Destinations
COVID-19 And Canadian Travel Intentions
In its Winter Travel Intentions Outlook for the Winter of 2020-2021, Outbound Canada reports that: “As would be expected, the COVID-19 crisis continues to have a substantial impact on the travel activity of Canadians. The most recent travel intentions survey indicates that just 36% of adults plan to take a leisure trip between November 2020 and April 2021, a significantly smaller share than last year (64%). And it continues that: “Compared to last year, the proportion of respondents who are currently planning any leisure travel has decreased most dramatically in British...
Hong Kong Wine & Dine Festival A Success
Officials in Hong Kong are celebrating the success of the 2020 Hong Kong Wine & Dine Festival. It was the first time the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) had adopted an “online + offline” format for the mega event, ensuring that the public could take part without worrying about the COVID-19 outbreak. The event was held during the five consecutive weeks (Nov. 11 to Dec. 15) and the Festival had laid a full table of gastronomic experiences. Meanwhile, the HKTB leveraged the event to promote and sustain Hong Kong’s exposure to visitor source markets. The Online...
Still Time To Join The Feast
Indigenous Culinary of Associated Nations (ICAN) is extending its Indigenous Feast Boxes campaign throughout the holiday season. Due to overwhelming interest and the support of many generous donations across the country, ICAN is closer to reaching its goal to feed up to 1,700 families (approximately 8,500 people) and is confident it can reach its target of $60,000. People now have until Jan. 10, 2021, to donate to the campaign aimed at supporting Indigenous chefs and their teams across Canada and providing meal kits to Indigenous families and community members in...
WTTC Hits 200 At The End Of 2020
Following its launch in May this year, the World Travel & Tourism Council’s (WTTC) Safe Travels stamp has now been adopted by 200 destinations around the world. The WTTC’s Safe Travels stamp – launched earlier this year – was created in order to restore traveller confidence and revive the global travel and tourism sector, which has been left devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, as more destinations around the world continue to adopt the Safe Travels stamp, the incredible 200 destination milestone was reached, with Chile, U.S. Virgin Islands, Belize,...
Closing Countries Is Counterproductive: WTTC
The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) says that closing countries is counterproductive and will seriously delay the economic recovery Gloria Guevara, WTTC president & CEO, said: “While protecting public health is paramount, blanket travel bans cannot be the answer. They have not worked in the past and they will not work now.” Guevara argued that: “If a comprehensive and quick turnaround testing regime were in place at airports across the country to test all travellers before they depart, it would ensure only those infected with COVID-19 are isolated and are...
Agents Reconnect With Jamaica On Fam
A select group of Canadian travel agents had an exclusive opportunity to experience Jamaica and see the country’s health and safety protocols in action during a recent FAM trip hosted by the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB). Ten agents from Ontario and Quebec enjoyed a sunny week on the island accompanied by tour guide Jerron Britton, JTB Senior Business Development Manager. The trip, which took place from Nov. 29 to Dec. 5, was the first JTB-organized FAM trip for Canadian agents in 2020. Angella Bennett, regional director, Canada, Jamaica Tourist Board, said: “This trip gave...
Baxter Media Gives Back
We would like to extend our sincere appreciation for your support throughout this very challenging year. In March, we talked about staying strong, working together, keeping hope alive and staying resilient. Throughout, we have stayed true to our mission as our team has continued to serve our industry with daily reporting on news, insights and important information to help you, our readers, make meaningful business decisions. The Baxter Media staff continues to work tirelessly with an undying passion for our industry and hopeful enthusiasm for the future to keep you informed so...
Who Won Visit Utah’s Walker Tracker Challenge?
Over the past 65 days, members of the Canadian travel industry from coast to coast were busy racking up steps to take part in Visit Utah’s Walker Tracker challenge. The journey began in Salt Lake City and finished in St. George, Utah with 25 state milestones passed along the way using the Walker Tracker app. In total, 823 participants from two of Utah’s key international markets — Canada and Australia/New Zealand — took part in the challenge, taking more than 320 million steps between Oct. 15 and Dec. 18. This was a completion challenge and not a race to walk 390,000 steps across...