Destinations
Tourism Gets Creative
From baking a croissant in Paris to learning how to weave according to Mayan tradition or dancing the Rumba in Barcelona, many travellers are looking to interact with locals in creative ways while discovering foreign cultures, reports Ann Ruppenstein in this week's digital edition of Travel Courier. "Creative tourism is a new form of travelling, that can satisfy classic tourists, as well as other profiles like seniors, singles, MICE, food and wine lovers, as long as they are invited to participate actively in creative and authentic activities," says Caroline Couret, co-founder and...
Group Germain Adding Alt Hotel in Saskatoon
Group Germain Hotels is adding a new Alt Hotel to the River Landing area of Saskatoon in 2018. The stylish property will be a key feature of the city's extensive River Landing development project, a new extension currently under construction in the south downtown business district. The 15-floor Alt Hotel will be located northeast of the intersection of Spadina Crescent East and 2nd Avenue, in front of the Remai Modern Art Gallery and within walking distance of many of the city's other main attractions. All 155 guest rooms will offer views of the South Saskatchewan River. The...
Going Exotik
Exotik Tours has launched a series of tours, cruises, long stays, self-drive and FIT packages to some of its most popular destinations in Iceland, the UK, Ireland, Italy, Eastern Europe, Malta, Portugal, Spain, Morocco and Croatia, to name a few. “With over 35 years of experience and a team dedicated to create unique experiences, Exotik Tours has adapted to a fast evolving industry,” says David Boigné, VP of specialty products. “We strive to offer the best tailor-made vacation packages in the industry. Sharing our unique travel products is what drives us. We take customization...
Big Island Chocolate Festival Set For May 13-14
With the theme “Lavalicious - A Chocolate Salute to the 100th Birthday of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park,” the fifth annual Big Island Chocolate Festival is set for May 13-14 with events headquartered from the Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel (pictured). Visitors can indulge in the alluring, rich taste of chocolate – in both its sweet and savory forms – while participating in a host of fun and informative chocolate-themed activities. The two-day chocolate extravaganza includes a cacao plantation tour at Original Hawaiian Chocolate Factory, a college culinary competition and several...
2015 A Record Year for Toronto Tourism
For the sixth consecutive year, tourism in Toronto increased in 2015 as Canada's largest city welcomed a record 14.03 million overnight visitors. According to Tourism Toronto, a further 26 million people travelled to Toronto for day trips, totalling 40.4 million visitors for the year in Canada’s most-visited destination. Visitors to Toronto spent $7.2 billion during their trips, the highest amount of economic activity the sector has ever generated. Toronto surpassed four million international visitors for the first time in 2015 as American and overseas travellers continued to...
Florida Shines
Visit Florida’s chief marketing officer has confirmed that the Sunshine State welcomed more than 100-million visitors for the first time ever in 2015, reports Montreal editor, Mike Dunbar in this week's digital edition of Canadian Travel Press. Paul Phipps told a Florida Huddle audience in Tampa last week that the record-shattering total included 15 million international arrivals and he predicted that the total visitor count would balloon to 125 million by 2020. The 2015 number represented Florida’s fifth record-breaking visitation year in a row, said Phipps, who explained,...
Insight Campaign Puts Spotlight on Germany
Insight Vacations has launched a new “Europe Now” campaign that offers agents and their clients enticing incentives to book. Every month, Insight will spotlight one European destination to help agents promote with their clients, and for every booked itinerary featuring the “destination of the month,” they will earn a bonus commission. The first destination to be highlighted is Germany – recently topping the list of “Best Countries” ranking from the U.S. News and World Report. Agents who book any European journey from Insight Vacations 2016-17 Europe & Britain...
Mexico Takes Aim At Zika
Tour operators from Canada and the United States were given an update on Mexico's efforts to both prevent and contain the Zika virus. In a briefing organized by the Mexico Tourism Board (MTB), officials from Mexico's Ministry of Health outlined how the Mexican government and tourism industry have been handling the situation. During the meeting in Cancun, Dr. Alberto Diaz Quiñonez, Deputy General Director of the Mexican Institute for Diagnostic and Epidemiology, told operators that Mexico has only 34 confirmed cases of the Zika virus, which represents just 0.03% of the total cases...