White Lotus is spurring Canadian searches for hotels in Thailand, the price of a NEXUS travel pass is going WAY up, and Canada Jetlines Announces flights between Toronto and Miami. WHITE LOTUS FILMING SPURS SEARCHES FOR THAILAND HOTELS Queue the White Lotus theme song—KAYAK data shows Canadian searches for five-star hotels in Thailand are up 62 per cent year-over-year since the show’s season three location was released on Instagram, along with an eight per cent drop in hotel prices year-over-year. The most popular resort destinations for Canadians include Bangkok (avg. $113/night), Pattaya (avg. $80/night), Phuket City (avg. $123/night), Read more
Fairmont Hotels
The Hawaiian government has asked visitors to stay away from West Maui until October 8 so it can deal with the terrible damage from the Lahaina fire. But it’s encouraging visitors to head to other areas of the island and support businesses that rely on tourist dollars. That’s especially so for smaller, independent shops versus the Costco’s and Starbucks of the world. Besides dining or shopping, there are tons of great nature spots to see and enjoy. West Maui definitely needs time to heal. But the area that’s closed for tourism is a tiny fraction of the island of Maui, Read more
There’s always something new in San Francisco. This year they’re celebrating some things that are rather old as well. I recently spent a few days in the City by the Bay checking out things both old and new. Okay, and a few things in between. Here’s a look at some of the highlights. SOME THINGS NEW HOTELS Hyatt Regency SoMa The Hyatt Regency San Francisco Downtown SoMa, previously known as the Park Central hotel, reopened last year after a full, $70 million renovation/reimagination. We had a 23rd floor suite in cool shades of grey and black, with brown and Read more
So, you’re tired of airline delays? You’re in good company. WestJet CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech took to his Twitter account (@AHoensbroech) on Thursday and blasted Navigation Canada for a 2.5-hour delay on his flight to Vancouver. “Frustrating! Delayed by 2.5h on our own @WestJet flight to @yvrairport because @navcanada is understaffed,” he wrote. “We would have been perfectly on time, now many guests will miss their connections. Shows again why we need a proper shared accountability system across the entire sector!” Daily Hive quoted a Navigation Canada (NavCan) official as saying that staffing matters are just one of many issues Read more
Ladies and gentlemen, step right up to the weight scale and get ready to board your flight. It may sound, um, heavy-handed, but Air New Zealand is planning to ask passengers to weigh themselves before climbing onto the plane. Now, before you get your knickers in a knot, please understand that the airline says this is a once every five years measure that would be purely voluntary. My friends at Open Jaw Network report the weigh-ins would not be a permanent policy, and that the New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority is requiring the move so it can properly determine airplane Read more
