The U.S. Transportation Safety Administration says its preparing for a record Labor Day travel period. And the American Automobile Association says Labor Day bookings for this year are up 9% from 2023, while prices are down about 2%. That makes this a great time to plan your Labor Day weekend getaway in great destinations around the U.S.  Here are some of my favourites. FORT MYERS, FLORIDA Fort Myers has a walkable downtown with fine outdoor dining, art galleries and boutique shops. Captiva and Sanibel islands are famous for collecting seashells. Don’t miss a boat ride to Cabbage Key, where the Read more

Rediscover Maui, a treasure trove of breathtaking landscapes, rich culture and unforgettable experiences. From pristine beaches and lush valleys to the awe-inspiring Haleakalā National Park, Maui offers a tapestry of natural wonders to explore. This fall, the island warmly invites visitors with enticing offers at GoHawaii.com/MauiOffers, featuring free nights, discounted rates up to 30% off and generous daily resort credits. Most of the island’s top resorts are taking part, including the Fairmont Kea Lani in Wailea, The Ritz-Carlton Maui, Kapalua, The Sheraton Maui Resort and Spa on Ka’anapali Beach, the Grand Wailea and Montage KapaluaBay. I’ve stayed at or visited Read more

Domestic travel is up. But Canadian visits to Florida are still lagging slightly, new figures show. Florida tourism reps say 31.5 million domestic travelers visited the Sunshine State in the second quarter of 2024. That’s up 1.8% from the same period in 2023, and 8.7% higher than in 2019, the last full year before COVID-19. But CBS News reports Canadian and international visits are still down slightly from a few years ago. VISIT FLORIDA, the state’s tourism-marketing agency, said there were 2.44 million overseas visitors in the second quarter of 2019, with 848,000 Canadians. In the second quarter of last Read more

Visitors to The Islands of Tahiti from Canada are up 6.3% so far in 2024 compared to 2023, according to thInstitute of Statistics of French Polynesia. Sure to draw in even more Canadian travelers is the recent news that French Polynesia’s remote and paradise-like Marquesas Islands have just been officially added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List, reserved for the globe’s most celebrated and cherished sites. The announcement brings about more international recognition for The Islands of Tahiti after the destination just successfully hosted Olympic Surfing at Teahupo’o.   The Marquesan waters are one of the world’s last marine wilderness areas and Read more

It’s been a tough year for tourism on Maui, but positive signs are emerging. Virtuoso, a luxury travel agent network that books exclusive vacations around the world, said its sales for Maui resorts are up 4% for the first six months of the year. For the winter holiday or “festive” season, sales are up a whopping 66%. A network spokesperson on Monday, Aug. 12 said that West Maui/Lahaina bookings are about 7% lower than Wailea, which makes sense given the incredible fire damage to Lahaina in August of last year. “Even with the noticeable impacts on tourism to Maui, we Read more

ON THE TRENT-SEVERN WATERWAY IN ONTARIO – We were pulling into a lock north of Peterborough after a few days navigating the Trent-Severn waterway in southern Ontario. We’d passed through the same lock maybe 72 hours earlier on our way north in our 42-foot Le Boat craft, and one of the Parks Canada lock workers recognized us on our return journey. “Hey, guys! It’s Jim and Barbara, right? How’d it go?” There are many things I’ll remember about our five-day, 20-lock trip on the Trent-Severn: my wife admitting she was scared to death at the idea of me piloting a Read more