Revamped tourism website makes it even easier to “Tour Oxford”
- Lee Griffi
- 3 days ago
- 3 min read
By Lee Griffi, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Oxford Tourism is attempting to make planning a trip to Oxford County easier with the newly revamped Tour Oxford website.
This refreshed platform supports Oxford County’s 5-Year Tourism Plan and is designed to enhance visitor information services while meeting the growing demand for tourism resources and business support.
“With a modern, responsive design, the website offers a seamless experience for visitors and improved tools for local tourism operators,” a press release said.
Meredith Maywood is the county’s Tourism Manager, and says the new site has several new and exciting features.
“A few [features] come to mind. First of all, a more user-friendly navigation. We can quickly get you to things to do, trip itineraries, but the entire site also has a great feature where you can filter listings. You can see items just in a particular community, or if people have a certain amenity they are looking for. If you needed a pet-friendly patio at a restaurant, for example. It is customized for people to find the information they are looking for.”
She explained the new site has been a tremendous amount of work, but it has been a team effort from start to finish, and Oxford companies are now able to showcase themselves.
“Businesses can actually go online and quickly edit and maintain their content. The site isn’t just aimed at the consumer but also at the businesses. For example, people can easily go online and submit events and add offers.”
2025 is just year one of the five-year plan, and Maywood said Tourism Oxford is well on the way to successfully implementing the initiative.
“It’s been a very successful year in checking off some of those tasks to be completed. The website is a great example of one, and it was a priority for us this year. We are also working on the ‘Your Next Stop’ routes that we have in market now and the other ones we are hoping to wrap up and market for the fall for Ingersoll and Tillsonburg.”
Oxford County has been a growing tourist destination over the last several years, and another benefit of the new website is the ability to track visitor inquiries more efficiently. Maywood added the county is an up-and-coming hot spot for tourism dollars.
“At the end of the year I’ll be able to give some overall numbers. This week, we had a call from someone wanting to bring a group of 50 people into the area in September. We were featured in Blog TO earlier in the year and our inbox exploded over two days.”
She added how consumers plan vacations and getaways is changing, and they are now ready to provide the necessary planning information.
“We now have a website that is ready for you to build your trip and share a link with your friends. Or, if you want to give a trip idea hint to somebody to take you out, you can use it for that as well.”
One of Tourism Oxford’s key target audiences is urban residents looking for an escape from the hustle and bustle of Toronto, Hamilton, Kitchener, or London.
“As much as Woodstock is a city, it’s still small by metropolitan standards. People love what we have to offer. There are a lot of unique businesses, stories, culture and history to explore.”
The organization has also launched a program in Woodstock called Retro Rewind, where the goal is to get people to explore businesses in the Friendly City.
“We’re celebrating the fact we have some long-term businesses, even one back to the 1800s, and there are three themes. ‘Retro Vibes’ are businesses offering a unique nostalgic offering. For example, wandering through three floors of antiques, flipping through vinyl, and maybe getting a fresh cut at a local barbershop with vintage décor in the store. From an old school tailor on Dundas Street to a jeweler, checking out a museum and the local history with some walking tours.”
Maywood added customers can also go back to the future and check out some new and modern businesses that are bringing something fresh to downtown Woodstock.
“There’s so much to check out downtown, and I’m excited for it. There is a lot of enthusiasm there.”
More information is available on the Tourism Oxford website under the ‘Explore’ tab by clicking ‘Your Next Stop.’
Potential tourists can explore an events calendar to see what’s happening across Oxford and access personalized trip planning through a concierge service that highlights everything from hidden gems to must-see attractions. Businesses are able to update photos, details, and seasonal offers and access resources to make sure their information reaches visitors.
Anyone interested can learn more at www.tourismoxford.ca.