Travel rewards programs are a great, no-cost way to save money and earn valuable points towards great trips. And Air Canada’s Aeroplan is one of the best for Canadians. With help from Aeroplan, you can turn your travel dreams into reality with endless redemption opportunities on flights to more than 1,300 destinations worldwide through the biggest network of airline partners. Better still, there are no restrictions or blackout dates to hold you back. I’ve been an Aeroplan member for a good 30-40 years now. I’ve used my points to book dozens of great trips around the world; Europe, Hawaii, Vancouver, Read more
Australia/New Zealand/PAC
A new study rates Canada as the second-best country on earth for 2023, behind only Switzerland. The study, conducted by global marketing and communications services company WPP and The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, looked at 73 country attributes; terms that can be used to describe a country and that are also relevant to the success of a modern nation. Various attributes and nations were presented in a survey of more than 17,000 people from across the globe from March 17 to June 12. Each country was then scored on each of the 73 country attributes based on Read more
I had some great visits outside of Canada and the U.S. this year, visiting Sydney, Tasmania, Western Australia, Dominica, Puerto Rico, Martinique, Scotland and England. Here are some highlights. BEST RENTAL CAR EMPLOYEE My reservation was all messed up and the Budget Rental Car counter was closed when I landed at the airport in Esperance, Western Australia. I called the phone number for after hours help and reached a very kind woman named Hope. She was about to head off to a gender reveal party but said she could drive out and get my car set up for me, which Read more
Canadian tourism is bouncing back, a new report says. I also have travel news from WestJet (a new Caribbean destination), Porter Airlines, Air Canada and Accor hotels worldwide. CANADIAN TOURISM REBOUND Destination Canada’s latest report says total tourism revenue across the country is set to exceed 2019 levels. The report states that tourism will generate $109.5 billion by the end of 2023. This represents the recovery of the tourism sector from the COVID-19 pandemic, one year earlier than projected. Tourism generated $105 billion in 2019. The current growth trajectory for Canada is $140 billion in revenues by 2030, the report Read more
A couple weeks ago I published my list of top 10 places to go in 2024. It seems the people at AFAR magazine and I think a lot alike. I put Toronto, Paris and Detroit in my top 10, and both cities are in the AFAR top 24. I also am high on, and have written in the past about, several other destinations on the AFAR list, including Sydney, Los Angeles, Texas Hill Country, Valencia, Manchester (England) and St. Kitts. Here is the top 24 from AFAR: Fiji Sydney, Australia Tangier, Morocco Texas Hill Country Rome Macchu Picchu Martha’s Vineyard, Read more
