As one of Metro’s fastest growing municipalities, Coquitlam takes on many different meanings. To commuters, it’s part of the spiffy new Evergreen Skytrain line. To lovers of greenspace, it’s home to Mundy Park and Burke Mountain. But for curious tourists and visitors, Coquitlam can be a bit of a mystery. That’s what the new #explorecoquitlam initiative is partially about.
Back in May, the city of Coquitlam embarked on a creative project that literally “put you in the picture.” Placing large picture frames with the hashtag #explorecoquitlam at four popular locations (Mundy Park, Lafarge Lake, the Coquitlam Crunch and Mackin House), the city took the first steps in creating an awareness campaign that makes residents proud to share their Coquitlam experiences and hopefully draws new visitors and tourists to enjoy all that Coquitlam has to offer.
Eric Kalnins manages tourism for the City of Coquitlam’s Economic Development Division. He says, “The idea was to get people to take a picture in the frame and then post to their social media accounts. We have recently been using #explorecoquitlam to engage people on what is happening in the city in the hopes that they share it and further expand our network of followers.
The City of Coquitlam is working to get a stand alone Tourism Coquitlam website up and running, but in the meantime, the city has its own on-line list of things to do and see at www.coquitlam.ca/explore. “We also produce monthly info bulletins that promote plenty of opportunities to “explore Coquitlam,” he notes.
Go explore, take a photo, and don’t forget to use those hashtags! #explorecoquitlam