Registration is now open for Sandals’ annual 2025 Masterclass training series. Designed exclusively for the Canadian market by Unique Vacations Canada, the sessions will feature both in-person sessions across the country and online events, led by national training manager Lorna Richards.
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.
Operations at Pearson airport in Toronto Thursday morning were disrupted after a 30-year-old man was shot dead by police outside Terminal 1. Police described the event as an isolated incident and said there was no known threat to the public, nor was the airport itself the target. There were no other injuries.
The White House said this week that there have been “successes” at the Canada-U.S. border with only 54 people apprehended last month in the Swanton Sector of the northern border – which includes areas of New Hampshire, Vermont and New York – a 95% drop since March 2024.
India and Pakistan cancelled visas for their nationals to each other’s countries and India closed the only functional land border crossing between the countries in the latest retaliatory moves following the killing of 26 people, including 24 Indian tourists, in an attack by gunmen in disputed Kashmir, which India blamed on Pakistan.
A free room upgrade is the jackpot of hotel stays; with this in mind, Casino.org has sought out the “luckiest” hotel chains for guests to score the coveted bump. To that end, the company analyzed reviews of 40,000-plus properties across the 15 largest hotel chains in the US and Canada.
By Michael Baginski/ Despite cross-border travel woes, the sky is far from falling for travel, according to a panel of top agents at Virtuoso’s recent ‘On the Road’ event in Toronto. Indeed, the biggest takeaway from the session was that travellers are mostly going to travel no matter what, though in the current circumstances, that may simply mean changing destinations – and how agents get them there may require some flexibility and finesse.
Air Canada has been ordered to pay passengers more than $10 million in damages by the Quebec Court of appeal in a class-action lawsuit that alleged they were charged more than the ticket price advertised – more than 15 years ago.
ACTA has opened nominations for its the 2025 ACTA Awards – six awards that recognize travel agency leaders and travel advisor nominees across a variety of categories. “The ACTA awards promote excellence in our industry and are a chance to nominate those who deserve recognition,” says Wendy Paradis, ACTA president.
VoX International Inc. has been named Canadian representation for Experience Turks & Caicos Islands (TCI), the official destination marketing and management organization (DMMO) for the Caribbean islands.
AmaWaterways christened its newest luxury river cruise ship, AmaSintra, which set off on its inaugural voyage along the Douro River in Portugal. The launch of the vessel further strengthens AmaWaterways’ presence in Europe and bring to three, along with sister ships AmaDouro and AmaVida, the company’s number of ships in the top trending destination.
Coinciding with Earth Day (April 22), Sandals Resorts International (SRI), unveiled its Corporate Social Responsibility Report, offering a sweeping look at the company’s ongoing promise to protect and uplift the Caribbean – “the place it calls home.” Titled ‘Love Exceeds Expectations,’ the report showcases more than 40 years of impact, innovation, and stewardship across education, community, and the environment.
A coalition of North American tourism associations committed to open borders is calling for “innovative solutions and unified action” to protect and promote the “pivotal” role of travel during the current “unprecedented” bilateral crisis between Canada and the U.S.
Canadian travellers (53%) are now conscious of travel’s impact on communities as well as the environment, and two thirds (66%) now want to leave places better than when they arrived, according to a new survey by Booking.com.
WestJet has announced a major expansion of its domestic network with new non-stop service between Halifax and St. John’s and three western Canadian cities for summer 2025 – all boosting domestic travel options as well as connections to transatlantic services from the eastern seaboard.
This week: The Travel Agent Next Door has Flex Pay options for its advisors/clients; Globus family of brands is feeling ‘social’; a booking contest from Explore Worldwide (win a trip!); and loyalty program enhancements from Palladium Hotel Group.
Effective today (April 23), Ritushri Dhankher officially begins her role as National Travel Trade & Aviation Manager – Canada for VisitBritain, based in Toronto. She replaces the retiring Lynda Falcone. Well known for her tenure as a member of the VisitBritain team in Canada, Dhankher’s promotion adds the aviation portfolio to the title.
Turkey has begun a new phase in sweeping restorations of the nearly 1,500-year-old Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, focusing on preserving the monument’s historic domes from the threat of earthquakes. Officials say the project will include reinforcing Hagia Sophia’s main dome and half domes, but will remain accessible to visitors during the work.
By Michael Baginski/ With tariffs, sovereignty threats, and fears over border privacy/security, the number of Canadians currently choosing to travel to the U.S. is clearly waning (by how much depends on the source, and mode of travel, i.e. air vs. car), however, one thing is certain according to a panel of top travel agents at a recent Virtuoso gathering in Toronto: travel advisors would be best advised to be like Switzerland and remain politically neutral on the matter when it comes to clients.
Jack Gurevitch is a Montreal Canadiens superfan and a proud Canadian who’s upset by United States President Donald Trump’s tariffs and threats to annex Canada, but he says he won’t let the political situation influence whether he travels to U.S. cities to support his team in the playoffs. Not everyone in his family agrees.
G Adventures has launched a new Rail Collection, featuring both popular and lesser-known routes across the globe. The collection of 60 trips across 20 countries celebrates the belief that “the journey is just as enriching as the destination, and offers so much more than just getting from A to B.”
The Ontario government is investing up to $50 million over three years to update and expand the McMichael Canadian Art Collection (McMichael) facility and grounds in Kleinburg, Ont. (just north of Toronto). The capital funding is dedicated to preserving one of the country’s largest collections of Canadian – including Group of Seven – and Indigenous art for future generations.
A federal judge on Friday partially blocked the Trump administration from enacting a policy that bans the use of “X” marker used by many nonbinary people on passports as well as the changing of gender markers.
Canadians need to “keep the pressure up” on the United States by buying local and avoiding travel there, despite a recent push from California to draw visitors from Canada, British Columbia’s premier says.
A 24-year-old American YouTuber (sigh) was arrested and detained in custody after visiting an off-limits island in the Indian Ocean with hopes of establishing contact with a reclusive tribe known for killing trespassers. He further left a can of Diet Coke and a coconut as offering for the tribe, which he ultimately failed to meet.
Venice began charging day-trippers to the famed canal city an arrivals tax for the second year on the weekend, a measure to combat the overtourism that officials say is putting the city’s UNESCO World Cultural Heritage status at risk. But opponents of the day-tripper fee say it has done nothing to discourage visits. Here’s a look at Venice’s battle with overtourism by the numbers.
ACTA is adding another experiential learning opportunity and has partnered with the Jamaica Tourist Board, Air Canada and Sandals Resorts to offer an Immersive Destination Experience to Sandals Dunns River Jamaica from Aug. 23 to 27.
Travel industry veteran Pat Brady has started a new position as Director, Commercial Operations with Sunwing Vacation Group. Brady left Transat after 30 years last November, having spent the past 10 years as national director of sales at Transat Tours Canada.
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.
Canadians got a break on inflation in March as gas prices fell and a slowdown in travel to the United States helped cool airfare costs, Statistics Canada said Tuesday. The annual rate of inflation slowed to 2.3% last month, down from 2.6% in February. Travel costs in the U.S. also declined.