Canadian tourism and travel industry officials say new federal programs being introduced by the Trudeau government will be a big help. Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on Monday said the government’s main business support programs will end on Wednesday, Oct. 23, as Canada has already recovered 100% of the jobs lost during the pandemic. But she said the government recognizes that tourism and other businesses have been hit hard, and that Ottawa will bring in two new programs beginning on Thursday, Oct. 24. Those programs will provide wage and rent support for hotels, restaurants and travel agencies. Read more
Canada
In an important symbolic step that could help boost international travel, the Canadian government has withdrawn its long-standing advisory against foreign travel by Canadians. The Trudeau government’s travel advisory page has contained a recommendation to avoid all international travel for more than a year, but it has been quietly dropped, perhaps in light of Thursday’s announcement that vaccine passports will be required for most travel by November 30. Instead of a general warning at the top of the advisory page, there is now a statement that says fully vaccinated before travelling. It also states that even though vaccines provide protection Read more
Canadians can expect vaccine passports for international travel in the coming days. There’s also more help coming for trouble tourism businesses, and potential vaccines on the horizon for Canadian children. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau today (Oct. 21) said fully-vaccinated Canadians travelling overseas or using airplanes or interprovincial trains will soon have to show a vaccine passport. Starting November 30, you won’t be able to fly without it, or take an interprovincial train. The cards will have a QR code and the word Canada with a maple leaf flag over the final “a,” according to the Toronto Star. In a Read more
It’s not just fun and games. Canada’s economy and its social structure are both closely intertwined with that of the U.S. Many Canadians have no choice but to travel to the U.S. on occasion. I’m one of them. I work part-time for a tourism organization in the U.S. As part of my job, I have to fly to the States today. I only needed a rapid antigen test to get into the U.S. right now, and that costs me $29. No worries about that. But to come back to Canada I have to have a PCR test taken within 72 Read more
We Canadians are a cautious lot, but our travel patterns – especially our winter travel patterns – are deeply ingrained. I’ve been saying this for a while, but I suspect some of our doubts about travelling during the pandemic will dissipate somewhat when the snow begins to fly and the wind comes whistling through our doors and windows. A new study from CAA appears to suggest I might be right. The study was undertaken by CAA-Quebec, but I don’t think Quebeckers have vastly different thoughts about travelling and COVID-19 than other Canadians. So here’s what the study found. Even though Read more
