News

Record-breaking heat waves in 2024 – including three of the hottest days on record globally, according to NASA – are fueling the rise “cool-cations” – trips to cooler, climate-resilient destinations during off-peak seasons that offer relief from extreme weather and crowded hotspots – amongst Canadians this year, according to Flight Centre Canada (FCC).

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.

A spike in deadly gang violence prompted Trinidad and Tobago to implement a country-wide state of emergency last week. The declaration followed a weekend marred by a spate of gang-related violence that resulted in multiple deaths, including five men believed to be victims of reprisal shootings.

TTC Tour Brands, which includes Trafalgar, Brendan Vacations, Costsaver, Contiki, Insight Vacations and Luxury Gold has made a list, checked it twice, and revealed its top trending destinations for 2025 based on recent booking behaviour by Canadian clients.

Florida condominium owners are looking at higher costs from condo associations in the new year, a consequence of a safety law passed by state lawmakers in 2022. It requires associations to have sufficient reserves to cover major repairs and to conduct a survey of reserves every decade.

A team of US investigators including representatives from Boeing on Tuesday examined the site of a plane crash that killed 179 people in South Korea while authorities were conducting safety inspections on all Boeing 737-800 aircraft operated by the country’s airlines. The country’s worst aviation disaster in decades triggered an outpouring of national sympathy and a seven-day national mourning has been declared until Jan. 4.

From exploring Norway’s pristine fjords to venturing deep into the Amazon and to discovering the cultural heritage of Northern Morocco, Abercrombie & Kent (A&K) has curated a list of seven destinations that promise “a fresh perspective on beloved destinations” for travellers in 2025.

It’s been quite a year – exhausting may be the best word to describe it.  The heat is on as the world gets hotter – in more ways than one.  So, here’s a look at some of what we saw in 2024 and what we can perhaps hope for in 2025.

Safety and security are understandably more important than ever when it comes to finding a safe place to live, work, or travel. 2024, The Global Peace Index 2024 ranks 163 countries based on their levels of peacefulness. They evaluate factors such as societal safety and security, ongoing domestic and international conflict, and the degree of militarization.

It’s been a long year in travel – strikes and almost strikes; the weather (oi, the weather! – too hot, too cold, too wet, too dry, too windy!); wars; inflation; bankruptcies; planes (or at least parts of them at any rate) literally falling out of the sky; dynamic pricing (remember that word); Donald Trump; and, as Bill Murray opined in ‘Ghost Busters’ of the end of days, “cats and dogs living together!” It’s enough to give one… brain rot.

Dog lovers rejoice: The US The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has released its annual downloadable 2025 TSA Canine Calendar, a tradition that honours the agency’s more than 1,000 explosives detection canines working across the country.

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.

Here’s wishing all our readers and industry friends and partners a happy holiday season – and some well-deserved rest after another typically tumultuous (but rewarding) year. We’ll still be packing up our boxes on Friday, but will return Monday, Dec. 30. Until then (and even afterwards), all the best to you and yours!

Earlier this month, the Air Canada Foundation was the presenting partner of Welcome Hall Mission’s event, Noël pour tous. Under the theme “Travel to Santa’s Kingdom presented by the Air Canada Foundation,” 2,000 underprivileged children navigated a travel-themed maze, boarding pass in hand, to find Santa Claus’ chalet and receive a Christmas gift.

As Rome begins a historic Holy Year today – kick-starting dizzying 12-month calendar of events that is projected to attract 32 million pilgrims in 2025– the Eternal City is readying for an increase in congestion that even Dante couldn’t have imagined when he was already calling the Jubilee throng of pilgrims his “inferno” in the 1300s.