From Taylor Swift and Beyonce to Emily in Paris and White Lotus, Expedia says music and entertainment are driving travel traffic like never before. Expedia Group also says “dupe” travel is becoming big, a trend where travellers look for a lesser-known city or destination that somewhat duplicates the experiences they would have in a more famous location. Expedia Group on 08NOV unveiled Unpack ’24, a comprehensive look at what’s motivating travellers and where they’re going next year. Based on the company’s unmatched first-party travel data, plus a global consumer survey of 20,000 travellers, Unpack ’24 includes eight new travel Read more
Asia
Black Friday and Cyber Monday/Cyber Week travel deals are coming in fast and furious, including deals for Florida, Scotland, Asia and South America. I also have news on Air Canada adding summer service to Stockholm next year. BLACK FRIDAY/CYBER MONDAY DEALS FLORIDA Wyndham Grand Clearwater Beach (Clearwater, FL) The Deal: Book between November 20th and November 27th and stay by 10/31/24, receive 30% off 3 or more nights! Rate does not include $35.00 Daily Resort Fee. Stay must be booked between 11/20/23 and 11/27/23, and completed by 10/31/24. Rates are subject to availability. Offer may not be combined with Read more
Time Out has just issued its annual list of the world’s 40 coolest neighborhoods. Of course, it’s entirely a judgment call; what I call cool might be considerably different from what you like. Still I enjoy these lists. So here are some highlights that include some of my fave countries and U.S. states to visit. UNITED STATES California impressed with two spots in the top 30. The vibrant and funky Arts District in Los Angeles was 13th overall and second in the U.S. only to the Mid-City district of New Orleans. Here’s a Vancouver Sun story I wrote that talks Read more
Victoria, British Columbia has been named the world’s best city in this year’s Conde Nast Travellers’ Readers Choice Awards, while Canada owned the top three picks for world’s friendliest cities. Victoria was third in the friendly category, while Edmonton came second and Calgary was first. Dublin, Ireland was fourth and Quebec City fifth, giving Canada four of the top five spots. I might push for St. John’s or Saskatoon or Regina as the friendliest city in the country if I had a vote, but I suspect Conde Nast readers aren’t as familiar with them as they are with the winning Read more
Climbing the Statue of Liberty. Traveling to Tahiti. Getting soaked at Niagara Falls. With so many different travel experiences to enjoy around the world, a new study from luxury travel experts Kuoni has revealed which ones travellers across the globe are the most interested in. Topping the list for Canadians is visiting the Maldives, with travellers hoping to set foot on the beautiful islands for themselves one day. Visiting Bora Bora follows in second place, and then seeing the Northern Lights follows in third. Americans, on the other hand, want to stay close to home. Kuoni looked at global search Read more
