Whistler’s cultural tourism rising – Pique Newsmagazine

September 21, 2017

The resort anticipates how arts and heritage can enhance the visitor experience as it prepares to be the launchpad for BC Culture Days

Hundreds of people turned out for the grand opening of the gorgeous Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre (SLCC) in the Upper Village in the fall of 2008, which took place in the museum’s totem-lined Great Hall.

There were a dozen chiefs and other representatives from the Indigenous nations that have peopled this region for millennia. Then-premier Gordon Campbell and then-federal heritage minister James Moore, both honoured guests, kept awkward rhythm to the beats of the assembled drummers and singers. Confetti sparkled as it fell from the ceiling.

An Olympics-inspired cultural tourism opportunity was born.

Beyond the spectacle on stage, Squamish and Lil’wat Nation elders, precious holders of cultural history through terrible times, were present to see a stunning building and living museum unveiled as a resource for presenting to the world what they had safeguarded. As time has proven, the value of the SLCC has also been in reviving endangered art forms and teaching the next generation of Squamish and Lil’wat youth.