TRAVELSAVERS has partnered with Trees4Travel and there were some very exclusive accolades for several Canadian cruise agents from Direct Travel in this week’s Retail Round-up.

The Italian tourism ministry thought it had a sure-fire way to bring travellers into the country: turning a 15th century art icon into a 21st century “virtual influencer.” But the ad campaign has faced significant backlash – with critics calling it a “new Barbie” that trashes Italy’s cultural heritage.

Heat-related closures notwithstanding, tourists are waiting more than two hours to visit the Acropolis in Athens. Taxi lines at Rome’s main train station are running just as long. And so many visitors are concentrating around St. Mark’s Square in Venice that crowds get backed up crossing bridges – even on weekdays.

The Association of Canadian Independent Travel Advisors (ACITA) is urging independent travel advisors to check their CRA accounts to see if their federal support payments during the pandemic have been recalled.

Canadians can claim the world’s 7th-most valuable passport – up from 8th last year – according to the respected Henley Passport Index, which ranks the world’s 199 passports according to the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa. Singapore took top spot in the ranking in a major poll shakeup as Japan placed third after reigning for five straight years.

ACTA is adding two additional experiential learning opportunities for travel advisors in 2023. Trips to the Dominican Republic (Aug 15-21) and Alentejo, Portugal (Nov. 13-19), join the sold-out ACTA – Avalon Waterways European River Cruise Summit taking place in October.

Visitors to Las Vegas this week stepped out momentarily to snap photos and were hit by blast-furnace air. But most will spend their vacations in a vastly different climate – at casinos where the chilly air conditioning might require a light sweater.

As ACTA tackles the industry-wide labour shortage, amongst several issues that are currently bedeviling retail travel in this country, ACTA’s president says the issue comes as no surprise.

Travellers arriving or departing the UK via London Gatwick – notably Canadian passengers on WestJet and British Airways – face potential disruptions to their flight plans later this month and in early August after almost 1,000 workers at the airport voted to strike in a dispute over pay.

Despite its forbidding name, and extreme temperatures, tourists are flocking to Death Valley National Park, the infamous desert landscape on the California-Nevada border.

Though it is universally agreed that business is booming, the Canadian travel industry certainly still has its share of woes at the moment – though for one shining day in Milton, Ont., the rain clouds parted and the sun beamed down for close to 200 enthusiastic participants in ACTA’s 34th annual summer golf tournament.

As tourists in central Athens huddled under mist machines, disgruntled visitors bemoaned the temporary closing of the Acropolis in Athens on the weekend as Greek authorities proactively shut the world monument’s gates between midday and early evening amid a heat wave that continues to grip southern Europe.

As if last week’s rail strike wasn’t enough, hundreds of flights across Italy were cancelled on the weekend, forcing travellers at the peak of tourist season – and in the middle of a heat wave – to make alternate plans, after air transport unions went ahead with a planned work stoppage.

In last week’s news, ACTA rallied support for federal government financial relief, the Canada-US border was declared to be in “disarray,” the world’s biggest cruise ship completed sea trials, Lynx announced a new destination, and The Bahamas celebrated a major milestone.

Members of Unifor Local 114 working at the ‘Victoria Clipper’ are warning that the pace of bargaining for their next contract suggests that the Victoria-Seattle fast ferry service could be disrupted before the end of the summer.

For young Canadians hoping to take a trip on a budget, there’s a new challenge on the horizon beyond finding a way to fit all of one’s necessities into a backpack: the lingering effects of high inflation. According to StudentUniverse, a student and youth-focused travel agency, the top concern for young people who wish to travel is the financial cost. However, with the right approach and mindset, spending a few months in Europe may not be as far out of reach as it seems.

Is there really a new way to look at The Beatles, one of the most filmed and photographed bands in history? Yes, says Britain’s National Portrait Gallery, which is providing a fresh perspective with an exhibition of band’s-eye-view images that Paul McCartney captured as the group shot to global fame.