Destinations
Tauck Set To Re-Start Europe, Africa Operations
Tauck has announced the official restart of its operations in Europe and Africa, indicating that the company plans to reopen in stages, beginning with selected departures of its Iceland and Treasures of the Aegean small ship ocean cruises in June and July. Also, scheduled for July is the resumption of its cruises in the Galapagos Islands as well as its Tauck Bridges family adventure in Costa Rica. In August, Tauck’s guided safaris in eastern and southern Africa will resume, as will its land tours in Spain, France and Portugal. European river cruises -- with departures...
Get Bright About The City Of Light
Paris will be in the spotlight in an upcoming webinar for Canadian travel agents hosted by Atout France Canada and Air France. Set for June 10 at 1 pm, the training session will provide agents with the latest updates on the City of Light, along with details of Air France's programs and safety protocols. Catherine Guillemart, executive vice president Air France-KLM Canada and Mélanie Paul-Hus, director Atout France Canada will open the session and greet travel advisors and members of the trade. Webinar participants will also have a chance to hear from partner suppliers, including...
Let’s Get Uncomfortable … One Year Later
It’s time to get uncomfortable again as the team at Let's Get Uncomfortable (LGU) is inviting members of the industry to “Confronting Anti-Black Racism in Travel & Tourism: One Year Later.” The event will take place on June 15 at 4:30 p.m. ET / 1:30 p.m. PT and will see LGU's Shalene Dudley, founder of Latitude Concierge Travels and co-founder of UNPACK Consulting, sitting down with three travel professionals to discuss their personal journeys with this movement, how -- or whether -- industry perspectives have changed in the past 12 months, and where we go from...
All Together On The Road To Brighter Days
“One thing is certain, as Regulator we need to continue to reach out to stakeholders, listen and embrace the inevitable changes ahead, TICO’s president and CEO, Richard Smart tells Canadian Travel Press. And to do that, Smart makes it clear that TICO needs to keep those stakeholders “informed and aware so that they can plan for and purchase travel with confidence in this new post-pandemic era of travel.” Smart is clearly aware that for more than a year now, most [Ontario] registrants have been suffering with little to no revenue. Ontario’s registar notes that:...
Numbers Down, But Confidence Growing: UNWTO
There is “a slow uptick in confidence,” according to the latest UNWTO Confidence Index, although the more sobering news is that international tourist arrivals were down 83% in the first quarter of 2021 as widespread travel restrictions remained in place. The UNWTO reports that between January and March 2021 destinations around the world welcomed 180 million fewer international arrivals compared to the first quarter of last year. Asia and the Pacific continued to suffer the lowest levels of activity with a 94% drop in international arrivals over the three-month period. Europe...
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla Takes Gamers To Ireland
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is taking its fans on a virtual trip to Ireland, immersing them in the country’s landscapes included in the game’s first major expansion, Wrath of the Druids. Playing as Eivor, a fierce Viking clan-leader, gamers will have to make their way through haunted forests and dazzling sceneries while gaining influence among Gaelic Kings. And to celebrate Ireland’s starring role in the recently launched expansion, Tourism Ireland has teamed up with Ubisoft to highlight the destination’s otherworldly landscapes, rich culture and fascinating myths and...
Tracking The Bright Spots
There’s good news … and … there’s bad … That pretty much sums up the message in the Pacific Asia Travel Association’s (PATA) mid-year, revised Asia Pacific Visitor Forecasts for 2021-2023. The bad news is that PATA’s revised forecast indicates “a hard year ahead in 2021,” but the good news is the recovery will occur thereafter, albeit in a “very uneven fashion.” In releasing the mid-year forecast, PATA notes that with the extreme volatility in the travel and tourism sector brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and the resultant containment policies and...
Do It Now
Lay out an implementation plan based on the recommendations by the COVID-19 Testing and Screening Expert Advisory Panel report and do it now. That’s pretty much the message that the Canadian Travel and Tourism Roundtable has for the federal government, and pointing out in the process that Canadians are doing their part in getting vaccinated so it’s now time to provide clear, timely, and safe guidance on reopening travel and reuniting families and friends. The Expert Panel recommends eliminating quarantine for fully vaccinated travellers, implementing changes to testing and...