Best Beaches in North America (Including Canada); Luxury Lodges of Australia; Marriott Growth in Canada;

Lists of great travel destinations are always arbitrary. But I still enjoy looking at lists of things like “World’s Best Cities,” or “Most Attractive Miniature Golf Courses.”

The latest list to grab my attention is one of the 50 Best Beaches in North America, as compiled by World50Beaches. As always, there are some I quibble with, and some I think were wrongfully omitted. Yet this list is nice in that it points out a number of places I’ve never heard of, including a beauty in western Canada called San Josef Bay, which is on the far northwest tip of Vancouver Island and looks stunning. Indian Head Cove in Tobermory, Ontario also made the top 50, and rightfully so. In summer, the water here looks like the Greek islands.

Not a single beach in my home state of California made the list, but there are a couple of my Hawaiian faves, including Kapalua on Maui and Hanalei on Kaua’i. Kapalua is one of the most perfect stretches of sand on the planet, and very much deserving. I haven’t been to Waimanolo Beach on O’ahu, but I’ll vouch for Lanikai Beach on O’ahu as a Hawaiian beauty.

Siesta Beach in Florida, where I visited in February, also makes the top 50.

There were several (okay, many) Caribbean surprises on the list, including Wavine Cyrique Beach on Dominica, a place I’ve never heard of on an island I love and have visited a couple times for extended periods. It looks quite rugged, but I’d personally rather spend a day on Batibou Beach, a fabulous stretch of sand in northern Dominica with lovely palm trees and a great outdoor restaurant run by two sisters.

Kapalua Bay Beach on Maui. JIM BYERS PHOTO

I’ll vouch for Grote Knip on Curacao and both Shoal Bay East and Meads Bay on Anguilla, as well as beautiful Sugar Bay Beach on Saint Lucia and Horseshoe Bay on Bermuda, but I’ve never heard of Ffryes Beach (Antigua and Barbuda) or Bottom Bay on Barbados, an island I’ve visited at least four times.

Here are a few that I’d add.

Canada: Regina Beach, Saskatchewan; Southampton Beach, Ontario (also home to the stylish, new South Beach Motel), Sand Banks Provincial Park, Ontario (truly remarkable dunes), Lawrencetown Beach in Nova Scotia and Chesterman Beach on Vancouver Island.

Caribbean: Magens Bay, USVI made the World50Beaches list, but I think Trunk Bay on St. John is even nicer. I’d also add Playa Rincon in the Dominican Republic and Saltwhistle Bay on Mayreau, part of St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

USA: I think Caladesi Island beach in Clearwater/ Dunedin is more striking (and much quieter) than Siesta Beach, but Siesta is a good choice. I also love the beaches in the Florida panhandle, which have amazing, pure white sand. In California, it’s tough to beat La Jolla Cove and also Capitola Beach in northern California.

That being said, this is one of the best beach lists I’ve seen, with a great combination of popular and lesser-known spots. Well done!

WILL CANADA BENEFIT FROM US TRAVEL DROPOFF?

Fairmont Chateau Frontenac, Quebec City. JIM BYERS PHOTO

I’m not convinced Europeans who are cancelling trips to the States (visits from Europe are down substantially) will flock en masse to Canada, but I would certainly hope many of them would. And there’s some evidence this is happening.

French hotel group Accor SA, which owns such brands as Fairmont, Raffles and Ibis, recently said Canada’s gaining traction as a tourist destination as travellers increasingly avoid the U.S. for holidays. According to BNN Bloomberg, Chief Financial Officer Martine Gerow said Canada is benefiting from this influx of travellers, and that Canadians are also scaling back travel to the U.S.

“The only market where we’ve seen an inflection, which is actually benefitting us, is Canada, where we see Canadians who were planning to travel in the U.S. actually staying in Canada and some events that were planned in the U.S. now repositioned in Canada,” Berow said in an earnings call.

From incredible nature in places like Banff, British Columbia and Newfoundland to luxury hotels in fabulous cities like Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver, Canada certainly has an abundance of places for Europeans of all types. Let’s hope Accor is right.

LUXURY LODGES OF AUSTRALIA CELEBRATES 15th ANNIVERSARY

Southern Ocean Lodge, Kangaroo Island, South Australia. Tourism Australia Photo

Luxury Lodges of Australia celebrates fifteen years of collaboration and partnership in 2025, marking a milestone in a journey that has transformed the landscape of Australian luxury travel.

Since its launch in 2010, Luxury Lodges of Australia has redefined how travellers from around the world experience Australia’s extraordinary landscapes and hospitality, in style.

I’ve had the pleasure of staying at or visiting a couple of their properties, including the fabulous Longitude 131 near Uluru in the Northern Territory and C. They do an amazing job, and are simply splendid resorts.

Luxury Lodges of Australia Executive Chair Penny Rafferty said when the founding members first came together in 2009, they recognised that Australia offered something distinctive to luxury travellers, but that perceptions of Australia as a destination did not, at that time, reflect this new era of experiential luxury.

“What sets us apart as a collection is that our lodges have always been more than just a place to stay. Each property is in an extraordinary location with a compelling reason to go there and ‘do’ something. Together, we’ve created a distinctively Australian brand of experiential luxury that resonates with global travellers seeking real experiences of place,” she said.

“I don’t think it’s overstating it to say that Luxury Lodges of Australia has helped define what Australian luxury travel is and then communicated that message so beautifully to the world,” said Tourism Australia Managing Director Phillipa Harrison, one of the founding Directors of Luxury Lodges of Australia. 

MARRIOTT CANADA HITS 300TH HOTEL

Marriott International is celebrating an exciting milestone, as it marks the company’s 300th property in Canada with the opening of the Moxy Montreal Downtown, strengthening its offerings in Quebec. Situated on rue Saint-Jacques, just steps from Old Montreal and iconic streets like Sainte-Catherine and Notre-Dame, the hotel offers 216 thoughtfully designed guestrooms, flexible co-working spaces, and a lively restaurant bar and lounge area, combining modern comfort with the brand’s signature stylish and energetic vibe in the heart of downtown Montreal.

• Located mountain-top, Mont Gabriel, Sainte Adele, a Tribute Portfolio Resort, opened in late 2024, welcomes guests to the heart of the Laurentians with year-round offerings including ski-in-out privileges and an 18-hole championship golf course.
• In April, Marriott expanded its Luxury Group footprint in Canada with the debut of Bisha, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Toronto, offering a bold blend of art, fashion, and urban energy. With this opening, Marriott now boasts 10 luxury hotels across Canada, each providing an immersive sense of place. 
• As two of the fastest-growing hospitality brands in Canada, Fairfield by Marriott and TownePlace Suites are poised to expand their presence with the opening of 10 new properties in secondary and tertiary markets across the country in 2025.
• Enhancing the region’s expanding accommodation capacity, AC Hotels by Marriott Ottawa Downtown and Moxy Ottawa, both slated to open in 2026, will introduce new hospitality options in Ottawa’s vibrant Byward Market district.
• Projected to be inside Canada’s tallest building, Le Méridien will return to Toronto in 2026, while the Vancouver area will open Le Méridien Richmond that same year.
• Addition of four new Autograph Collection hotels in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Vancouver (Yaletown), Richmond and Saskatoon.

TEMPO HILTON PEARSON

HAWAII HIKES HOTEL TAX: MONEY GOING TO SUSTAINABILITY

Waimea Plantation Cottages on the Hawaiian island of Kauai.

SPEAKING OF AIR CANADA, AEROPLAN PROGRAM WINS MAJOR AWARDS