Italy has taken the most awards in the 11th annual Booking.com Traveller Review Awards, but Quebec, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia and Niagara-on-the-Lake also came out as winners. The Booking.com Traveller Review Awards recognize travel providers from across 220 countries and territories for their commitment to providing consistently excellent service and hospitality over the course of the year. Based on a pool of more than 240 million verified customer reviews on Booking.com, 1,364,415 accommodation partners, 230 car rental providers and 58 airport taxi suppliers are receiving a Traveller Review Award 2023. Italy leads the way again in 2023 with a total of Read more
Europe
New research from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) reveals Paris as the world’s most powerful city destination. But the future belongs to China. The report, sponsored by Visa and researched in partnership with Oxford Economics, analyzed key indicators such as Travel & Tourism’s contribution to GDP, employment and traveller spend. The U.S. had three cities in the top 10: Orlando, New York and Las Vegas. China had three in the top 10: Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. COVID-19 had a devastating impact on Travel & Tourism and in particular major cities around the world as countries closed their borders Read more
Montreal is consistently ranked as one of the world’s best cities to visit. Now it’s ranked as one of the safest. The Berkshire Hathaway Travel Protection Group’s new city safety ratings put Montreal at number three in te world, behind only Reyjavik, Iceland and Copenhagen. “Less than a point separates Copenhagen and Montreal, which should give you an idea of Montreal’s relative safety,” Berkshire Hathaway stated. The only other North American city in the top 15 was Honolulu, ranked #12. “This former No. 1 safest city finished less than a point outside of the top 10,” the report said, From Read more
The House of Commons committee that handles transportation issues this week will launch special hearings this week to examine the travel chaos that ruined the holidays for hundreds of Canadians. CTV reports the first hearing will take place on Thursday and is expected to see Transport Minister Omar Alghabra field a series of questions about what transpired and what accountability there will be. Airlines and VIA Rail also are expected to appear at before the committee. Major storms in Vancouver just prior to Christmas forced WestJet and other airlines to cancel a number of flights. Another storm moved into Ontario Read more
It’s National Trivia Day, which means I have an excuse to publish a few fun geographical/travel questions. Here goes with 10 questions (answers below). QUESTIONS 1. Which is further west, Los Angeles, California or Reno, Nevada? 2. True or false: St. John’s Newfoundland in Canada is closer to Ireland than it is to Vancouver. 3. Everyone knows (or should) that Mt. Everest is the tallest mountain on the planet. What’s the second tallest? 1. Mount McKinley. 2. K2 3. The Matterhorn 4. China and India are by far the most populous countries on earth. What country is third in population? Read more
