WestJet today celebrated the highly anticipated inaugural flight between Winnipeg and Los Angeles. The departure of flight WS1315 at 7 a.m. local time marked a major milestone for Manitoba’s tourism, trade and business sectors as Winnipeg gains a seamless four-hour link to the globally renowned film and entertainment mecca. “With a thriving film and television industry, our Manitoban guests and partners have long awaited this integral connection and will benefit substantially from convenient flights between both cities,” said John Weatherill, WestJet Chief Commercial Officer. “As the only airline providing direct connectivity between Winnipeg and Los Angeles, this route not only Read more

Messy, smelly rooms, thin toilet paper and outrageous parking charges are some of the things that drive us crazy about hotel stays. A company called PhotoAiD surveyed more than 1,000 travellers to find out what drives them crazy about hotels. The biggest pet peeve for hotel visitors was an unclean room, cited by 48.85% of respondents. Closely behind, and directly related, was a hotel room with a bad smell (48.65%). (Our kids still laugh at the time we were driving home to Toronto from a March break visit to Florida and stopped at an inexpensive chain hotel for the night. Read more

Air Canada recorded positive operating income for the third quarter of 2022, their first “in the black” operating income statement since the start of the pandemic, and officials say the company is on a “robust foundation.” Canada’s largest airline released its third quarter statement today, with a good deal of positive numbers. “We generated $644 million in operating income with a strong operating margin of 12.1%,” said Michael Rousseau, President and Chief Executive Officer of Air Canada. “This was the first quarter since the pandemic began in which we delivered positive operating income. “In addition, we achieved significant improvements in Read more

Canadian residents returned from over 3.7 million trips abroad in August 2022, more than four times as many trips as were taken in August 2021. StatsCan says Canadian trips abroad were up 340.4% in August compared to last year. Still, the August 2022 figure was only 63.4% of the level in August 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic. In the month of August 752,900 Canadian residents returned from visiting overseas, more than double from the same month in 2021 (341,700). During the same month, travel to U.S. increased six-fold over AUG 2021. StatsCan said the number of international arrivals to Canada Read more

Sunwing has announced increased capacity for the 2022-2023 winter season amid continued demand for travel to sun destinations, including the Dominican Republic. For the first time in over two years, Sunwing is returning to 12 more airports this winter and now offering flights to the sun from a total of 26 gateways from coast to coast. From major city centres to airport operations in regions including Atlantic Canada, the Prairies, Northern Ontario and Québec, Sunwing will continue to offer the most direct flights to sun destinations, with overall capacity well over double that of the previous winter season. In light Read more

Air Canada today announced a comprehensive range of new product improvements to elevate the customer experience. The changes will have something for everyone, including upgraded Economy dining, more in-flight entertainment and connectivity options, and enriched Premium offerings. Beginning in November, customers will see new and restored services in Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounges and in Premium cabins onboard, a new Economy Class dining service with a celebrity chef entree internationally plus fresh, new Bistro choices in North America, and in a first for a Canadian airline, complimentary, high-speed Wi-Fi when travelling Premium Rouge. Starting in 2023 (perhaps in time for Read more