By Jim Byers Member, Society of American Travel Writers (SATW) Canadian medical and business leaders are asking the Trudeau government to remove pre-departure testing entirely for fully vaccinated travellers. Speaking at an event in Calgary today, members of the Canadian Travel and Tourism Roundtable and other experts called on Ottawa to make the change on or before April 1, when the regulations will be updated. Continued testing targeted at solely the travel sector is both unnecessary and not rooted in science, they said. “While the federal government took a step in the right direction by altering the testing regime around Read more
Ottawa
In response to the Russian leadership’s invasion of Ukraine, the government of Canada today said it’s closing Canada’s airspace to all Russian aircraft operators. Minister of Transport Omar Alghabra Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly, today announced that the Trudeau government is prohibiting the operation of Russian-owned, chartered or operated aircraft in Canadian airspace, including in the airspace above Canada’s territorial waters. “The Government of Canada is prohibiting the operation of Russian-owned, chartered or operated aircraft in Canadian airspace, including in the airspace above Canada’s territorial waters,” the Liberal government said in a press release issued at 11:19 a.m. Read more
Canada is set to ease its travel and testing rules in less than 48 hours, but the country’s chief public health officer is suggesting the government will throw things into reverse if needed. The Edmonton Journal and Canadian Press report that Dr. Theresa Tam on Friday (Feb. 25) said that nobody knows what the coronavirus will do next, and that Canada has to be ready to bring back some public health measures if case counts begin to rise sharply again. Noting that viruses often pick up steam when cool weather arrives, Tam said Canada needs be ready for the fall, Read more
Two days after the Canadian government said it was removing its “do not travel” advisory, the warning against international travel is still on the official website. The site, which appears to have been last updated on December 15, 2021 states that Canadians should “avoid non-essential travel outside Canada due to the risk of the Omicron variant that causes COVID-19.” Another government website states that “The Public Health Agency of Canada is advising travellers, regardless of their vaccination status, to avoid non-essential travel internationally.” Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos on Tuesday said the government would lower its travel health notice from level Read more
With an important barrier cast aside by the Trudeau government, Canadian and European tourism industry officials say they expect a huge travel rebound. The Canadian government on Tuesday said it will eliminate the need for those coming into Canada to get costly, PCR-style or molecular testing. Instead, Canadians and visitors will be able to take a rapid antigen-style test within 24 hours of their scheduled flight to Canada or within 24 hours of their arrival at a land borer crossing. “I am pleased to see the government of Canada make a wise choice,” said Paul Nursey, CEO for Destination Greater Read more
