The travel industry is welcoming what it calls the federal government’s “long overdue” move to lift a global advisory asking Canadians to avoid non-essential travel outside the country. But disappointment continues that cruising, according to the feds, is still taboo.
The global travel advisory was put in place in March 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic spread around the world, but the government of Canada’s website now shows that advisory is no longer in place, though it continues to list individual advisories for destination countries, as it did prior to the pandemic.
It also urges Canadians to ensure they are fully vaccinated against the novel coronavirus before travelling abroad, and to stay informed of the COVID-19 situation at their destination.
ACTA was quick to welcome the global news but Wendy Paradis, President of ACTA called for the cruise warning to be lifted as well. She also says mandatory PCR testing for arrivals remains a “significant barrier to travellers” and has to go.
“We are pleased the government has returned to a risk-based approach to travel advisories for fully-vaccinated travellers,” she said. “This approach follows the recommendations ACTA and Canadian Travel and Tourism Roundtable partners have been making to government officials and ministers for many months now.
“The lifting of the global travel advisory is a significant win for travellers, travel agents and the entire Canadian travel industry. However, it is disappointing that the blanket advisory against all cruise ship travel remains for fully vaccinated travellers. Cruise line operators have proven that safe cruise travel is feasible.”
But one step at a time.
“You cannot believe how welcome this move is for us… (and) for all the travel agents whose livelihoods depend on selling international travel. Canada has been world-leading in terms of having our citizens vaccinated, and now we can be world-leading in encouraging people to start travelling again, and to safely support communities around the world that have been devastated by the lack of tourism these past 18 months,” said Bruce Poon Tip, founder of Toronto-based G Adventures.
“It’s very late, as far as I’m concerned, given what’s going in the rest of the world. But very welcome, that’s for sure,” he added.
He said his own company has been forced to lay off 1,000 people – more than half of its workforce worldwide – due to the collapse in travel demand. “It’s been a tough time, making those kinds of decisions. The toughest decisions I’ve had to make in 30 years,” he said.
However, Poon Tip said he’s noticed a significant uptick in travel demand from Canadians in the last couple of months, something he attributes to the growing confidence in the wake of the rollout of COVID-19 vaccinations. “We’ve hired 30 people in the last couple of months just to answer inquiries, and we’re continually hiring again, which is a great feeling,” he said.
Canada opened its borders last month to non-essential international travellers who have received both doses of a Health Canada-approved COVID-19 vaccine, and to fully vaccinated travellers from the United States in August. The US government recently announced that its land borders will reopen to non-essential Canadian travellers on Nov. 8.
Vaccine passport
The move to lift the advisory comes as the federal government announced it had reached an agreement with the provinces on a new national vaccine passport for domestic and international travel.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Thursday that provinces and territories have agreed to adjust their own vaccine passports to give them the same look, feel and security measures based on the international standard for so-called smart health cards.
Several have already started distributing proof-of-vaccination documents, including Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Quebec, Ontario, Nunavut, Saskatchewan, Northwest Territories and Yukon.
The Canadian Travel and Tourism Roundtable, a cross-Canadian coalition of leaders in the tourism and travel sector – including representatives from airports, airlines, hotels, and chambers of commerce across the country, was quick to approve of the vaccine passport news.
“(This) announcement,” it said in a release, “is a critical step forward in establishing vaccine certificate interoperability between Canada and international destinations, and certainty for the travel and tourism industry.
“Canadians, domestic travellers, and international visitors alike require consistency regarding where they can go, what they can do, and the required documentation they need to participate in public activities. One clear system will help to facilitate travel and border openings around the world.”