If you’re a Canadian and you can’t find your friends or neighbors this week, look south. American Express says there’s “high demand” for international travel this March Break, and that Canadians seem to have headed south. Again. The company says the top five international destinations for Amex Cardmembers this March Break are: Florida London New York Los Angeles Las Vegas Yahoo Canada says Amex Trendex data found that 53 per cent of Canadians plan on spending more on travel this year, compared to 2022. The website also quotes Skyscanner as saying the top five destinations for Canadian travellers between March Read more
Europe
WestJet’s controversial takeover of Sunwing is set to be approved today by the Trudeau government. WestJet also has been given federal licenses for flights to Hong Kong, the Philippines, Singapore and Malaysia. The Globe and Mail this morning (March 10) reported that the announcement will be made today, providing WestJet with a huge increase in its share of the packaged vacation business. Calgary-based WestJet and Toronto-based Sunwing announced the proposed merger in March, 2022. The federal Competition Bureau later stated that the takeover would lead to fewer choices for Canadian travellers, and higher prices. The Globe story said the Trudeau Read more
According to the latest Longwoods International tracking study of American travelers, 93% of them have trips planned in the next six months, the highest level in three years. A fifth of them have trips planned within a month, a quarter will travel in one to two months and almost a third have travel planned in three to five months. “Inflation, higher interest rates and other economic headwinds are no match for consumer demand for travel,” said Amir Eylon, President and CEO of Longwoods International. “The outlook for spring break travel and summer travel is very positive.” The latest Destination Analysts Read more
Federal Auditor-General Karen Hogan will launch an audit of the Trudeau government’s controversial ArriveCan app, which skyrocketed from an initial cost estimate of $80,000 to a whopping $54 million. The Globe and Mail says the audit adds “a new layer of independent scrutiny” and follows a House of Commons vote last November that asked the Auditor-General to look into the issue. Liberal and Green Party MP’s voted against the idea. Federal politicians have been demanding answers since October, when The Globe and Mail first reported that the cost to build and maintain the travel-related app was on track to reach Read more
Toronto Pearson to Limit Flights This Spring + Summer; China Tourism Rebound and Scenic Cruises 2024
Toronto Pearson Airport officials say they’ll begin capping the number of passengers who can fly to the U.S. or come into the country from Europe. In a statement sent to me today by email, the Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA) said it has “taken decisive measures designed to flatten peak-hour schedules for the March Break and the upcoming summer season” by controlling the number of passengers who go through the airport each hour. “These include hard limits on the number of commercial flights that can arrive or depart in any given hour along with limits on business/general aviation flights. In Read more
