It’s a mixed bag of travel and tourism news today, folks. There’s good news from Italy, Saint Lucia and the Florida Keys, but strong, ongoing concerns about this summer’s tourism season for Canada. I’ve got a series of reports on those and other topics in my regular Future of Travel blog report. ITALY OPENING SOON I don’t know how easy it is to get there right now, but there’s good news on the tourism front for Italy, one of the world’s most-loved destinations (and where I met my wife!). Here’s a report from my colleagues at TravelPulse in the U.S. Read more
Canada
A troubling report for Canadian tourism, potential new flights to China and a great offer for frontline workers who need a vacation. Check out my Future of Travel blog Sunday edition. I’ve been thinking for quite some time that this might be a decent year for Canadian tourism. With so many Canadians seemingly wanting (and, in some cases, still pretty much required) to stay close to home, it seems likely that most Canadians will take road trips in Canada this summer instead of flights to Europe or Asia, or the U.S. Given that, I which found that under the worst Read more
For today’s Future of Travel blog, I take a look at where Canadians would like to travel once we can move around a little more. I’ve also got details of a new health and safety program from Accor Hotels, and also from AIr Canada. In addition, check out the great deal for the fabulous Fairmont Royal York in Toronto. Where Canadians Want to Go The folks at Booking.com recently surveyed Canadians about where they’d like to visit when travel restrictions are lifted. It’s no surprise to see domestic travel is top of mind for consumers, with more than half (51%) Read more
Zoom, zoom, zoom used to make us think of a car commercial. Now it conjures up flickering images of friends and co-workers squirreled away in basements with Ikea bookcases or tropical beach backgrounds. The world has discovered that it can do a lot of things over the Internet. I’ve taken to depositing my checks/cheques by taking a picture with my phone. Lawyers are taking depositions by GoToMeetings. Teenagers who can’t go to the mall (horrors) are flooding Amazon with purchases. So, what does that mean for business travel? A lot, in my opinion. I’m a guy who practically lives for Read more
A month or two ago, when all this crazy coronavirus stuff hit the fan, I suggested that 2020 may be The Summer of Canada given our reluctance (and, for now, inability) to travel anywhere else over the next few months, and given the low Canadian dollar and the damage COVID-19 has done to our collective pocketbooks. I’m taking another look at the issue today given a Conference Board of Canada study I spotted the other day (and one I referenced on the weekend during my live interview on CTV News). Today’s Future of Travel Blog also looks at a new Read more
