Would-be Canadian travellers are more worried about gas prices and increased travel costs versus COVID-19, a new study says. With the Victoria Day holiday weekend being the unofficial start of the summer travel season, online travel agency CheapOair Canada has released the results of a new poll that asked Canadians which travel destination and activities they are most looking forward to while also looking into what their top travel concerns continue to be. • The study found that over 36% of Canadians listed Canada as their preferred travel destination this summer, followed by the U.S. (7.1%) and then Europe (5%). Read more
Canada
One of the top destinations for Canadians is operating at full hotel capacity again, and there’s a new way to get there. Air Transat on Thursday operated its first-ever flight from Montreal to San Francisco. The non-stop service will operate until the end of October with two flights per week, on Thursdays and Sundays. “San Francisco is a breathtaking city, ideally located between the ocean and the mountains, and renowned for its outstanding cuisine,” said Joseph Adamo, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer, Transat. “We are very excited to open up a whole new world of discovery and sunshine to our Read more
Air Transat is diversifying and expanding its international offering for winter 2022–2023, with more flights to Europe, South America, Florida, and other U.S. destinations. The airline will offer more than 50 destinations, as well as a few more through its code-sharing agreements. “Our customers want and need to travel,” says Michèle Barre, Vice President, Network, Revenue Management and Pricing of Air Transat. “Our response to their expectations is unique, of high quality and rich in options. We are offering an unprecedented range of destinations on four continents for this coming winter as we continue to develop and strengthen our air Read more
A top Air Canada executive says business travel in Canada could reach pre-2019 levels by the end of this year. There’s also encouraging news about a Canadian leisure travel rebound. In an interview with Reuters, Air Canada Chief Commercial Officer Lucie Guillemette said Canada could even be close to pre-pandemic business travel numbers by Labour Day. “We’re actually very encouraged,” she said this week. “We’re certainly not close to 2019 levels yet, but we are thinking, based on what we’re seeing, most probably by the time we hit Labour Day, or get into 2023 it should be quite close.” That’s Read more
The head of the union for Canadian Customs workers says the Canadian government has steadily decreased the number of border employees over the years. They’re calling on the Trudeau government to increase workers at the border and ease logjams that are bedeviling passengers flying into Canadian airports. “As travelers arriving at Canada’s international airports continue to experience extensive delays, the National President of the Customs and Immigration Union (CIU) is calling upon the Minister of Public Safety and the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) to increase the number of border services officers assigned to passenger operations in Canadian airports and Read more
