When Your Heart Needs Travel: A New Campaign to Inspire Exploration Close to Home

With interest in travelling locally on the rise, Travel Manitoba has launched a powerful new spring and summer campaign that meets the moment—inviting Manitobans, Canadians and international travellers to follow their hearts into the heart of Canada.

Running from May to September 2025, the campaign is designed to increase overnight bookings, generate leads for tourism partners and grow overall awareness of Manitoba as a must-visit destination. With activities planned for every stage of the marketing funnel, this campaign is one of our most robust to date—reaching audiences across Manitoba, Canada and North Dakota, with extended reach into Alberta, Quebec, Minnesota, Toronto, Atlanta, Los Angeles and beyond.

At the core of the campaign is an emotionally resonant tagline that builds on Manitoba’s destination brand: Canada’s Heart is Calling. This year, we’ve extended that idea with the line: “When your heart needs…” paired with emotive prompts like “to roam,” “to escape,” “to reflect” and “to relax”.

The campaign is organized around key travel themes including road trips, stunning stays, Indigenous experiences, urban escapes, northern adventures and festivals and events, with each theme showcased through dynamic digital creative and targeted storytelling.

A wide range of tactics are being deployed to maximize impact:

• Digital Advertising: Hyper-targeted display, video, streaming, social media (Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest) and Google Search ads will capture attention and drive traffic throughout the campaign period.
• Connected TV and OTT: Dynamic, high-reach video placements will help deliver Manitoba’s message into households across North America.
• Influencer and Earned Media: Over 15 media and influencer visits will showcase hidden gems, beluga viewing, cultural experiences and summer road trips through authentic, trusted voices.
• Broadcast and Print: Partnerships with CTV Morning Live, La Liberté, the Winnipeg Free Press, the Filipino Journal and Game On, CIAO! and Savour magazines will extend reach across TV, radio and print, especially in key local and regional markets.
• Podcast Series: A new 7-episode podcast hosted by Chrissy Troy will launch this summer, featuring immersive stories from destinations like Falcon Trails Resort, Dead Horse Cider and Voyageur Houseboats.
• Strategic Sponsorships: From wrapping Winnipeg Jets’ dashboards during playoff games to teaming up with the Sea Bears and Goldeyes, Manitoba’s message will appear in unexpected and high-traffic places.

To complement awareness efforts, a strong focus on conversion is baked into the campaign:

• Expedia Partnership: A high-value co-op campaign with Destination Canada and Expedia will drive bookings through a branded landing page and retargeting ads.
• Airline Activations: Collaborations with Air Canada, Porter and WestJet include targeted campaigns, landing pages and in-flight content promoting Manitoba travel.
• Bandwango Passes: Gamified digital experiences like the Brew Pass and Kids’ Choice Pass encourage exploration and repeat visitation across the province.
• TMB Website Enhancements: Custom landing pages, updated travel deals, itineraries and interactive content make it easier than ever to plan your summer adventures.
• GuideGeek AI Assistant: An always-on chatbot helps visitors explore options and get trip planning support in real-time, available on travelmanitoba.com and through WhatsApp.
• Adara Attribution: We’re working with a powerful tool to measure the effectiveness of our marketing campaign. Adara measures hotel and flight bookings attributed to campaign ads across a wide variety of digital platforms used for travel planning. Using this tool helps us understand where our marketing dollars are most effective.

With bold creative, emotionally resonant messaging and a diverse media strategy that includes everything from influencer partnerships to national airline campaigns, this year’s spring and summer campaign is designed to meet people where they are—and inspire them to choose Manitoba.