Fancy hotel rooms don’t necessarily equate with luxury. A new Vrbo/Harris poll of some 1,700 travellers from the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Europe and Australia finds that travellers place greater value on the consistent delivery of the fundamentals. In an increasingly competitive market, mastering the basics can be more important to travellers than offering additional amenities or elaborate in-home experiences. The poll asked for travel opinions for people who have stayed in a vacation rental and found that 86% would pay more for a place to stay that had a higher-quality listing. Respondents made it overwhelmingly clear that quality is not Read more
Caribbean
Canadians claim to be the best hotel guests in the world. But they’re still swiping the odd hotel bathrobe or smuggling food from the breakfast buffet. A study by Hotels.Com found that 88% of Canadians consider themselves considerate guests, and that 44% of Canadians voted themselves the most courteous guests in the world, while ranking Americans as the rudest hotel guests (42%). Yet 27% of Canadians admit they sometimes smuggle food from the breakfast buffet or swipe hotel bathrobes and slippers. How Canada Ranks the World’ Most Polite Guests, by Country Canada – 44% Japan – 22% Sweden – 11% Read more
Barbados is celebrating its 60th anniversary as an independent nation. I first visited in 2009 or so, and have been at least four or five times since. It’s one of my fave places in the world; beautiful and safe and relaxed, but with many elegant places to stay. This list is mostly about food and drinks, so here’s a link to a story I wrote after a great food tour of the island a few years ago. Barbados Food & Rum Festival – One of the Caribbean’s premier culinary festivals brings together renowned local and international chefs each year. Meet Award-Winning Read more
As Canadians face the peak summer travel season, new research from Intrepid Travel suggests they are looking beyond crowded hotspots and social media-driven hotspots in favour of local connection, human expertise and experiences that positively impact the people and places they visit. The company’s Meaningful Travel Index, based on a national survey of 2,000 Canadians conducted by Wakefield Research found nearly all Canadians (93%) would consider changing their travel habits to help reduce overtourism, while 84% say it is important that their travel positively impacts local people and places. More than seven in 10 Canadians (71%) say overcrowding at popular destinations Read more
MSN has a fun (maybe not to him) look at European travel expert Rick Steves’ fave places – and not so fave – places in Europe. Rick (I dealt with him briefly when I was travel editor at the Toronto Star) doesn’t hate anyplace in Europe as far as I can tell, but there do seem to be places he recommends more highly than others. Here’s what MSN Travel and xxx published in a story about Steves’ personal faves – and not so faves. RICK’S FAVES Bruges, Belgium Istanbul, Turkiye Rome, Italy Prague, Czechia Mosel River Valley, Germany Norway NOT Read more
