Product Development Fund

• Business/community is of strategic importance to defined travel corridors and/or the project is in alignment with local/regional tourism master plans
• Creates a new purchasable tourism experience within Alberta
• Contributes to job creation and economic growth
• Diversifies the seasonality of product offering for the operation/region
• Supports the Indigenous tourism sector
• Supports sustainability practices within the tourism operation

• Private sector Alberta based tourism businesses, Indigenous businesses, not-for-profit organizations and municipalities with a focus on tourism.
• Businesses and not-for-profits must have a minimum three years in operation.
• Applicant’s tourism offering must be available no less than 120 days per year.

• Organizations whose activities are under the jurisdiction of the provincial or federal government
• Non-Alberta based businesses
• Applicants whose projects will be completed during the approval process
• Retail
• Restaurants
• Airports
• Casinos
• Travel Agencies
• Transportation Services (Taxi, Limo, Vehicle rental)
• Virtual tourism offerings
• Hotel/Motels 50 rooms or greater (Franchise properties)
• Vacation property rentals

• Purchase, construction or renovation in the development of a tourism related product, experience or in the rendering of services.
• Purchase of an existing building that allows the applicant to diversify current operations.  
• Costs related to increasing environmental sustainability initiatives within existing products (solar, alternative energy, etc).
• Consulting services, professional fees with exception to those noted below, and project management costs required to undertake an eligible project. Incremental operational costs may be considered. 
• Development of natural areas such as hiking, cycling, and walking trails. 

• Regular facility upgrades, maintenance or regulatory compliance
• Purchase or lease of land
• Licensed, motorized vehicles
• Costs related to replace, repair, or upgrade a piece of equipment
• Office furnishings or décor, office equipment including computers, copiers, phones, etc
• Highway, business or community signage
• Construction, expansion, or enhancements of community recreation facilities
• Stand alone bathroom construction and renovation
• Conference and event based centres
• Campground upgrades/expansions to add more sites, add services, or update/add additional buildings such as washrooms
• Construction or expansion of major hotel developments (over 50 rooms)
• On-going operating costs including administration, staff salaries, administrative expenses, and maintenance costs
• Legal, insurance, audit, or banking interest fees
• Costs related to working capital, debt service, operating losses, capital losses or redemption of capital
• Road construction such as paved or gravel access roads
• Consultants/contractors for grant administration
• GST/HST
• Costs which Travel Alberta, at its discretion deems ineligible

• Expenses to be incurred between April 1, 2023 – March 31, 2024
• Expenses will need to be invoiced by a qualified third party and documented in the financial reconciliation.
• 2021 and 2022 Financial statements which would include an income statement and balance sheet
• Infrastructure related projects require a written endorsement from the local municipality (city, town or county). In addition, copies of all supporting documentation must be provided as applicable to the project, including but not limited to:
• Legal description of the property and copy of the registered title or lease agreement number
• Business/operating license obtained
• If the project is on land leased from the crown – a letter from a representative of the appropriate government authority indicating the proposed project is permitted under the lease agreement will be required.
• Tourism and commercial recreation lease obtained. (highlight and brief description)
• Municipal land use bylaw requirements met
• Development/recreation permits obtained
• Copies of property plans and development dimensions
• Construction schedule with associated budget timeline

• Revenue Generation
• Job creation
• Visitation (domestic and international)

• Please submit an Expression of interest (EOI) for your growth project. EOI Intake period is Monday, February 6 to Monday, February 27, 2023 (closed)
• Once a Travel Alberta Destination Development Manager approves your EOI, a link for an online application will be forwarded to you. Product Development Applications are from Tuesday, February 21 to Monday, March 6, 2023 (closed). Please note – receiving an application link from Travel Alberta does not guarantee funding. Send questions to tourisminvestment@travelalberta.com  
• For all Growth projects, applicants must be shovel ready (approval, permits and financing in place) and be able to provide a minimum of 50% of total project funds. 
• It is the sole discretion of Travel Alberta to manage funding requests and decline projects that may not qualify or if the program is oversubscribed.
• Once a funding recipient has been approved, a Travel Alberta Grant Agreement will be formulated. 
• The funding will be sent via Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT).
• Upon approval of the project and receipt of all required documentation, 100% of approved funds will be released to the organization.  
• Investment decisions will not be made for approximately six weeks following the closing date of March 6, 2023.

• Business/community is of strategic importance to defined travel corridors and/or the project is in alignment with local/regional tourism master plans
• Creates a new purchasable tourism experience within Alberta
• Contributes to job creation and economic growth
• Diversifies the seasonality of product offering for the operation/region
• Support the Indigenous tourism sector
• Support sustainability practices within the tourism operation

• Private sector Alberta based tourism businesses in operation from 6 months to 3 years, with business plan showcasing strong potential growth.
• Applicant’s tourism offering must be available no less than 120 days per year.

• Businesses who have been in operation for 3+ years
• Organizations whose activities are under the jurisdiction of the provincial or federal government
• Non-Alberta-based businesses
• Applicants whose projects will be completed during the approval process
• Retail
• Restaurants
• Airports
• Casinos
• Travel Agencies
• Transportation Services (Taxi,Limo,Vehicle rental)
• Hotel/Motels 50 rooms or greater (Franchise properties)
• Vacation property rentals

• Please refer to the eligible infrastructure and/or asset purchase expenses in the Growth and Innovation streams above
• Up to $5,000 in promotional expenses (including ad buying and media FAM trips)
• Experience pilots
• Interpretive programming development including costs related to the enhancement and/or development of a new tourism experience
• Business planning and marketing strategy development by a qualified third party
• Content development including photography, video, and written content (shot list must be included with the application)
• Website development and online sales platforms
• New membership fees

• Please refer to the ineligible infrastructure and/or asset purchase expenses in the Growth and Innovation streams above
• Lease/purchase of commercial vehicle if organization already owns a vehicle for guiding operations. 
• Salaries or wages for company
• Agency or other management fees
• GST/HST
• Costs which Travel Alberta, at its discretion deems ineligible

Expenses to be incurred between April 1, 2023 – March 31, 2024. Expenses will need to be invoiced by a qualified third party and documented in the financial reconciliation.

• Revenue generation
• Job creation
• Visitation (domestic and international)

• Please submit an Expression of interest (EOI) for your incubator project. EOI Intake period is Monday, February 6 to Monday, February 27, 2023 (closed).
• Once a Travel Alberta Destination Development Manager approves your EOI, a link for an online application will be forwarded to you. Product Development Applications are from Tuesday, February 21 to Monday, March 6, 2023 (closed). Please note – receiving an application link from Travel Alberta does not guarantee funding. All questions or inquiries can be sent to tourisminvestment@travelalberta.com.
• Incubator applicants will only be eligible for funding for 2 of 3 years of funding, with no funding in successive years. Following a business's third year of operating they become eligible for Travel Alberta’s Product Development Fund programs.  
• It is the sole discretion of Travel Alberta to manage funding requests and decline projects that may not qualify or if the program is oversubscribed. 
• Once a funding recipient has been approved, a Travel Alberta Grant Agreement will be formulated. 
• The funding will be sent via Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT).
• Upon approval of the project, and receipt of all required documentation, 100% of approved funds will be released to the organization.  
• Investment decisions will not be made for approximately six weeks following the closing date of March 6, 2023.