In case you missed it, and even if you didn’t, here’s a quick look at some of last week’s need-to-know travel news:
COVID-19
With repatriation efforts under way, Air Transat has suspended most flights until April 30. This includes:
• A suspension of sales to most US and European destinations until April with the exception of sales in both directions between Montreal and Paris and Lisbon and between Toronto and London and Lisbon (for repatriation purposes).
• Sales have been halted from and to the Caribbean and Mexico.
• For domestic flights, clients are encouraged to check online that their flight is maintained.
Flair Airlines has waived all change booking and cancellation fees for flights booked in March and April. In addition, Flair has doubled its call centre staff to reduce customer wait times.
Flights from Porter Airlines have been grounded until June 1. The existing waiver of change and cancellation fees means there is no cost to customers for modifying an existing itinerary. Reservations are currently being taken for flights starting June 1 and all flights booked in June will be fully changeable and refundable to give passengers maximum flexibility as travel resumes.
Following its final repatriation flights on March 23, Sunwing has temporarily suspended all southbound flights until at least April 9.
All commercial international and transborder flights from WestJet have been suspended for a month effective today (March 23).
Ethiopian Airlines will be reducing direct flights from Toronto to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to three times a week in response to travel restrictions.
Toronto and Montreal flights service from Turkish Airlines has suspended until further notice. Cancellation and route/date change options are free to passengers with tickets for international flights
Jamaica has closed its border to inbound passengers for 14 days effective March 21. Turks and Caicos similarly for 21 days effective March 24.
A state of national emergency will continue in Peru until March 30, resulting in obligatory social isolation ordered for everyone, closure of all international borders, and the suspension of all international travel.
All reservations for Caesar’s Entertainment Corp. hotels in North America have been cancelled reflecting the company’s decision to shut the doors of its 40 properties on the continent (including Caesar’s Windsor in Canada) until it is “appropriate” to re-open. All ticketed live entertainment held in Caesars Entertainment venues company-wide have also been temporarily suspended. Refunds are being processed.
All-inclusive chain AMResorts has announced temporary closures of its properties in Jamaica, Dominican Republic, St. Martin, Curacao, Panama and Costa Rica. The company’s “Move the Date, Keep the Rate” program enables clients to change their date of travel for a future travel date until Dec. 22, 2020. Additionally, clients can change to another AMResorts property within the same brand in a different destination with no additional fee or cancellation penalty.
Canada’s annual tourism show Rendez-vous has been cancelled. The joint effort between Destination Canada and the Tourism Industry Association of Canada had been scheduled to take place in Quebec City May 5-8.
Other national tourism shows in the following destinations have also been cancelled or postponed: Great Britain, France, Germany, Barbados, Dominican Republic, Tianguis (Mexico) and Cuba. Yet to be cancelled is IPW in Las Vegas starting May 30.
All visitor services in all national parks, national historic sites and national marine conservation areas across the country have been suspended until further notice. New reservations at Parks Canada sites have also been suspended until April 30 and previously made ones will be refunded.
The once-a-decade Oberammergau Passion Play in Germany has been postponed for two years with the new premiere scheduled for May 21, 2022.
Adding another chapter to 1,000 years of shared, sometimes tumultuous history, all six Historic Royal Palaces properties in the U.K., including Hampton Court Palace and the Tower of London, have been closed until further notice. The gardens at Hampton Court and Hillsborough (Northern Ireland), however, will remain open with HRP noting, “At times like this, we all need to see beauty more than ever.”
Travelogix has announced a major change in its development operations to provide its TMC clients with mission critical tools, information and communications services that will help maintain their operations during the COVID-19 outbreak. The application will be provided free of charge to Travelogix clients running the Analytix or farecast platforms and is available now.
For the latest advisories on COVID-19, click HERE.
TOURS
As the first journey in Insight Vacation’s new “Wander Women” program, “Inspirational India” (photo) will take place in India in 2021 (departing March 4) featuring immersive learning opportunities, wellness experiences and authentic dining, while highlighting “the power of impactful tourism on women’s economic empowerment.” Insight reports that 57% of its guests are women and that the company “is aligning itself with a gender equal world, showcased by launching these journeys created and led by women.”
New to Goway in 2020 is a series of women’s only vacations to Africa and the Middle East. Included are the eight-day Explore Dubai, 11-day Explore Southern Africa, nine-day Tanzania Women’s Safari and eight-day Kilimanjaro Machame Route, all designed to allow women travellers to join like-minded individuals on small-group trips that offer security, savings, and the chance to bond with new friends in foreign lands.
HOTELS
The Vista Tower has recently taken the spot as the third tallest building in Chicago and largest in the world designed by a woman. When completed, the Jeanne Gang-designed building will house the Wanda Vista Hotel, a 192-room contemporary hotel located in the low-rise portion of the tower. The hotel, on E. Lower Wacker Dr., near the Navy Pier, is scheduled to open mid-2020.
Now open:
Aloft Bali Seminyak, a brand-new, urban-inspired property in the heart of Seminyak, features interactive social spaces and modern style and is the first for Marriott’s Aloft brand on the Indonesian island.
RESORTS
In Florida’s Lower Keys, the 2.2-hectare Little Palm Island Resort & Spa, A Noble House Resort is scheduled to officially reopen April 1 with 15 redesigned thatched-roof bungalow suites (photo), some with outdoor copper soaking tubs and private outdoor showers. A fully restored Monkey Hut lounge and Palapa Bar also are to be unveiled. The resort’s spa will feature a two-story atrium with carved architectural details and handcrafted tile fountain. A private island resort located 5 km. off Little Torch Key and about 45 minutes from Key West, the ultra luxury resort is open to adults 18 and older.
Now open:
Royalton Grenada Resort and Spa marks the chain’s first resort in the destination following its expansion into the Eastern Caribbean. Set on Tamarind Bay with direct access to two white-sand beaches, the all-inclusive resort features 269 luxury suites adorned with rain showers, two-person soaker tubs and handcrafted DreamBed mattresses, as well multiple restaurants, kids club, on-site splash park, and non-motorized watersports, such as snorkeling, kayaking and sail boating.
CRUISE
Crystal River Cruises has published its full collection of 2022 river cruises, which are now available for booking. All-suite, all-balcony sister ships Crystal Bach, Crystal Debussy, Crystal Mahler and Crystal Ravel will feature new itineraries, new ports and special programs on itineraries ranging from seven to 10 nights.
In summer 2021, Disney Cruise Line will return to Greece – back by popular demand – along with varied European destinations, Alaska ports and tropical locales. Plus, Disney Cruise Line will visit three first-time ports of call in Greece, Sweden and Norway. Bookings are now open.
THEME PARKS
Clients can now make plans to get a double dose of horror with a special “Buy an Event Night, Get a Second Night Free” offer for the 30th year of Universal Orlando’s Halloween Horror Nights, running select nights Sept. 10 through Nov. 1. Plus, clients who book a vacation package that includes the offer can be among the first to book event upgrades like RIP Tours and Behind the Screams: Unmasking the Horror tours, before they go on sale to the general public. The offer is available online through June 3.
EVENTS
CLIA Cruise 360 is scheduled to return to Canada this year, with the event currently still scheduled to be held at the Vancouver Convention Centre from May 12-18 with organizers stating that they are “actively monitoring” the COVID-19 crisis. The show is CLIA’s largest professional development event bringing together travel professionals, cruise line representatives, ports and destinations, industry suppliers and CLIA preferred partners “for a truly panoramic view of the cruise industry.” Attendees can take advantage of ship inspections, networking and learn industry news and trends.
PEOPLE/APPOINTMENTS
Carla Brake is the new Director, Key Accounts & Inside Sales at Globus family of brands in Toronto. She had spent the past 12 years at Insight Vacations, including the past six as VP of Sales.
BY THE NUMBERS
With the cruise industry severely disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic, CLIA reports that cruising supports over 421,000 American jobs, with every 30 cruisers supporting one U.S. job, annually contributing nearly US$53 billion to the U.S. economy. “Cruise activity supports travel agencies, airlines, hotels and a broad supply chain of industries that stretches across the United States,” says CLIA.
DESTINATIONS
In a light-hearted attempt to take advantage of its own obscurity as global travel destination, Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, recently launched a cheeky campaign called “Vilnius: Amazing Wherever You Think It Is,” which follows the tradition of the award-winning “Vilnius – the G-spot of Europe” campaign, which claimed that “nobody knows where it is, but when you find it – it’s amazing.” Visit HERE to check it out.
Freeport, Grand Bahama will be the site of a new joint venture project that includes Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. The $300-million development will span two locations and include an enhancement and expansion of the port terminal, to be called Harbour Village, and development of a world-class beachfront destination featuring a 526-room hotel, shopping village, spa and wellness centre, massive water and adventure theme park, convention centre, restaurants and bars, entertainment and adventure activities. It will be located at the current Grand Lucayan resort. The cruise port is expected to be completed in 2022.
Send info to baginski@travelindustrytoday.com