Tourism heads to Wolastoqiyik Nation

Leaders in tourism travelled from across Quebec to the Wolastoqiyik Nation last week, where connections were made between Kahnawake Tourism and those who want to support the future of Kanatahkwèn:ke, Kahnawake’s future Cultural Arts Center.

“It’s always really awesome to be able to network and meet new people that are looking for an authentic Indigenous experience,” Johns said.

Johns was one of many representatives of tourism organizations from across the province, who gathered for the Bienvenue Quebec conference, a three-day event that this year took place in Riviere-du-Loup.

A key part of the event was a booth-based networking evening, where stakeholders met with tourism representatives to learn more about their offerings. Johns said she made around four key connections who may be interested in supporting Kanatahkwèn:ke in future, as well as multiple contacts from schools who intend to add trips to Kanatahkwèn:ke to their curriculum offerings.

“We were getting excitement from the ones that already knew of us and have known that it’s coming and that we’re working on the finalization of the museum, and we also had a lot of educating to do. A lot of people still have no idea about the differences between First Nations and who the nations are in each territory,” Johns said. “Really, you’re still doing a lot of teaching before you can even do the pitch.”

At the opening night, guests learned more about the Wolastoqiyik Nation, hearing from speakers and watching a traditional dancer from the community.

Johns took a look at some plant medicine books from the nation, and was even treated to dinner at Maqahamoq, a local restaurant run by chef Maxime Lizotte which spotlights Indigenous cuisine.

The dinner, courtesy of Indigenous Tourism Quebec, featured fusion dishes like shredded goose with Big Mac sauce, salmon, and a pesto zucchini soup.

“He just really knocked it out of the park,” Johns said.

Johns said it was particularly special to meet with other leaders in Indigenous tourism at the event.

“It’s really nice to know that everybody is having their own journey in this and just being able to support each other is really awesome,” she said. “It would still be nice to see some more representation at these events, so we’re hoping to see that in the future.”

She said that Indigenous Tourism Quebec is a particularly good advocate in bringing together tourism organizations from Indigenous communities across Quebec.

“They’re very supportive, they help us to make connections with people that they meet along the way, especially people that they know will be in the Montreal area, so they really help to facilitate a lot of new networks,” she said.

Johns said that the event was inspiring, and left her feeling proud of the efforts she and other Indigenous tourism advocates have made in recent years.

“The highlight was really being on the land and meeting the people there and seeing how they’ve fought for their right to be recognized by the government, and that they’re driving their own space now,” she said.

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