Nearly two of three Canadians is planning to travel internationally in the next little while. But hotel rates will continue to climb in 2024. Two reports from different divisions of American Express provide valuable insights for consumers. An AmEx Global Business Travel report says inflation could cause hotel prices to increase by double digits in cities such as Paris and Chicago, while slightly more modest hikes are expected in Canada. Another American Express report says 63% of Canadians plan to travel internationally this year, and that almost 80% of Canadian Gen Z’ers turn to social media for travel inspiration. Here’s Read more
Canada
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
California is about to get easier to reach than ever. Porter Airlines is launching its first two western U.S. destinations in California with daily roundtrip service connecting Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and San Francisco International Airport (SFO) to Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ). Both flights will begin service in January, 2024. The new routes will be operated by the Embraer E195-E2 aircraft, featuring a 132-seat, all-economy, two-by-two configuration. There are no middle seats on any Porter flight. All passengers receive celebrity treatment with Porter’s elevated economy experience. Free, fast WiFi let’s passengers stream their favourite movies and shows Read more
A new airline is coming soon that promises low fares from Canada to the Caribbean. Arajet, a discount airline based in the Dominican Republic, says it will launch flights to the D.R. this fall from both Toronto and Montreal. Canadian Press notes that the announcement by the year-old carrier marks the latest entrant to an already crowded field of low-cost airlines, including Lynx and Flair, and comes two weeks after U.S. budget carrier Breeze Airways made a pitch to Quebecers bound for Florida. By the end of next year, Flair Airlines aims to beef up its fleet to 26 planes Read more
Air Canada was recognized with a Five Star Global Airline Award at the Airline Passenger Experience Association (APEX) 2024 Awards Ceremony held Wednesday night in Long Beach, California. This marks the fifth time in six years the airline has been awarded an APEX Five Star rating which is based on customer feedback. “On behalf of the more than 36,000 employees at Air Canada, we thank our customers and APEX for recognizing us with a Five Star Global Airline award,” said Mark Nasr, Air Canada’s Executive Vice President, Marketing & Digital and President of Aeroplan. “We have made significant investments in Read more
