WILL PAX TAX UPEND MEXICAN CRUISE INDUSTRY?

Mexico’s Senate has voted to charge cruise ship passengers $42 per head for port calls, drawing sharp criticism from the tourism industry. Mexican business chambers say the immigration charge – from which cruise passengers used to be exempt – may hurt the country’s half-billion-dollar-per-year cruise industry.

CANADA ISSUES SYRIA WARNING

Ottawa is urging Canadians to avoid all travel to Syria and to consider leaving the country if it’s safe to do so. An updated travel advisory is warning people to avoid the Middle Eastern country due to what the Canadian government calls “ongoing armed conflict, terrorism, criminality, arbitrary detention, torture and forced disappearance.”

NOT SO FAST: WestJet passenger luggage claim ruled ‘unreasonable’

A WestJet passenger who went on a shopping spree to replace items in her luggage that was temporarily lost between Prince George and Ottawa two years ago was awarded just over a third of what she demanded by a British Colombia’s Civil Resolution Tribunal (CRT).

AGENTS KEY TO MSC CRUISES’ TRAVEL TRADE MILESTONE

MSC Cruises’ dedicated online reservations platform for travel agents, MSC Book, is celebrating its 10th anniversary. The company says the online tool has been a great ‘success’ thanks to agency support with the registration of nearly 120,000 travel agents and over 10 million guests booked since the online tool was introduced in 2014.

MELISSA HARLEY JOINS SUNWING VACATIONS

Sunwing Vacations has welcomed Melissa Harley as its new Business Development Manager for Central, Eastern, Northern Ontario and Atlantic Canada. She joins the Sunwing Vacations Sales Team effective immediately.

ROUND-UP: Dec. 2-6, 2024

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.

IT’S ABOUT TIME: Global tourism poised for full recovery in 2024

It took four years, but global tourism is finally set for full recovery in 2024, according to the United Nations, which says around 1.1 billion tourists travelled internationally in the first nine months of 2024, representing 98% of pre-pandemic levels. And according to the latest World Tourism Barometer by UN Tourism, a full recovery from the biggest crisis in the sector’s history is expected by the end of the year.

LET THERE BE LIGHT: Power restored once again in Cuba

Cuba’s power grid was restored Thursday after a nationwide blackout – the third one of this severity in less than two months – left millions without electricity for several hours in Cuba on Wednesday. Authorities said that scheduled power outages will now resume.

AIR CANADA ON THE MOVE TO MANILA

Air Canada will begin serving Manila from Vancouver next spring – the first Canadian carrier to offer direct service to the Philippines – at the same time notably continuing its international expansion and marking the launch of a third South-East Asia destination in the last two years. The airline says the Philippines is the largest market it currently does not serve directly in Asia.

TOP TRAVEL BLUNDERS

Overpacking continues to be the most common mistake the travellers say the continue to make, according to the Fall 2024 Global Rescue Traveller Sentiment and Safety Survey. A third of travellers (32%) admitted overpacking was their top travel blunder in 2024, followed by booking flights with connections instead of direct flights (13%) and an overly ambitious itinerary (12%). 

WANT A CRUISE DEAL? HURRY UP AND WAIT

Looking for a deal on a cruise getaway in the Caribbean this winter? A record number of other people have the same idea and that’s created an unprecedented demand. While the plethora of Black Friday and upcoming January Wave Month cruise sales offer(ed) some amazing deals, many come with a catch – they’re for cruises a year or more in the future.

LISTENING IN: Getting it on with T-Rex

What could be better than banging a gong and getting it on with Marc Bolan than also doing it with Elton John, who was a surprise guest with T-Rex in this performance of their 1971 classic on Britain’s Top of the Pops?

‘DRIP, DRIP, DRIP, DRIP’: Air Canada adds fees on basic fares

Air Canada plans to bar carry-on bags and impose a seat selection fee for its lowest-fare customers in the new year as discount carrier tactics increasingly enter the mainstream. Starting Jan. 3, basic fare passengers on trips within North America and to sun destinations will have to check duffel bags, rolling suitcases and large backpacks for a fee – $35 for the first, $50 for the second.

HOLIDAYS CHEER FOR SUNWING AND RIU

Sunwing and RIU Hotels & Resorts hosted their annual holiday season partners trade lunch Wednesday with good spirits for the upcoming winter season and even a bit of snow to thrill RIU team members that had flown into chilly Toronto from some of the much warmer destinations to which most Canadians are already longing to escape.

BOOMING BRAZIL: Goway expands presence in Latin America

With travel to Brazil booming – the South American country set an all-time arrivals record in September – Goway Travel is shining a spotlight on the colourful destination this winter as part of an enhanced focus on its Latin American product line. That includes custom travel offerings and the introduction of 20 brand-new packages in the now visa-free country for Canadians.

ISRAELI TOURISTS TURNED AWAY AT ITALIAN HOTEL

The manager of a small hotel in northern Italy refused a reservation made by an Israeli couple, accusing Israeli people of being “responsible for genocide.” Jewish groups decried the incident as an example of antisemitism and Booking.com removed the property from its platform.

THAT’S MR. SAUSAGE STAND TO YOU!

The culture of the “Würstelstand” – Vienna’s humble sausage stand – has become one of the latest additions to the national list of intangible cultural heritage, overseen by the Austrian UNESCO Commission. It joins the Austrian capital’s distinctive wine taverns, or “Heurigen,” which have been listed since 2019, and the city’s famous coffee house culture, which was honored in 2011.

WHO WENT WHERE, AND WHY

Leading global travel app, Skyscanner has revealed revealed the top destinations with the largest year-over-year increase that Canadian snowbirds are flocking to this winter, as well as valuable insights looking at how adults are prioritizing their travel plans. The top destination might be a surprise.

WHY THE WINDY CITY WILL BLOW YOU AWAY

With Chicago primed to host US Travel’s premiere IPW trade event in 2024, the Windy City will garner the gaze of the global travel industry for almost a week next June. But Choose Chicago’s chief marketing officer Lisa Nucci says her job is to ensure Chicago remains top of mind year-round – especially for Canadians.

JUMPING FOR JOY: Ireland delighted over new Dublin route

Tourism Ireland is hailing a re-established air link between Newfoundland and Ireland – two regions with strong historical and cultural ties. The non-stop route between St. John’s and Dublin being flown by WestJet will start in summer 2025.

‘MAGICAL’ NEW ORLEANS INVITES AGENTS IN DECEMBER

During the month of December travel advisors can take advantage of special hotel rates and exclusive offers from the city’s hospitality community, through New Orleans & Company’s Holiday Travel Advisors independent familiarization trip. 

SUNWING EXTENDS CYBER SALE

Cyber Monday has been extended to Cyber Week at Sunwing Vacations, with savings extended through Dec. 8. Travellers will discover a new door crasher deals every day, plus up to 40% off other packages. At the same time, travel advisors will earn 3X STAR Points when they book the featured daily deal.

ALLIANZ CANADA INTRODUCES SPARKMAN AS NEW MD

Allianz Global Assistance (Allianz) has named Kyle Sparkman as Managing Director (MD) and Head of Allianz in Canada, effective Dec. 1. With more than 25 years of experience in the financial services industry, including the past five years at Allianz, Sparkman succeeds Chris Van Kooten who departed the company in October 2024.

NAVIGATING 2025 – WHAT’S NEXT FOR TRAVEL AGENTS

As 2024 comes to a close, it’s an exciting time to reflect on the trends and insights that shaped the travel agent industry throughout the year and look toward the future. Expedia Group’s Travel Agent Affiliate Program (TAAP) saw dynamic shifts in agent needs and traveller behaviours.

CONTEST: WestJet Agent Direct launched to new users

WestJet has announced that WestJet Agent Direct is now available for new users to register and start booking. To celebrate the travel agent booking platform’s enhanced connectivity (it has been available since earlier this year for users of the airline’s previous tool, WestJet Agent), the airline is recognizing new and existing users with a contest and 10 giveaways.

SOMETHING TO CELEBRATE: More Spain for Canadians in 2025

Spain’s tourist office in Canada is welcoming new Air Transat flights from Montreal to Valencia starting next summer, sentiment that was shared at an event last week in Toronto hosted by the country’s new Consul for Tourism affairs, Isabel Martin.

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