Lynda Falcone is retiring after a remarkable 48 years in the travel business. Having served for the past 17 years as national travel trade manager for VisitBritain, Falcone plans to say cheerio in April (actual date TBA).
This week: Big news at Trevello; new ownership at the Stewart Travel Group; a new and familiar name at Travel Leaders Network; Ensemble kicked off its 2025 event schedule; and incentives from TravelBrands and Brand USA.
The Daytona Beach Area Convention & Visitors Bureau has engaged Toronto-based VoX International for Canadian representation, specifically to the assist the Florida destination with public relations, marketing and travel trade outreach across the country.
Intrepid Travel has acquired leading Dutch tour operator Sawadee Reizen from Travelopia in a landmark deal, signalling a major step into a new market and an ambition to grow its style of responsible small group travel in Europe.
Despite a last-minute reprieve (for 30 days at least), travel trade organizations on both sides of the border are condemning the prospects of tariffs (which were to take effect Feb. 4) by the US on Canadian goods, agreeing that the tax could impact the number of Canadian travellers south of the border and result in industry job losses in both countries.
Emergency crews deployed on the volcanic Greek island of Santorini on Monday after a spike in seismic activity raised concerns about a potentially powerful earthquake. Precautions were also ordered on several nearby Aegean Sea islands — all popular summer vacation destinations — after more than 200 undersea earthquakes were recorded in the area over the past three days.
Despites concerns about impacts on tourism, British Columbia is launching a registry for short-term rentals to further crack down on “speculators” operating illegally. Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon says the concerns over tourism are “overblown,” adding, “People still want to visit BC. People still want to live in BC.”
WestJet has begun to gear up for a major growth spurt this year, with a focus on in-country travel brought on by a low loonie and pinched pocketbooks. Flight volumes from the country’s second-largest airline will increase by 10 percent this summer compared to last, WestJet says.
French President Emmanuel Macron announced Tuesday that the “Mona Lisa” will get its own dedicated room inside the Louvre – the world’s most-visited museum – under a major renovation and expansion of the Paris landmark that will take up to a decade.
Visitors to Tokyo and Kyoto might not realize it, but Osaka – one of Japan’s biggest and oldest cities, known more as a business hub than a tourist destination – is gearing up to host this year’s World Exposition. The city has been plastered with the Expo’s red-and-blue “Myaku-Myaku” mascot for months and is abuzz with preparations.
Based on the highest ratings and best reviews from shared by a global community of millions of travellers over the past year, Tripadvisor has revealed its Travellers’ Choice Awards for 2025, celebrating the world’s top-rated destinations. And with a nod to its 25th anniversary this year, Tripadvisor has also added a category reflecting its top destinations of the last 25 years, based on all-time reviews since inception.
The airspace around Washington, D.C., is congested and complex – a combination aviation experts have long worried could lead to catastrophe. Those fears materialized last Wednesday night when an American Airlines plane collided with a military helicopter in a crash that has been called “stunningly preventable.”
The rare unfurling of an endangered plant that emits the smell of decaying flesh recently drew hundreds of devoted fans to a greenhouse in Sydney, Australia, where they joined three-hour lines to experience a momentous bloom – and a fragrance evoking gym socks and rotting garbage.
An aircraft developed by Boom Supersonic has become the first independently funded jet to break the sound barrier. The XB-1 aircraft accelerated to Mach 1.05 at about 35,000 feet during a test flight on Jan. 29 in the same Mojave Desert airspace in California where Charles “Chuck” Yeager was the first person to break the sound barrier in 1947.
Sunwing is doubling down on is extensive Cuba portfolio by introducing a three-tier system and dedicated resource on its agent portal designed to assist travel advisors in pairing clients with the right vacation experience for them in the Caribbean destination. Separately, the tour operator has also released its 12th annual Weddings Guide, another agent-friendly tool.
News nuggets, airlines, hotels/resorts, cruising, tours, events, FAMS/incentives, deals, destinations and more are covered in our weekly round-up of travel industry news you may have missed.
The deadly mid-air crash in Washington, DC, Wednesday night is likely the result of unique air traffic patterns in the area and shouldn’t cause wider fears over air safety, says a Canadian aviation expert.
From Paddington Bear to Harry Potter and James Bond to Mr. Bean, Great Britain has a long history of marketing the destination through TV and film. Indeed, Britain is never far from viewers around the world through an endless list of cinematic mainstays that are uniquely British, such as Downton Abbey, Bridgerton, Dr. Who, Mary Poppins, and Sherlock Holmes – not to mention productions that simply borrow Britain as a backdrop, like Jurassic Park and Game of Thrones/House of Dragons.
After half a century in limbo, the federal government says it will scrap plans to build an airport on thousands of acres in Pickering, Ont., and instead look to transfer the land to Parks Canada.
Despite Donald Trump’s executive order that the name of North America’s tallest peak – Denali – revert to Mount McKinley, many Alaskans say the US president can change the name but can’t make them call it that. Prominent Alaskan Jeff King, a four-time winner of the 1,000-mile (1,609-km) Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, operates his
Online travel agency, FlightHub has launched its AI-powered travel agent, ‘Mila.’ Apparently designed to simplify travel inquiries and enhance customer service efficiency, the company says Mila ‘marks a transformative leap in the travel booking experience while maintaining high standards of data privacy and protection.
Charles Darwin was so inspired by the Galapagos Islands that he came up with his theories of evolution and natural selection there. No visitor to the archipelago arriving after the British naturalist in 1834 has made such a significant mark in the history of human thinking… but most, no doubt, have been equally awed.
No-frills, budget airlines often lead the industry in customer complaints, according to government data, so if one were to disappear would it be missed by travellers? That is a question US regulators will be asking after Frontier Airlines said Wednesday that it wanted to buy Spirit Airlines, which sought bankruptcy protection late last year.
Reservations for Azamara Cruises’ 2027 World Cruise are now open, with the journey set to be the small-ship, destination-immersive cruise line’s longest yet. The 188-night journey aboard the Azamara Quest will encompass 37 countries, 103 destinations, and five continents.
A new study shows how important Churchill is to Manitoba’s tourism industry as visitors from around the globe flock to the northern town and spend tens of millions of dollars. According to the study, roughly 25,000 people visited Churchill in 2023, “many of them from international markets such as the US, UK, and Australia.
Four Seasons gets will get a charge out of this: the luxury hotel chain, in partnership with electric car manufacturer Lucid, is introducing an amenity program that will allow guests to borrow a vehicle for their own use for free (at participating properties). The initiative is designed to provide hotel guests with flexibility and unique, eco-friendly experiences during their stay.
Celebrity Cruises is aiming to shake up European river cruising with a plan to build 10 new ships with Edge Class features and service “The Celebrity Way.” Celebrity River Cruises announced it will open bookings soon for cruises due to start in Europe in 2027, with bookings opening later this year.
New Zealand has relaxed visa requirements for remote workers in a bid to attract more ‘digital nomads’ skilled workers who given an internet connection can work from anywhere on the planet.
Expedia’s new 2025 Air Hacks Report is debunking myths. For example, ‘Summer is an expensive time to travel’. Nah … turns out July, a peak summer travel time, is the cheapest month to travel. Average air ticket prices are up to 11 percent cheaper in July than March when booking a trip from a Canadian origin airport.
Honeymoon in Hawaii? Hold on. And maybe reconsider the Caribbean. Tourism Malaysia says the southeastern Asian destination is a picture-perfect destination for newlyweds that offers an enticing mix of white sandy beaches, lively nightlife, exquisite cuisine, and breathtaking sunrises and sunsets.