To the beat of KC and the Sunshine Band’s 1975 hit “Boogie Shoes,” Avalon Waterways christened its 15th Suite Ship in Pinhão, Portugal, late last week with actress Cheri Oteri (‘Saturday Night Live’) doing the honours and serving as Godmother.
Bands who play the thumping tuba-and-drums songs of northern Mexico on beaches in the resort city of Mazatlan appear to have emerged victorious after noise complaints from foreign tourists who like to observe the resort’s sunsets in peace – or with a bit of soft music – had threatened to silence them.
Pack your earplugs. Trillions of evolution’s bizarro wonders, red-eyed periodical cicadas that have pumps in their heads and jet-like muscles in their rears, are about to emerge in numbers in part of the United State not seen in decades and possibly centuries.
Upstart airline BermudAir, which began flying to the US from Bermuda last September, has announced it will add Toronto and Halifax to its growing list of gateways (now seven) starting in May. Starting May 17, the airline will begin operations between Bermuda’s L.F. Wade International Airport (BDA) and Toronto Pearson (Tues-Fri-Sunday), with flights to Halifax Stanfield (Sat.) commencing on May 25.
United Airlines is asking its pilots to take time off in May because of delays in receiving new planes that the airline ordered from Boeing, which is struggling with production due to manufacturing problems.
In move that will benefit millions of travellers annually, Romania and Bulgaria partially joined Europe’s ID-check-free travel zone on Sunday, marking a new step in the two countries’ integration with the European Union.
Is it the most queried question in travel? “Do they have pickleball?” With this in mind, the Antigua and Barbuda has served up a list of places in the twin Caribbean island nation where visitors can grab a paddle and have a “slamming good time with the warm sun shining down and the gentle Caribbean breeze on your face.”
For the Paris Olympics, it could almost be a new sport: Score points by hunting down mosaics that a mystery artist who calls himself “Invader” has cemented to walls across France’s capital, the world, and even had carried aloft to the International Space Station.
Niagara Falls is bracing for its largest influx of tourists in its history with more than a million people expected to flock to the city for next week’s total solar eclipse. A state of emergency has already been declared for Niagara Region on April 8, though Niagara Falls’ mayor is urging visitors to prepare for, not avoid, the spectacle.
American Airlines is relaxing part of its pet policy to let owners bring their companion and a full-size carry-on bag into the cabin. Until last week, people who carried a pet into the cabin – which involves paying a $150 fee – could only have one other small item that fit under the seat.
Dubai welcomed more tourists than ever before in 2023, attracting 17.15 million international overnight visitors. And they weren’t all rich and famous – a perception that Visit Dubai is eager to dispel, urging the trade to consider that “If you think you know Dubai, think again!”
Michelangelo’s David has been a towering figure in Italian culture since its completion in 1504. But in the current era of the quick buck, curators worry the marble statue’s religious and political significance is being diminished by the thousands of refrigerator magnets and other souvenirs sold around Florence focusing on David’s genitalia.
As the aviation industry grapples with a shortage of pilots, United has opened a new, 14,000-sq.-m. building at its Flight Training Center in Denver – already the largest facility of its kind in the world – that has the potential to trains 240 more aviators per day. The new building gives the airline the capability to add 12 more advanced full-motion flight simulators to the facility, six of which have already been delivered.
A short week due to Easter, but plenty of news nonetheless, including a major purchase by Amex GBT; a much-anticipated Sandals opening; a TICO reminder; promising Air Canada and Toronto Pearson passenger barometers; a Viking float-out; and a big reveal from G Adventures/Planeterra.
For the past 11 years, Kathy Sudeikis has planned a yearly family reunion. Called “Nanapalooza,” the tradition began as a way to bring her six siblings and their families – including “Ted Lasso” star Jason Sudeikis – together to honour the memory of their mother.
A pair of the iconic ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland in “The Wizard of Oz” will soon be embarking on an improbable global exhibition tour following their own yellow break road to Los Angeles, New York, London, and Tokyo. (Stay tuned for dates, Ozzies). The tour follows the unexpected return of the iconic shoes to their owner, nearly 20 years after they were stolen from a museum in the late actor’s hometown.
Sandals Saint Vincent and the Grenadines opened its doors Wednesday, welcoming its first guests to a nature-forward resorts brimming with island inspiration and stirring ‘Sandals Firsts.’ The opening marks Sandals Resorts’ long-awaited introduction to the largely undiscovered Eastern Caribbean destination.
More than half of travellers surveyed by Virtuoso say global developments in 2023 have encouraged them to travel more responsibly, citing geopolitical conflicts, overtourism, and the effects of climate change, such as natural disasters, pollution, and rising temperatures.
Citing strong financial results– including record annual revenue – Air Canada issued its 2023 Annual Report highlighting the carrier’s achievements for the year, including progress made on several key strategic initiatives.
Viking “floated out” its newest ship for the Nile River – the 82-guest Viking Hathor— late last week, marking a major construction milestone and the first time the ship has touched water. Set to debut in August, the Viking Hathor will join the company’s growing fleet of state-of-the-art ships for the Nile River and will sail Viking’s popular 12-day ‘Pharaohs & Pyramids’ itinerary.
In this week’s retail round-up, Direct Travel agents are “pulling off the impossible,” while TRAVELSAVERS and Virtuoso are welcoming new team members; plus, a couple of countries have specialist news.
During the pandemic, the Ontario government implemented several measures to help reduce the burden on Ontario’s registered travel agencies and tour operators and to assist certain travellers impacted by the pandemic. While some of the changes were permanent, others were time limited. Now, TICO is reminding that the final two temporary amendments are set to expire this year, beginning next week.
Passengers at busy Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas can test self-screening at customs – a new system that US federal airport security officials are calling “a step into the future.”
France’s capital resurrected a 110-year-old race for its servers Sunday. The dash through central Paris celebrated the dexterous and, yes, by their own admission, sometimes famously moody men and women without whom France wouldn’t be France.
Italy followed France on Monday in stepping up security following the attack on a suburban Moscow concert hall and the claim of responsibility by an affiliate of the Islamic State group.
American Express Global Business Travel (Amex GBT) is buying CWT. Subject to customary conditions, the “definitive agreement” between the two business travel giants is valued at approximately US$570 million, with a closing date expected in the second half of the year.
G Adventures and its non-profit partner, Planeterra, have confirmed that the second annual GX Community Tourism Summit will be held in India this fall. The destination has been a closely guarded secret by G since the inaugural event in Cusco, Peru in 2023.
By the simplest measurement, the answer to that question is ‘no’ but you would never know that by reading about the torrent of flight problems in the last three months. The last deadly crash involving a North American airliner (Colgan Air, which operated for Continental Express, United Express and US Air Express) occurred in February 2009 – 15 years ago – an unprecedented streak of safety, especially given there were 9.6 million flights in the US alone last year.
US Federal regulators are increasing their oversight of United Airlines following a series of recent issues including a piece of the outer fuselage falling off one jet, an engine fire and a plane losing a tire during takeoff.
Two crew members on a Holland America cruise ship died during an “incident” in the ship’s engineering space, the cruise line said. The unidentified crew members died Friday while the Florida-based Nieuw Amsterdam was at Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas, Holland America said in a statement.