A look at where North Americans are thinking of traveling, the latest stats on foreign visits to Canada, miscellaneous news and a European theme park with something called “Spitting Toilet Man.” Today’s blog post has a little of everything. WHERE NORTH AMERICANS WANT TO TRAVEL Skyscanner has a new study out that shows North American travelers are seeking new destinations and also looking at old faves. Their date for June to August of this year shows a +3% increase in people looking at South America, a +2% increase for North Asia and a +1% increase for Southeast Asia. The shift Read more
theme parks
Orlando has opened many of its theme parks and attractions, including restaurants. Here’s a look at how it’s working. I also have news on new health and safety plans from WestJet, and also from The World Travel and Tourism Council I also have news about DIsney Cruise cancellations and more. HOW ORLANDO HAS RE-OPENED Orlando is America’s favorite destination – as shown by Expedia data to be the most-searched destination for a vacation from July through December – and is now welcoming visitors with new expanded safety measures. Many attractions, hotels and restaurants are now open, with more added daily, and all major theme parks have now scheduled reopening dates in the coming weeks. The reopened businesses include enhanced safety procedures that ensure existing guidelines from CDC and health officials are followed, as well as many additional measures and formal programs from the industry’s most trusted brands. “Our Read more
The Tourism Industry Association of Canada has launched a new plan to save Canadian tourism as we recover from COVID-19. There also are reports of a serious problem for Prince Edward Island visitation. My Future of Travel blog also looks at re-openings for Universal Orlando, Bologna and the Czech Republic. New Plan to Save Canadian Tourism After COVID-19 I love seeing this, and I hope to heck it makes a difference to the Canadian tourism industry, which I’ve argued for years has been under-appreciated and under-served by a series of federal (and provincial) governments. Here’s a statement I Read more
It’s a mixed bag of travel and tourism news today, folks. There’s good news from Italy, Saint Lucia and the Florida Keys, but strong, ongoing concerns about this summer’s tourism season for Canada. I’ve got a series of reports on those and other topics in my regular Future of Travel blog report. ITALY OPENING SOON I don’t know how easy it is to get there right now, but there’s good news on the tourism front for Italy, one of the world’s most-loved destinations (and where I met my wife!). Here’s a report from my colleagues at TravelPulse in the U.S. Read more
ORLANDO – A timeless Disney classic. And a wonderful place to stay just minutes away. I recently had a chance to spend a day at Disney Hollywood Studios, where I hadn’t been in at least 12 or 15 years. It’s a delightful spot, with a great mix of scary rides (alas, I didn’t do any this time) and fun, family attractions. Best of all for a guy who fell in love with Princess Leia, Han Solo and Luke Skywalker in 1979 are the Star Wars bits. One of the first things we heard upon entering the park were the ominous Read more
