It also supports broader goals like:

  • Encouraging responsible, community-focused tourism
  • Promoting sustainable, low-impact travel
  • Showcasing authentic, local experiences
Two women stand on a bridge in Minden

How Operators Can Participate (and Benefit)

This is where you have the opportunity to leverage this campaign for your own benefit. Whether you are featured in one of the stories through the campaign or not, it will bring a greater amount of traffic to the ComeWander.ca website, and to the region as a whole. To leverage momentum, you can:

  • Ensure your business is up to date on the OHTO Member Portal - Log in and update your business listing to ensure your business information is accurate for the Backpack Trip Planning feature on ComeWander.ca.
  • Get a free business profile published on ComeWander.ca - Make sure to add at least three high-resolution images to your business listing in the OHTO Member Profile and complete your business description to be eligible for a published profile.
  • Align with the experience - Does your business or experience fit into a day-trip or short-stay itinerary? Tweak your visitor messaging to build on that alignment with our marketing messages. Make it easy for visitors to understand how you can fit into their day.
    • Sample language to include: walkability within your community, nearby scenic drives, how you fit as an easy day trip or easy overnight getaway
  • Leverage user-generated content - Visitors want to see themselves experiencing what you have to offer. Encourage visitors to share their experience and tag your business so you can reshare the content. Use campaign hashtags (#SmallTownOntario and #ComeWander) to increase exposure of your content.
  • Think in itineraries - Consider what other experiences and operators are nearby that complement yours, and collaborate on promoting a shared itinerary to encourage visitors to spend more time in your community. This helps build attractiveness to your area as a destination.
  • Amplify the campaign - You don't need to create your own campaign, just plug into ours! Share itineraries and stories featuring your community or business on your channels, and help spread awareness about the amazing region we live and work in and the contribution small towns bring to Ontario's culture. 

REMEMBER: Small Town Ontario isn’t just a marketing campaign, it’s a response to how people are travelling right now.

Operators who align with this shift won’t just benefit from this campaign, they’ll be positioned for the future of tourism in Ontario’s Highlands. Be part of it and celebrate small town Ontario in Ontario's Highlands!

Industry Storytelling: Faces of Ontario’s Highlands

Alongside the consumer‑facing Small Town Ontario campaign, OHTO is continuing to elevate the people behind the region’s visitor experiences through Faces of Ontario’s Highlands. This industry storytelling series profiles operators and makers whose work shapes the character of our small town communities.  

These stories help reinforce the heart of the region and complement the consumer campaign by showcasing the real people who bring the region to life help create the welcoming experiences visitors return for.

Stay Connected

Keep an eye on OHTO's updates throughout the campaign period - make sure you are subscribed for the consumer newsletter and the industry newsletter, Highlands Highlight. Follow our consumer-facing social channels to see the new content, itineraries, and assets as they are released through the campaign, and share them on your channels. 

Content Marketing
Marketing