Travel + Leisure has released its awards for best destinations, hotels and more for 2025. There are tons of categories – far too many to list here – so I’ll concentrate on some of the top awards for North America and a few world categories. WORLD’S TWENTY BEST CITIES San Miguel de Allende, Mexico Chiang Mai, Thailand Tokyo Bangkok Jaipur, India Hoi An, Vietnam Mexico City Kyoto Ubud, Bali Cuzco, Peru Florence Seville Granada Istanbul Siem Reap, Cambodia Mumbai Cape Town Rome Santa Fe Agra, India I was quite surprised to see Mumbai rated so highly, as I haven’t heard Read more
July 2025
Canadian travel to the U.S. is still down substantially from last year, but the numbers improved slightly in June. Statistics Canada today (July 10) said Canadian arrivals into Canada by air from the U.S. were down 22.1% in June of this year when compared to June, 2024. Canadian arrivals from the States by land were down 33.1% in June when compared to the same month last year. That’s still a major problem for U.S. tourism, but it’s a slight improvement from the previous month. StatsCan said the number of Canadians arriving back in Canada from the U.S. by air in Read more
Most Expensive Countries to Visit: Iceland on Top; Air Canada New Flights to Peru, Mexico and Belize
A study by the Forex Complex has named the most expensive countries for Americans (and presumably Canadians) to visit. The study tallied daily costs for a typical visitor, including hotels or other accommodations, meals, transportation and other common expenses. In US dollars, here are the 19 most expensive countries they came up with in daily costs. ICELAND, $401.40 AUSTRALIA, $280.99 FRANCE, $263.21 GERMANY, $258.47 ITALY, $257.67 UNITED KINGDOM, $256.50 CANADA, $241.34 JAPAN, $229.96 UNITED ARAB EMIRATES, $217.78 GREECE, $198.84 SPAIN, $187.79 CROATIA, $185.65 PORTUGAL, $163.81 COSTA RICA, $161.34 JAMAICA, $151.38 DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, $148.51 MEXICO, $145.78 THAILAND, $81.87 INDONESIA, $70.23 I Read more
Europeans are avoiding the U.S. and increasingly looking at trips to Canada, Ontario and Toronto, a new study says. According to a new Europe Pulse Study conducted by Context Research Group (CRG) on behalf of Destination Ontario and Destination Toronto, more than half of leisure travellers from the United Kingdom, Germany and France are considering a trip to Ontario in the next two years. Although some people might think Canada and the U.S. are much the same, the study said Europeans feel Canada is culturally and experientially distinct from the States. The study found that half of the European travellers who were surveyed are considering Read more
A new study by TD Economics says tourism spending in Canada is expected to grow at a modest 2-4% clip this year. Spending by U.S. visitors “is set to exert a drag on the overall tally this year. U.S. visits are falling amid trade tensions and economic uncertainty, with cross-border spending projected to decline by 5-10% this year,” the study said. “However, lower U.S. spending is expected to be offset by a rise in Canadian domestic tourism outlays as many residents redirect all or part of their travel budgets to the home market. Moreover, spending by non-U.S. international tourists in Read more
