ACTA says it has moved into recovery mode; big ship cruising returned to Canada and Air Transat returned to Ireland and Amsterdam; Russia’s travel industry faces more western sanctions; TICO charges; and the US extended its mask mandate for public transportation.
NEWS
With travel restrictions mostly rescinded and bookings booming – the two are not unrelated – Canadian travel agents are in a much better place than even a few weeks ago, said ACTA in a virtual town hall meeting on Tuesday. But difficulties, including crippling debt, remain for the retail industry, prompting the association – coupled with the federal government’s pivot from providing pandemic financial to policies for economic growth and affordability – to shift from “survival to recovery mode.”
The US extended its nationwide mask requirement for public transit (including airlines) for 15 days as it monitors an uptick in COVID-19 cases. The order, which was set to expire on April 18, will continue until at least May 3 to allow more time to study the BA.2 omicron subvariant that is now responsible for the vast majority of cases in the US.
The Travel Industry Council of Ontario (TICO) has charged Human Logistics Inc. with one count of operating as a travel agent without being registered. Additionally, TICO has charged Aaron Mitchell with one count of operating as a travel agent without being registered, and one count of being an Officer and Director of a Corporation and failing to take reasonable care to prevent the Corporation from committing an offence, in this case, for operating without TICO registration. A court date will be held May 20.
For the ninth consecutive year, the German National Tourist Board has been certified as a Green Globe company for the year 2021/22. The GNTB thus defended its Gold status in the international Green Globe program.
BORDERS
Panama, which relies on outdoor experiences on its beaches and in heavily forested hills and mountains, has lifted mask requirements in outdoor spaces and open-air areas.
Canadians, along with other international visitors, to Jamaica are no longer required to present a negative result from a COVID-19 antigen or PCR test conducted within 72 hours prior to their travel to enter the island.
WAR
The US said it would halt exports to three Russian airlines as part of what officials described as an unprecedented enforcement action. The Commerce Department said the move would prevent the airlines – Russian national flag carrier Aeroflot, Utair and Azur Air – from receiving items from the US, including parts to service their aircraft.
Saying it is “deeply saddened” by the situation in Europe unleashed by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, IHG Hotels & Resorts is suspending all activity in the former for the “foreseeable future.” IHG has close to 30 properties in Russia.
RE-OPENING/RE-START
Holland America Line took honours as the first cruise line to return to Canada following a more than two-year industrywide pause due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. The Koningsdam called in Victoria, BC, on April 9 and continued on to end its seven-day cruise on Sunday at Port of Vancouver, its homeport for the summer Alaska season.
City Cruises Toronto launched its 2022 season in Toronto Harbour on the weekend, the second year the attraction has operated under its current moniker since being rebranded from Hornblower Cruises & Events by Mariposa Cruises in 2021. Options for the summer include brunch, lunch, and dinner cruises, as well as the 45-minute Toronto Sightseeing Harbour Cruise and the 90-minute Sights and Sips Cocktail Cruise.
BY THE NUMBERS
A new survey by Travelport says what we all know: people like to travel. The tech company’s revelation, however, is that 71% of survey respondents said they would forgo concerts to do so; similarly, 64% would stop buying new clothes, 63% would give up spa treatments, 60% would skip the cinema, 53% would give up playing sports, and 36% would stop dining at restaurants.
AIR
The virtual interlining service connectair by Air Transat has added three new European airline partners: Azores Airlines, Loganair and SKY Express, bringing the total number of destinations available to over 240. With this new offering, Canadian travellers can easily fly to several cities in England and Scotland, the Portuguese Azores islands, and Greece. The platform already enables Air Transat passengers to combine flights to numerous destinations in Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, Central and South America, as well as in Quebec, thanks to partnerships with easyJet, Vueling, Avianca and Pascan.
Air France says it is strengthening its services to Canada, with a 25% increase in capacity this summer compared to pre-crisis levels.
Transat operated its first flight between Toronto and Dublin (TS230) last week, after a two years of forced suspension due to the pandemic. The service will be offered five times a week at the height of the season. Until the end of October, the airline will operate these flights with its new-generation Airbus A321neoLR aircraft. The airline also returned to Amsterdam from Toronto on the weekend (Montreal starts May 5).
DEALS
Viva Wyndham Resorts is celebrating its 35th anniversary with a special offer for guests at its properties in the Caribbean and Mexico: for travel through July 31, rates start from US$72 p.p. with the fourth night and one kid free.
TOURS
Air Canada Vacations has announced a new streamlined travel agent shopping experience with Europe and Canada tours now available for booking in Softvoyage (SIREV, SABRE and GALILEO) under the same Tour Operator Link (VAC) as the Sun Products under the Tours section. The company will also offer travel agents a 2% bonus commission when booking their clients’ Europe Tours through GDS by May 15. Clients can also save $500 and earn up to 15,000 bonus Aeroplan points per couple.
Throughout Utah, the stories of Native Peoples are being highlighted in ways they haven’t before. More and more Indigenous-owned tour guides and outfitters are opening up shop in the state, many near the Navajo Nation in Southern Utah’s San Juan County. Visitors to Utah can hear the Native experience and cultural history through guides like Ancient Wayves River and Hiking Adventures or stay in Native-run lodging properties like Bluff Dwellings Resort. For a guide on how to include Native heritage into a Utah trip, click HERE.
HOTELS
LA’s new Hotel Ziggy embraces differences and challenges conformity as a place that encourages guests and locals to come hang out and “just be who you are.” The unpretentious design, influenced by grit and rock ‘n’ roll, features a modern counter-culture spin. Located next to Mondrian Los Angeles the hotel offers guests access to a Shred Shed that includes electric and acoustic guitars, amps, records, record players, Walkmans and backpacks to use while finding inspiration in LA or sharing creativity with others. All are welcome to borrow, experiment, and share in the “free the music” movement.
IHG Hotels & Resorts has officially opened the world’s first Atwell Suites property with the 90-room Atwell Suites Miami Brickell. The dual-branded hotel is in Miami’s bustling Brickell neighbourhood and situated on the top floors of the building shared with the Hotel Indigo Miami Brickell, which opened in March 2021. Atwell Suites is IHG Hotel & Resorts’ newest brand in the all-suites upper-midscale category, created to fill a growing need in the hospitality space for design and space that supports longer stays and easily transitions between business and leisure.
RESORTS
RIU Hotels and Resorts has opened a new 5-star hotel in Senegal, the company’s first in western Africa. The Riu Baobab, with 522 rooms, is located in Pointe Sarène on an impressive, vast white sand beach 100 km from Dakar and 48 km from the airport. The new complex is surrounded by spacious gardens that are home to 25 baobabs, Senegal’s national tree that has become a symbol of the country and inspired the hotel’s name.
On Duck Key in the Florida Keys, Hawks Cay Resort is using six robots to assist with patron service at its casual waterfront Angler & Ale marina restaurant. The robots support food and beverage team members by serving prepared meals and returning dishes to the kitchen, enabling the resort to put team members in guest-facing positions. The property also is using robots to vacuum and sweep guest corridors and event meeting spaces on a timed schedule, and to sanitize solid floor surfaces, dispensing a cleaning solution and wiping the floors. Hawks Cay is billed as the largest resort in the Florida Keys.
CRUISE
Pride of America is NCL’s 15th ship to return to service, sailing weekly seven-day, roundtrip voyages from Honolulu. The itinerary gives guests nearly 100 hours of port time and the ability to explore four islands in a week’s span. NCL has two remaining ships that will be returning to service, both in early May, which will complete the company’s “Great Cruise Comeback.”
Royal Caribbean International’s Icon of the Seas reached a construction milestone ahead of its fall 2023 debut. A keel-laying ceremony took place in Turku, Finland, earlier this month to mark the start of the ship’s physical construction. The keel laying, a longstanding maritime tradition, involved a 3,000-ton crane lifting a massive steel block that is placed into the new ship’s building dock and on top of freshly minted coins, which represent the shipyard and cruise line. The coins are meant to bring luck during construction, and they will be retrieved and given to Icon’s captain and crew before setting sail.
ATTRACTIONS & THEME PARKS
New Orleans’ newest attraction, Vue Orleans, is officially open and features the City’s first 360-degree view of the Mississippi River and the New Orleans landscape. Exhibits and interactive experiences also give visitors a robust view back in time, covering 300 years of history and the diverse people and groups that created the city’s unique culture. There are also music listening stations, the opportunity to virtually pilot a riverboat, and much more. The attraction is located at the foot of Canal Street in the newly renovated Four Seasons high-rise building.
FAMS & INCENTIVES
A group of travel advisors from The Travel Agent Next Door (TTAND) were hosted on a FAM to Ireland recently courtesy of Royal Irish Tours – the tour operator’s first excursion since the start of the pandemic. The group, accompanied by RIT sales manager Jonathan Sargeant, spent eight days in the Emerald Isle, visiting Belfast, Donegal, Galway, and Dublin. “Everywhere we went, we really did get the ‘Cead Mile Failte’ (the 100,000 welcomes) that Ireland is known for,” said Sargeant. “Everyone was so friendly and just delighted to see people back visiting from overseas.”
Adventure booking platform Tour Radar, which offers more than 50,000 multi-day organized adventures across the globe from 2,500-plus reputable and niche operators, announced it has launched a Partner Portal that allows Travel Advisors to search, compare, and book private, tailor-made, and group tours and adventures for clients while earning a competitive commission. Agents who register to use the platform will be entered to win a free trip for two to Egypt.
EVENTS
The new cruise line Margaritaville at Sea is touring 16 cities across North America to host “deep dive” in-person training sessions for travel agents, including a lunch event at the Marriott City Centre hotel in Toronto on May 24. For details and to register, click HERE.
PEOPLE/APPOINTMENTS
The WestJet Group announced the return of Bob Cummings to the airline’s executive leadership team as president of Swoop, WestJet’s ultra-low-cost carrier. Cummings begins his role today (April 18).
Flight Centre Travel Group has appointed Chad Godfrey as SVP, Marketing, Northern Hemisphere, effective May 1. Based in Boston, he will be responsible for all marketing efforts in the Northern Hemisphere for the company’s leisure brands including Flight Centre, Liberty Travel, and GOGO Vacations.
DESTINATIONS
Myrtle Beach and the communities along the 100 km of South Carolina coastline, which have been committed to creating an autism- and sensory-friendly destination since 2016, are making travel even more accessible with the launch of several new initiatives. The expanded efforts include a children’s book, an advisory panel led by experts, including those with direct experience, and a sensory-friendly pledge for local businesses.
A new campaign has been launched by Visit Lauderdale to celebrate and support the Greater Fort Lauderdale, Fla.’s diverse population and spread the message that inclusion and acceptance are embraced across the area’s 31 neighbourhoods. The “We Are” campaign includes video and social media as an extension of the destination’s “Everyone Under the Sun” campaign, which was created to welcome all populations and communities. “Visitors to Greater Fort Lauderdale can be assured they are in a place where diversity, inclusion and acceptance is actively championed as an established way of life that is fully ingrained throughout our community,” says Stacy Ritter, president and CEO of Visit Lauderdale.
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