OLD ORCHARD BEACH, Maine — The official beginning of autumn is still two weeks away. But many of us consider Labor Day the last day of summer. On this Labor Day, tourists and Mainers alike were outside squeezing as much as they could out of this sunny holiday in Vacationland.
All summer, 10-year-old Desiree Fournier, of Sabattus, has wanted to go to a water park. On Labor Day, she got to go to Aquaboggan for the very first time. Desiree said, “I’ve only been in the wave pool. That’s fun so far. We’re going to go do some water slides.” Jennifer Fournier is Desiree’s mother.
Jennifer told CBS 13, “I promised her I’d take her to a water park before the end of the summer. We told her, “This is the end of the summer.” She replied, “I know. I’m in denial,” and laughed. The family who runs this water park told CBS 13 they’ve had such a busy summer, they wish it didn’t have to end.
Dee Ferdinand of Aquaboggan said business has been outstanding. She said, “It has been great. We’ve had some really good hot weather this summer. It’s been great, really great. I hate to see it end.” Weather aside, the calendar also played a role in the success of businesses this summer.
With an early Memorial Day and a late Labor Day, it was like having two extra weeks of summer. Cory Hutchinson of Funtown Splashtown USA said it “let us stretch the season out. And really for us and the majority of people in our industry, up and down the coast of Maine, it’s all about the weather.”
Businesses that cater to tourists had a strong season, but it could have been better. At Funtown Splashtown, numbers are up, with perhaps one exception. With the Canadian dollar at an 11-year low, worth 75 cents to the American dollar, Hutchinson says they’ve seen a slight drop in Canadian tourists.
He said, “This summer we still saw plenty of Canadians. It could be a little less than we’ve seen in previous summers, for sure.” Jim Fairbanks of Dunegrass Country Club adds, “It’s possibly made a little bit of an impact. I can’t say it’s a huge impact. The golf business in Maine this year has been very healthy.”
Motels in Old Orchard Beach, which cater to mostly Canadians, may be feeling the biggest pinch. They tell us they’ve seen a number of Canadians cutting their vacations short to save some money. But they’ve also seen an increase in American tourists this summer. For other businesses, it’s not as noticeable.
At Dickinson’s Candy in Old Orchard Beach, they saw lots of Canadians despite the exchange rate. Stacie Brown said, “We’ve had a good amount of Canadians down here. And they seem to be OK with it. It [the exchange rate] is always difficult on families and people, but they’re still buying.”
Buying ice cream, cotton candy, caramel corn, and candy. Emily LaRoche and her friends from Quebec City were buying bags of candy on Labor Day before heading back home. But LaRoche told CBS 13 the money they lose on the exchange rate, they make up for with lower prices in Maine.
LaRoche pointed to her bag of candy and said, “Here it’s $10.00. But in Quebec, it’s $15.00-$20.00 for the candy. So it’s very good here.” With Labor Day over, Maine businesses that cater to tourists are already looking ahead to what they hope will be a busy fall season as well.