Air Canada Vacation’s Nino Montagnese has a message for travel advisors

As it celebrates 50 years of travel, Air Canada Vacation’s Vice President, Nino Montagnese penned a letter to travel advisors and supplier partners to say ‘Thanks.’

In it, Montagnese writes: “I wanted to take a moment to personally reach out and thank you for being a part of our journey. Not just today, but every day leading up to this milestone moment, celebrating Air Canada Vacations 50th anniversary year.”

He observed: “Our well-travelled history was made possible thanks to you. The experiences, connections and opportunities we’ve created together are what allowed us to dream bigger and deliver on our promise to Canadians of “making dreams travel.””

Writes Montagnese: “With you, our loyal travel partners at our side, we have grown to become a leader in the leisure travel industry offering Canadians a variety of expertly curated vacation packages and travel experiences to over 180 destinations worldwide, including Mexico and the Caribbean, Central and South America, Europe, Canada, the USA, Australia, New Zealand, Dubai and Asia. With flights on board Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge and the ability to earn and redeem Aeroplan points by being a part of Canada’s most trusted loyalty travel program.”

He points out that: “Together, we have navigated a rapidly changing global landscape with unprecedented challenges and exciting opportunities. From adapting to travel trends, delivering on consumer expectations, embracing technological advancements, and even managing through a pandemic, we underscored the need for resilience, adaptability, and innovation to get us there. Building trust and loyalty even during uncertain times.”

And he continued: “We embraced innovation with the integration of an enhanced website and self-service tools for travel agents; Launched Air Canada Vacations first-ever Travellers’ Top Picks awards celebrating Canadians most-loved destinations; Made important inroads towards sustainability with the launch of our digital brochure along with giving customers the opportunity to offset their carbon footprint through Air Canada’s collaboration with Chooose; All while offering travellers the flexibility to book with peace of mind through our Carefree and Careflex travel protection plans.”

“And together, we will continue on our journey, prioritizing what matters most to Canadian travellers including a diversified portfolio offering travel packages to over 64 sun destinations worldwide including new additions such as Cartagena, Colombia; Miches, Dominican Republic; San Juan, Puerto Rico; and Palm Springs and Napa Valley in California.”

Montagnese writes: “We’re also introducing exciting new tours to Palma de Mallorca, Budapest, Catania, Costa Rica and Belize, all while expanding on our selection of guided tour options in English and French. This year, we also introduced new long stay travel options allowing travellers to “live like a local” in places like Portugal, Spain, Thailand and Indonesia.”

And he makes it clear: “We’re also proud to partner with the world’s most renown cruise lines and river cruises, expanding our oLering to now include Virgin Voyages, CroisiEurope and coming soon Avalon Waterways and Seabourn Cruise Line. And new this year, Canadians dreaming of exploring Australia and New Zealand at their own pace can enjoy the freedom of the open road with premium motorhome and campervan experiences. And by popular demand, we continue to create special event vacations through our fitness retreats, wellness cruises, and Chillout Pride celebrations – always building our travel experiences with accessibility and inclusivity in mind. And that’s just the beginning …”

In closing, Montagese writes: “Thank you for your partnership, trust and support. We can’t wait to see where we’ll travel together next.”