Destinations
Four Seasons Maui Suites Get Full Remakes
Four Seasons Resort Maui has completed a US$3 million renovation of its famed Maile suite and introduced the new Lokelani presidential/residential three-bedroom suite. With design direction from the acclaimed BraytonHughes Design Studios, the resort suites are the largest on the property and the largest in Hawaii. Both suites are suitable to host families and small groups requiring multiple bedrooms during their getaway to...
Business Is Brisk
Air Canada Vacations (ACV) president Eamonn Ferrin is citing long-used counsel when advising agents on what to tell clients wanting to flee winter weather, reports Ian Stalker in this week's digital edition of Travel Courier. Ferrin told a Toronto gathering last week that booking patterns are shaped by many factors and “will always vary,” but his tour operator is enjoying brisk business for the latter half of December and that should be a caution for those who are hesitant when it comes to booking winter travel. “The key message... is book early to avoid disappointment...,”...
Porter Offers Vermont Ski, Snowboard Packages
Porter Airlines flights between Toronto’s Billy Bishop Airport and Vermont's Burlington International Airport begin on Dec. 14, and travellers from Toronto can now purchase ski and snowboard packages through Porter Escapes. Five Vermont ski resorts have partnered with Porter to provide customers with an attractive winter getaway to the Green Mountain State. “Vermont ski and snowboard resorts benefit greatly from this renewed airline service,” said Parker Riehle, Ski Vermont president. “With up to four flights a week, enthusiastic skiers and riders in Toronto can now easily...
A Taste of Taiwan
Taiwan has foodies in mind. The Taiwan Tourism Bureau held a Toronto event Tuesday showcasing the island's cuisine and brought out some culinary star power to reinforce its case. Chef Stuart Cameron, who oversees seven Toronto restaurants, joined two American chefs on a trip to Taiwan and told the Toronto audience that he “ate lots of great food... There's lots of cultural influences in Taiwan [cuisine].” That culinary scene includes night markets where local delicacies are sold from food stalls, enabling people to dine cheaply and quickly if they choose. The Toronto event...
Winter Relief at Dine Out Vancouver Fest
Special room rates and packages in Vancouver are on the horizon, in preparation for the Dine Out Vancouver Festival, which returns for its 13th anniversary, Jan. 16 to Feb. 1, 2-15. Gourmands can opt for a foodie getaway, as a number of hotels are offering discounted room rates of $78, $108 and $138 per night, plus Dine Out packages. Some 200-plus restaurants around the city are offering prix fixe menus, with price points of $18, $28 and $38 p.p. There are also themed events like Street Food City, a gathering of the city’s popular food carts over a week. The Film Feast at the...
Bali Expansion for Meliá
Meliá Hotels International has opened another hotel in Bali. The Meliá Ubud has easy access to the rest of the island and is a 45-minute drive from Ngurah Rai International Airport (also known as Denpasar), the third busiest airport in Indonesia. The resort consists of 49 keys, including a venue for weddings and events, and a relaxation area with a YHI Spa. Indonesia is a special place for Meliá Hotels International, as it was in Bali in 1985 when Melia's Gabriel Escarrer opened the company’s first international hotel, Meliá Bali. Meliá Ubud is the fourth Melia hotel in...
A Committed Relationship
Top tourism officials from Barbados were on hand to host senior executives from Air Canada, the Air Canada Leisure Group and Air Canada Vacations at an event in Toronto this week that celebrated a remarkable relationship – one that has seen Air Canada bringing Canadians to Barbados for 65 years. Back on Dec. 2, 1949, Trans Canada Airlines (TCA) – as Air Canada was known then – departed from Toronto's Malton Airport, bringing Canadians on their first journey to Barbados. The flight aboard the “North Star” took 15 hours – with stops in the Bahamas and Jamaica – before...
Air Canada to Launch Non-Stop Service to Dubai
Air Canada will launch non-stop service between Toronto and Dubai beginning in November 2015. The new route will extend the airline's international network farther into the Middle East at a time of increased travel between North America and the region. “Air Canada's international growth strategy continues to accelerate with the addition of the seventh new international destination to our global network announced in the past year. The three-times-weekly Dubai service will be Air Canada's first non-stop flight to the UAE at a time when air travel between North America and the region...