A recent West Group team-building workshop marked the official integration of WestJet Vacations trade sales team members with the existing Sunwing Vacations. Travel advisors will continue working with their established contacts at both brands, which will maintain their distinct identities and product offerings.
Goway Travel has officially concluded its first-ever Micro Film Festival, celebrating the creative power of short-form storytelling. Launched earlier this year in celebration of Goway’s 55th anniversary, the festival invited travellers, travel advisors, and professional creators to share their globetrotting journeys in a compelling 55-second film.
Fall in the Florida Keys & Key West is an ideal time for outdoor activities and new endeavours. While Canadians start of fall with pumpkin-flavoured treats and jackets, the Keys islands, at the foot of Florida, remain infused with the subtropical flavours of Key lime, mango and coconut and are enveloped by warm, salt-sprayed breezes.
Air Canada has announced changes to its regional network that include new flights connecting Ottawa to both Fredericton and Moncton beginning Dec. 15 and non-stop flights from Vancouver to Fort McMurray starting Dec. 2. The airline is also increasing flights from Toronto to Sudbury as of Feb. 1, 2026.
By Michael Baginski/ From comprehensive travel trade training to a myriad of individual incentives by partners in destination, Canadian travel advisors will find plenty of tools and opportunities to help increase their sales to the Florida Keys, and discover the destination for themselves.
Fallout from a cyberattack that affected check-in systems at several European airports extended into a second full day on Sunday, as passengers faced dozens of cancelled and delayed flights and airport teams scrambled to limit the damage to travel plans. At press time, one airport official had admitted it was unclear when operations would return to normal.
Air Canada Vacations announced the winners of its first-ever ‘Travellers’ Top Picks Awards’ at the tour company’s gala product launch event in Toronto late last week – an event that saw a close to a thousand travel advisors be the first to learn the winners as voted on by 100,000 Canadians across the country.
The Jamaica Tourist Board has issued a statement asking Canadian travellers and advisors not to “misinterpret” recent language changes in Canada’s travel advisory designation for Jamaica.
The ACTA Western Canada Travel Industry Summit in Richmond, B.C. welcomed an audience of 300 travel advisors and 75 exhibitors – making it the largest ACTA event in Western Canada to date.
The Commission for the Promotion of Peru for Export and Tourism (PROMPERÚ) says that train services to Machu Picchu, as well as tourist activities within the Inca citadel, have officially resumed after local protests halted visits to the UNESCO World Heritage Site last week, affecting thousands of visitors.
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.
For many vacationers, a rental property offers convenience, flexibility, and privacy. However, in recent years, concerns about hidden cameras and surveillance in vacation rentals have grown.
Not a single named storm has formed in the Atlantic Ocean in nearly three weeks, even though it’s the peak of hurricane season. “Where the heck are the Atlantic #hurricanes?” Philip Klotzbach, a meteorologist at Colorado State University, wrote recently on X.
Air Canada has revealed the finalists for the 2025 Best New Restaurants list, spotlighting 31 trailblazing establishments shaping Canada’s dining culture today. From St. John’s, Newfoundland to Victoria, BC, the finalists reflect the talent, diversity, and creativity fuelling the country’s culinary scene, says the airline.
Despite its extreme, sometimes deadly temperatures, Death Valley National Park attracts countless visitors every year, some determined to finish a grueling, multi-day race, others just curious about the sizzling heat and the California landscape’s vast beauty.
By Wallace Immen/ Looks can be deceiving. While Oceania Cruises’ newest ship Allura is a near twin of fleet-mate Vista, she’s got a personality of her own. That’s especially evident in the innovative cuisine on board.
By Michael Baginski/ Like Rush and AC/DC (amongst a few other others), you’ve got to love a band like Blackberry Smoke that has the hops to have its own beer (Blackberry Smoke American Lager, sold on its website); better still, you’ve got to love a band that recalls vintage Lynyrd Skynyrd and Black Crowes, yet with enough of its own style to be fresh and original within a swampy southern rock context.
This year marks the 15th anniversary of what began as Blue Diamond Resorts and has now evolved into the “all in luxury” Royalton Hotels & Resorts brand and company president Jordi Pelfort is feeling reflective, not just about the company’s past, but on the future of the all-inclusive – a resort category that has always been a mainstay of Canadian holidaymakers.
With elbows-tourism flourishing, Air Canada has begun a major upgrade program on its regional fleet. Under the initiative, 25 De Havilland Dash 8-400 aircraft operated for Air Canada Express by Jazz Aviation LP (Jazz) will undergo a full cabin redesign to install new seating, new interiors and, on select aircraft initially, flying from Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, free Wi-Fi.
By Michael Baginski/ As Canadians “pivot” towards alternative destinations to the U.S. amidst ongoing Trump tribulations across the border, Britain is poised to pick up some of the pieces, with all signs pointing to a banner year for the destination this year and into 2026, according to VisitBritain.
Now it’s their turn: The union representing WestJet flight attendants says it has given the airline notice to begin contract talks with a key issue being compensation for unpaid work. CUPE 8125 said it has served notice to bargain a new collective agreement with its current contract set to expire on Dec. 31. The union says WestJet flight attendants are seeking better treatment.
TravelBrands has appointed Sylvie Deschamps as the newest member of its Quebec sales team, taking on the role of Business Development Manager for additional regions in Quebec including East Montreal, the North Shore of Montreal, Quebec City, Saguenay, Beauce, and the Gaspé Peninsula.
With a skyline that defies gravity and a backdrop of endless desert, Dubai is redefining what it means to be an adventure destination. It’s not just a city of luxury shopping and world records – it’s a high-octane playground where visitors can zipline between skyscrapers in the morning, dash across desert dunes by afternoon, and dive into the world’s deepest pool right before dinner.
While global hotel rates are expected to remain relatively stable through 2026, with geopolitical instability and uncertainty surrounding potential U.S. tariffs limiting demand and restricting sharp increases, rates in Canada are expected to soar, according to American Express Global Business Travel’s (Amex GBT) Hotel Monitor 2026.
Air Canada says that the union representing its 10,000 flight attendants has asked to dispense with the mediation process over the parties’ tentative labour agreement and have the wage component proceed directly to arbitration – a request the airline has accepted “in a spirit of cooperation.”
By Michael Baginski/ A team of close to two dozen tourism professionals from Louisiana, led by Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser, are visiting Canada this week with a simple message: “Come when you’re ready, we’re here with open arms!”
This week: Air Canada introduces a rewards program for agents; ACTA names its top 2025 travel advisors at the associations Eastern Canada Summit; and Travel Leaders Network announced dates for its fall regionals events in Vancouver, Edmonton, and Toronto.
In a world that’s always rushing, Ireland is extending a gentle invitation to visitors: take your time. With its winding coastal trails, soul-soothing landscapes, and deep-rooted traditions, Ireland is emerging as one of Europe’s most natural fits for slow tourism – a growing global travel trend focused on deeper, more meaningful experiences over fast-paced itineraries.
Globespan Travel Management, a leading corporate travel management company based in Los Angeles with global headquarters in Toronto, has announced the acquisition of Key Travel Inc., the U.S. division of the UK-based Key Travel group. The acquisition marks a significant milestone in Globespan’s North American growth strategy and deepens its service capabilities within the non-profit, academic, and humanitarian travel sectors.
As flight attendants from across Canada represented by CUPE descend on Parliament Hill on Tuesday (Sept. 16), to call on Ottawa to act to end unpaid work in Canada’s airline industry, a number of other aviation workers – including Transat pilots and airport screeners in Ontario and the Atlantic provinces – are similarly airing, and taking action, to resolve long-standing circumstances they deem unfair.