California remains the top choice for Canadians travelling to the U.S., Visit California officials say. “We’re the number one travel destination in the U.S.,” Andrew Levine of Development Counsellors International, a media relations firm that represents the state, said at a Visit California event in Toronto on Monday, April 4. A January 2022 study found that the likelihood of Canadians visiting the Golden State was up 46.6%. “The engine of travel is restarting,” Levine said. Air Canada and WestJet fly from Canadian cities to California, as does Swoop and Flair. Canada Jetlines is expected to arrive soon, as is Air Read more

Americans are itching to hit the road again, a new travel study says. Destination Analysts surveyed American travelers and found that 87.6% have current trip plans. Eighty one per cent of American travelers report strong excitement for their travel this year and 86.2% are in a ready-to-travel state-of-mind. The survey also found that a record high 57.9% feel things are closer to normal in the U.S. Americans’ perceived impact of COVID on their ability to have meaningful travel experiences is at a record low (35.9%). Another bit of good news is that avoidance of conventions and conferences reached a record Read more

WestJet is celebrating a milestone in recovery with its highest single-day guest count since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Today, the airline is expected to fly an estimated 48,000 guests on more than 450 flights. “Today’s milestone is a direct reflection of our guest’s desire to return to the skies and their renewed confidence in air travel,” said Alexis von Hoensbroech, CEO of WestJet. “This is a strong signal for demand and the recovery of our industry as we look ahead to the busy summer travel season.” This summer, WestJet is set to return its network to near pre-pandemic levels, Read more

As COVID–19 restrictions are lifted and more and more Canadians look to travel abroad, the government of Canada says it’s making it easier to renew your passport. The Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, and the Honourable Karina Gould, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, today announced the expansion of the simplified renewal application process for Canadian passports. Beginning today, March 31, Canadians in Canada and abroad can now use the simplified process to renew an expired passport as long as it was issued within the last 15 years. The Trudeau government said the simplified process Read more

Consumers are optimistic about their 2022 cruise travel plans. That’s the overall sentiment from a recent survey conducted by arrivia, a leading travel loyalty and cruise booking technology platform that works with consumer-facing companies worldwide. The company surveyed 1,453 Americans between November 3, 2021, and January 10, 2022, all of whom are members of a travel club or travel benefits program, about their attitudes and preferences around cruise travel. Initial responses were collected just a few weeks before the emergence of the COVID-19 Omicron variant, with responses also being recorded into January 2022 as it became the dominant strain worldwide. Read more

A new era has come for travel to Canada today (April 1, 2022).   As of April 1, fully vaccinated residents and visitors coming into Canada no longer have to show a negative result from a COVID-19 test.   That means Canadians can travel out of the country and not have to worry about finding an expensive COVID-19 test. They also don’t have to worry that they’ll be denied entry to the country because of a positive test result.   It also means foreign visitors can avoid pricey tests and the worry of testing positive prior to their flight.   Read more