Canadian hotels are pretty much back to 2019 occupancy levels, and Google searches for Canada are higher than they were prior to the pandemic. Destination Canada’s quarterly report, issued today, finds that travel has strongly rebounded in the country. “Buoyed by hotel occupancy in regions exceeding their 2019 levels and lifts in urban areas closing in on their pre-pandemic performance, average hotel occupancy in June 2022 for Canada stood 1% below its 2019 level,” the report said. “Travel to Canada is in demand, with Google search from international markets exceeding 2019 levels.” Destination Canada said domestic air connectivity has improved Read more
business travel
Aeroplan, the Air Canada points/rewards program, is doing its members a favour by extending its pause on expiry of points until May 31, 2023 The company’s inactivity policy was placed on hold during the pandemic to help members out who were not necessarily earning points while at home. They also made their inactivity policy more flexible during the pandemic, increasing it to 18 months in advance of the Aeroplan program relaunch. “While many of our members are back to travelling and or have engaged with our exciting everyday partners like Starbucks, Uber, and Uber Eats, we recognize that this is Read more
Domestic leisure travel in Canada will soon be back to pre-pandemic levels, says a new report from Destination Canada. But international and domestic business travel aren’t expected to recover for a few more years. Here’s a synopsis of the report. As of spring 2022, with borders open to fully vaccinated travellers and health measures less restrictive in all parts of the country, revenues are forecast to grow to between $80 billion and $85 billion in 2022. Recovery will be uneven, with resort communities performing well, while rural and urban centres that are more dependent on international guests and business travellers Read more
The Toronto tourism economy is rebounding strongly, but there are plenty of cautionary flags flying in the June breeze. I had a chance to sit down (virtually) the other day with Andrew Weir, Executive Vice President Destination Development for Destination Toronto, to talk about where the city is headed. Nobody’s popping the champagne corks just yet, but they might be thinking of what they might want to order at the LCBO when the time comes. “There’s absolutely a sentiment in the community now that we’re on the on-ramp back to that state of a thriving visitor economy,” Weir said. “I Read more
A top Air Canada executive says business travel in Canada could reach pre-2019 levels by the end of this year. There’s also encouraging news about a Canadian leisure travel rebound. In an interview with Reuters, Air Canada Chief Commercial Officer Lucie Guillemette said Canada could even be close to pre-pandemic business travel numbers by Labour Day. “We’re actually very encouraged,” she said this week. “We’re certainly not close to 2019 levels yet, but we are thinking, based on what we’re seeing, most probably by the time we hit Labour Day, or get into 2023 it should be quite close.” That’s Read more
