Cornwall, Ont. prepares for upcoming once in a lifetime total solar eclipse

The city of Cornwall, Ont. is continuing preparations for the total solar eclipse on April 8.

The city joins other areas like Kingston and Brockville on what’s called the "path of totality," where the eclipse will be seen in its entirety. Viewers in Ottawa and parts of Montreal will only see a partial eclipse.

As a result, Cornwall is expecting thousands of visitors from the surrounding region.

"It's not something that happens every year," explained Kevin Lajoie, the city’s officer of tourism.

"So we’re hoping for the best, hoping everyone is safe and it goes well."

Officials are organizing a viewing party at Lamoureux Park, a stretch of land right on the St. Lawrence River.

It’s also a stone’s throw away from downtown and the city hopes visitors take some extra time after the eclipse to soak in everything Cornwall has to offer.

"If people are visiting Cornwall from out of town, we obviously encourage them to extend their stay," Lajoie said.

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"We've got some great hotels in Cornwall that there's still some room in, but they're filling up fast."

One hotel owner says he’s been fully booked for April 8 since January. The Auberge Chelsey’s Inn is right in the middle of downtown Cornwall.

"I saw an advertisement from the other side of the river talking about the eclipse," explained Robert Prowse, the hotel’s owner. "Then I went online and found out more about it. So I started promoting it on my website and within a month, I was sold out completely."

Hotel bookings can help the city with rough estimates of how many people will be visiting, but most will likely just be coming in for a day trip.

Other cities along the U.S. – Canada border are also seeing a boost in tourism.

Last week, the city of Niagara Falls declared a state of emergency, due to an expected 1 million visitors for the eclipse and before that, the city of Kingston said they were expecting half a million visitors.

The eclipse will begin in Cornwall at 2:12 p.m. with totality beginning at 3:24 p.m. and ending at 3:27 p.m.

CTV News Ottawa will have special live coverage of Monday's solar eclipse.

Watch CTVNewsOttawa.ca from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on April 8. You can also tune in to Newstalk 580 CFRA for continuing coverage.

CTV News will have coverage from Kingston, Brockville, Ottawa and the Niagara Region.