A Guide to Indigenous Tourism: Engaging Modern Visitors with Six Nations

Let’s be honest. As tourism professionals, we know that a static sign or a simple brochure can’t possibly capture the depth of history a place holds—especially when that history spans from time immemorial. How can we possibly do justice to the rich, living cultures of Indigenous partners and help them share their stories in a way that truly connects with visitors?

I’ve spoken with so many destination managers who feel their most important stories are stuck behind glass or are only accessible to those who book a specific guided tour. They have this incredible, layered history, but they struggle to make it visible and accessible to the casual visitor walking down their main street. It’s a common challenge: how do you bring these crucial narratives to life, right on the land where they happened?

What if you could hand visitors a key that unlocks those stories as they explore? Imagine them standing by a river and hearing the voice of a community Elder share its significance, or seeing historical photos of a building overlaid on their screen. This is how we move from passive observation to active, meaningful indigenous tourism.

How Six Nations Tourism Brought Their Stories to the Forefront

This isn't just a hypothetical. Take a look at the work we’ve done with Six Nations Tourism. They represent the most populated First Nation in Canada, with a vibrant community and a history that shaped Southern Ontario. They needed a way to share that legacy with visitors and their own community members in a dynamic way.

Instead of just relying on traditional methods, they created a collection of self-guided tours on Driftscape. Now, as people explore the Six Nations of the Grand River Territory, they can use their phones to discover hidden gems, hear stories, and see behind-the-scenes content.

As their Acting Manager, Spring Sault, put it, the platform enhances "traditional, onsite visits with augmented reality, imagery, audio and video supports... that guests may not otherwise have the privilege of experiencing." This approach puts the power of place-based storytelling directly into the hands of visitors, creating a deeper and more memorable connection to the land and its history.

The Benefits of a Digital Storytelling Platform

By using a tool like Driftscape, Six Nations was able to directly address their core goals. For any DMO looking to support and amplify indigenous tourism, this approach offers some clear wins:

• Empowers Authentic Voices: It puts the storytelling tools directly into the hands of the community, ensuring narratives are authentic, respectful, and self-determined.

• Drives Economic Growth: By highlighting local Indigenous-owned businesses, sites, and attractions on an interactive map, you can guide visitor spending and support the local economy.

• Increases Accessibility & Engagement: It turns a simple walk into an adventure, offering a self-guided, go-at-your-own-pace experience that appeals to all age groups. Check out our post on how to boost visitor engagement for more ideas on this.

• Creates a Living Archive: Unlike printed materials, a digital platform can be updated instantly with new points of interest, events, or seasonal stories.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. Is a platform like this respectful of Indigenous culture?  Absolutely. The entire model is designed for the community to tell their own stories in their own voice. The DMO facilitates, but the community retains full control over the narrative.

2. Do we need a big budget or technical team to manage this?  No. The platform is built to be used by tourism coordinators, not developers. Your phone is a mini-studio—it's easy to take app-ready photos and record high-quality audio for tours.

Plus, our customer success team provides hands-on onboarding to help you build your first tour, so you have dedicated support right from the start.

3. What kind of content works best? A mix is always best! Short audio clips, historical photos, text descriptions, and video links all work together to create an immersive experience. The key is authenticity.

4. Will visitors actually use this? Do they need to download an app?  Visitors are hungry for this kind of interactivity. And best of all, Driftscape works directly in a phone's web browser, so no download is required, removing that barrier for your guests. For destinations with spotty cell service, the optional app includes a "Save for Offline" feature, ensuring a smooth experience everywhere.

5. How does this connect to broader tourism goals?  It aligns perfectly with the national strategy to grow and support authentic cultural experiences. For more context, check out the great work being done by the Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada (ITAC).

Building a truly powerful indigenous tourism program starts with finding better ways to share the story. By giving our partners the right tools, we can help them connect with a new generation of travelers looking for deeper, more meaningful experiences.

Ready to Tell Your Destination's Story?

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See It in Action

“Six Nations Tourism, in partnership with Driftscape, has designed an engaging and informative experience for visitors and community members alike, allowing them to discover hidden gems within the Six Nations of the Grand River Territory. Through self-guided tours, interactive features, quests, and more, explorers can now discover the places, events, and signature experiences that make Six Nations a tourism hotspot, steeped in history, culture, and an appeal unlike any other. Through its online and interactive nature, Driftscape allows visitor and community member access to local tourism sites, enhancing traditional, onsite visits with augmented reality, imagery, audio and video supports, and behind-the-scenes details that guests may not otherwise have the privilege of experiencing. Through this partnership, Six Nations Tourism will be focusing on continued growth in site experiences and access, and looking forward to introducing new and welcoming past visitors and community members to experience everything we have to offer.”

Says Acting Manager, Spring Sault.

About Six Nations Tourism:

Six Nations is a vibrant community nestled along the Grand River in the heart of Southern Ontario’s Golden Horseshoe. Six Nations Tourism offers authentic cultural experiences for individuals and groups and seeks to foster the development and promotion of the Six Nations culture, history, events, facilities, and historical sites while creating a positive relationship with our neighboring communities.

Canoe the Grand River, hike the trails and explore the story of the Haudenosaunee people of Six Nations of the Grand River. Come explore Six Nations for yourself – a place for fun, relaxation and discovery.