CHANGING THE RULES: What you need to know about the UK’s new ETA
- Starting Nov. 27, Canadians can apply in advance for the United Kingdom’s new Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) form, which will be required by all Canadians entering the UK effective Jan. 8, 2025. Here is everything you need to know.
THE ‘ROB AND RYAN EFFECT’: Stars help Wrexham hit the tourism jackpot
- In Wrexham, the ‘Rob and Ryan effect’ goes beyond the soccer club the Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney bought and revived, as tourism and investments grow in the small Welsh city, which has rapidly become one of Britain’s most unlikely tourist hot spots.
VISITBRITAIN RELAUNCHES SPECIALIST PROGRAM
- VisitBritain has relaunched its travel advisor training program, BritAgent PRO Sales Companion, now with enhanced mobile sales enablement through TravPRO Mobile. The revamped program provides travel advisors with resources to effectively promote destinations across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
GAME ON: Britain’s West Midlands builds on Commonwealth legacy in Canada
- With the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games firmly in the rearview mirror, Britain’s West Midlands region is still building on the legacy of the Games with new tourism product and itineraries, not least when it comes to leisure tourism, which has typically lagged behind business tourism in the region.
LONDON SHEEP DRIVE CELEBRATES ECCENTRIC HISTORIC TRADITION
- More than 1,000 freemen, many wearing black hats and red cloaks, and including actor Damian Lewis, drove a flock of sheep across the River Thames this week in the annual London Sheep Drive – an homage to a centuries-old tradition.
THE IN AND OUT CLUB: Posh Piccadilly hotel to revive historic London site
- Cambridge House, the former In and Out Military Club, in Mayfair, London, will be managed by Auberge Resorts Collection, an award-winning portfolio of one-of-a-kind luxury hotels, resorts and residences when the historic property at 94 Piccadilly opens next year in the British capital.
HEATHROW EXPRESS OFFERS B2B BOOKINGS
- London’s Heathrow Express has launched an online booking platform, designed specifically for B2B partners. The platform offers tour operators, travel advisors and DMCs a streamlined method to book Heathrow Express tickets at a corporate rate. They now have the opportunity to offer Heathrow Express tickets as an additional option for their customers, enhancing their travel packages with the added benefit of incentives.
STONEHENGE TUNNEL KICKED DOWN THE ROAD, AGAIN
- Britain’s new Labour government has axed a construction project on a controversial traffic tunnel bypass near Stonehenge as part of austerity measures resulting from what it called an unexpected 22-billion-pound shortfall in the public finances.
WALES, JUST FOR KICKS: Wrexham FC shines spotlight in Canada
- Wales is in the spotlight this week in Canada as Wrexham FC arrives to play the Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday (July 27). The team, co-owned by Vancouver-born actor Ryan Reynolds, and featured in the documentary series ‘Welcome to Wrexham,’ has become a global phenomenon as the team channels its Hollywood ownership with success on the field, rising from non-league football/soccer to Britain’s League One in just a couple of years.
ROLLING OUT ON A MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR
- “Liverpool is the place that changed the face of music forever,” declared tour guide Jay as we rolled out on The Beatles-inspired Magical Mystery Tour to discover where the world’s most famous rock band first found fame. Boarding the technicolour tour bus at the city’s Albert Dock, a drumbeat signified the start of the two-hour tour and instantly put everyone into a Fab Four frame of mind.
PALACE INTRIGUE: Summer opening features a first at Buckingham
- Buckingham Palace’s summer opening of its state rooms has now begun, this year featuring the East Wing opens for the first time. The East Wing encompasses the famous façade of the London Palace and features the iconic central balcony, where the Monarch and members of the Royal Family have gathered for public appearances since 1851, most recently for Trooping the Colour in June.
A ‘TURNING POINT’ FOR SCOTTISH TOURISM
- New figures show that Scotland experienced a record-breaking influx of international visitors in 2023, welcoming 3.9 million tourists, marking a 15% increase from 2019. The 2023 International Passenger Survey by the Office of National Statistics showed a significant 23% increase from 2022, which saw 3.2 million visitors, and the previous record was set in 2018 with 3.7 million visitors.
FULL STEAM AHEAD: Train tour a great day trip from London
- Britain’s Steam Dreams Rail Co., which provides unique English countryside tours from London Victoria on a classic steam train, has launched its summer season and will continue with a limited series of weekly departures departing twice daily every Tuesday through Aug. 20.
LONDON OLYMPIA: Iconic venue transforming into new cultural-entertainment hub
- Olympia, London’s famed events venue – and original home of World Travel Market starting in 1980 – is putting on a new face. The nearly 140-year-old exhibition hall in West Kensington neighbourhood is being redeveloped into the in British capital’s newest cultural and entertainment destination and what is being called a “global landmark.”
THE MAGIC MILLION: Canadian visits to Britain top million mark for first time
- More Canadians are visiting Britain – and spending – than ever before, according to the latest official statistics highlighted by Britain’s national tourism agency, VisitBritain. Canada’s appetite for travel to Britain is surging with more than 1 million Canadian (1,003,000) visits in 2023, up 12% over 2022 and an increase of 15% since 2019, the year before the pandemic.
OUT IN IS IN: A trade guide for Scotland’s adventurous side
- With outdoor adventure and escaping the hustle and bustle of day-to-day life remaining a top reason to travel, Visit Scotland says there’s never been a better time for travel advisors to get clients thinking about Scotland – a country with “endless options” for being active.
HELLO DOLLIES: Windsor Castle celebrates centenary world famous doll house
- Throughout 2024, Britian’s Royal Collection Trust will celebrate the 100th anniversary of Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House at Windsor Castle, the largest and most famous dolls’ house in the world. Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House was built between 1921 and 1924 as a gift from the nation to Queen Mary following the First World War.
SCOTLAND TAPS GAELIC INTEREST FOR NEW TOURISM STRATEGY
- A new tourism strategy aimed at delivering authentic and memorable visitor experiences by celebrating Gaelic culture, heritage and language has been launched in Scotland. The new plan highlights an increasing interest in the Gaelic language and culture from both domestic and international visitors.
BEHIND THE WAX: Who’s hot at Madame Tussauds
- It’s a long way from Queen Victoria to Doja Cat (a rapper), but Madame Tussauds is pulling back the curtain to provide a glimpse into the research process that may culminate in the iconic attractions’ next wax models.
A RESPONSIBLE PARTNERSHIP
- VisitScotland has launched an innovative new partnership The Travel Corporation (TTC) and the Travel Foundation designed to inspire and support climate action within Scotland’s tourism industry and drive change with businesses, visitors, and destinations.