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A year into the Pandemic – the future of Travel in Canada—

From the news over the past month, it would be reasonable to believe that the Canadian Government has decided to shut down Canada’s largest single industry (travel and tourism) completely.

• Mandates a shut down of the Canadian Cruise industry till Spring 2022 – the most severe and punitive regulation of any jurisdiction on earth. In BC alone, the cruise industry generates $2.8 B per year and 18,000 jobs.
• Shuts down all “sun travel” (Caribbean and Mexico) until the 30 April 2021.
• Shuts down all but 4 Canadian airports and creates a very convoluted “3-day forced pay” hotel quarantine system – then gives all the business of booking these thousands of hotel nights to an American company, American Express (who then services the requests from their US call centers).
• Canada – the second largest country on Earth – is the ONLY country on Earth NOT to have a support relief package for airlines. As a result, domestic travel has declined 90% from 2019. Compare this to only a 66% decline in domestic US air travel, where airlines received financial aid from the federal government.

Despite these governments actions and lack of support for the industry, we at Great Canadian Travel are still excited about our future in Travel and Tourism. We have not been idle and look forward to unveiling several new initiatives, new products, new services, and new developments which will increase our ability to serve you, our clients.

Till we can travel again,

Ian Kalinowsky President & Owner

2020 is nearly done! Like us, we’re pretty sure you won’t be sorry to see this year go!

It’s been a tough year for a lot of people, for small businesses and entire industries. We would never have dreamed when we welcomed in 2020, that the year would so dramatically affect the entire world’s travel, tourism and hospitality sectors.

And though the year has been very tough on our staff and their families I am very grateful to have them by my side, assisting clients with past issues and helping fulfill their travel dreams for the future. Read More >

KE = 1/2 MV²
Kinetic energy is equal to 1/2 of the mass of an object multiplied by its velocity squared.

Kinetic energy of an object is the energy it possesses once it is in motion. Until the object is in motion all of its energy is simply ”potential energy.” The key to the sentence Is ”motion”, for without motion there is nothing except potential.

What does a lesson in physics have to do with travel?

I think it is all about the potential to be in motion; to explore; to expand our horizons and our understanding of the people and the planet that we live on. Today, with the world gripped by a pandemic, it really is about potential. There is no “kinetic energy” in the world of travel.

Physics really does not expand on the notion of WHY, but I think it is important. Motion, for the sake of motion, is really meaningless. There needs to be a purpose. With the restrictions on travelling, even outside of one’s door at home, there has become a much greater emphasis on the purpose of our travels. Read More >

Welcome to the ever-changing world of global travel. The only constant is that nothing is constant, certain or sometimes even known for sure.
There is a tremendous amount of enthusiasm in the travel headlines as countries, destinations and resorts announce that they are “Open for Business”. While we are encouraged by these announcements, as travel professionals interested in providing you with the best advice, we are concerned.
The term “Open” now comes with so many caveats, that it is necessary to read and interpret the fine print.  “Open” (if you come with Negative pre-test done within 10 days , which can be overturned if “you exhibit signs” as determined by health officials greeting the plane ) says the ad for Jamaica. “Open” says Iceland, and then, once you land, charges you about US$150 to take a test, quarantine for 12 hours and then be informed if you (and your plane) pass. What happens if you or the six rows around you do not pass? A mandatory 14-day quarantine – at your expense.   Read More >

Travel is not just about people going somewhere. It is about inspiration, opportunity, dreams, ambitions and about building lifelong connections. COVID-19 has not made any of these things disappear.

In many ways the desire for real connectivity is being increased. Travel has changed forever. One major change may be seen in the reasons that we travel, with a greater sense of desire to be connected to people. Rather than just focusing on the cheapest trip to go somewhere for a couple of days, our travel will be about our families and friends – the desire to go and see loved ones that Zoom or FaceTime just doesn’t fulfill. A family trip away to “really” spend time together. Or, given the dramatically increased “travel hassle factor“, travelling with a purpose.

Read More >

Happy Canada Day, everyone!

Despite the pandemic and unusual times we are going through we are truly blessed to live and work in Canada. I am reminded of this every day, when I watch the news from around the world and see the struggles facing other countries. We have stable governments, federally and provincially; a diverse economy that is adapting to the present challenges and needs; a great health care system and wonderful opportunities as citizens and as a country.
Read More >

Hello all,

Last week I wrote about airline schedules and reservations from our Canadian clients’ perspective, this week I’ll tackle it from the viewpoint of our American clients.

Skift is a travel industry investigative journalism online publication. On May 26th, they published a very interesting article that I want to bring to your attention, How Airlines are Generating Revenue on Flights That Will Never Take Off.
“US airlines are selling a lot of flights they have no intention of operating. Consumers should beware.- Brian Sumers, Skift – May 26 2020, 2:30am Read More >

Greetings!
Here in Manitoba the sun is shining, the temperature is improving, and May flowers are popping out. Businesses in Manitoba can open again under the “new normal” rules of maintaining physical distancing, sanitization processes and so on. New cases of Covid-19 here are non-existent and there is a feeling of optimism in the air.
Having been cooped up in our many forms of self-isolation there is an understandable desire to get out, to return to the “old normal” and to travel again. We are seeing an increase in the number of inquiries as to where and how people can travel.
As much as I welcome this increased desire to travel, and I certainly look forward to the day our travel business is running full steam again, this letter is about caution. Today, I’ll focus on this from our Canadian clients’ perspective, next week from that of our American clients’ viewpoint, as regulations are quite different between the two countries. Read More >

Dear clients,

We’re past the 2-month mark of the COVID-19 pandemic and things here in our part of the world are beginning to look very positive and hopeful. We know there’s a long way to go before our world opens up fully. But, little by little, we’ll get there.

Our staff continues to be here for our clients, supporting them and guiding them through a myriad of rebooking and rescheduling options and, in some cases, refunds. New bookings are being made for travel in late 2020, in 2021 and even into 2022. Yes, we will travel again!

Most of our clients, and the majority of clients of travel companies around the world, realize that these are unprecedented times and that we find ourselves in a situation none of us could possibly have foreseen. They understand that policies are constantly changing, are not consistent from supplier to supplier, even differing from country to country with the same supplier. And they are aware that our industry has been almost decimated by the global shutdown.

Unfortunately, not all people are understanding of the difficult situation faced by agencies, travel and tourism suppliers.  The debate rages on about whether a travel credit versus a refund is fair compensation during these unique times. Those who argue for refunds either don’t consider, or simply don’t care, that their demands could well push a business into bankruptcy. Read More >

Dear clients,

The last few weeks have been unusual, there’s no doubt about it!

The travel industry, in general, all but shut down within a matter of days. But, the work for our travel business didn’t disappear, as we had clients who we needed to help get home. And there were lots of future trips to be rescheduled or cancelled. Difficult decisions had to be made as to staffing levels and, after discussions with each staff member individually by phone, many were temporarily laid off. During that time we kept in touch through weekly updates about what was happening in our offices in Winnipeg and Edmonton; news from our suppliers and the status of various government programs. I shared as much information as I possibly could, to keep all of our team members “in the loop”.

My staff members, those who were still working and those who were laid off, continued to communicate with one another, to share information about files or news, or just to say “Hi, thinking of you”. It was heartwarming to see the comradery between colleagues during a tough time.

Read More >

Dear clients,

Two months – a new vocabulary – a new way of living and relating to people around us – eternal hope that sometime “our new normal” will be restored to something resembling our “old normal.” This week there appeared to be a small light at the end of the tunnel as businesses in Manitoba, Canada and other places around the world started to open back up. “Slowly and cautiously” will be the mantra to ensure that the “second wave” of the virus does not cause us all to have to revert to complete isolation once again.

Two months is a long time to be away from each other at the office. Two months is a long time to be away from our clients. But as I walked to work this morning, listening to the birds just starting the day and observing the sky change colours in the pre-dawn, my thoughts were not on despair but on gratitude.

Today is National Travel Agent Day and it formally gives me the reason to pause and say to our travel consultants, “Thank you for your outstanding work! Thank you for Creating the Best Days Ever for our clients. Thank you for your caring, your professionalism, your knowledge and your expertise.”

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Dear clients,

Gratitude for my gutters and eaves

It had been about 70 days since I last had a day off work. A big work project, then our busy travel season started and then – boom – Covid-19! Like so many business people I am fighting for survival. I plan. I try to figure out the next government relief program and I try to deal with our hundreds of suppliers from all over the world who are all facing difficulties.

Our consultants are still busy re- arranging credits, refunds and doing re-bookings from thousands of trips. Clients continue to praise the diligent efforts of our staff and I can honestly say that some of the comments bring tears to our eyes. I am so very grateful that the efforts of our staff are recognized by you, our clients, and I thank you for taking the time to send your feedback to us.

I haven’t slept a lot in the last 50 days, worrying about things. But, my 28 year-old son who is living with us said, “Dad let’s go and replace those leaking eaves on the house.” Reluctantly I agreed. Read More >

Dear clients,

“We believe in the power of travel. It connects business partners, families and friends. Travel also allows us to broaden our horizons and to open our minds to new cultures and countries. We believe in helping you Create your best Days Ever! and for many of our clients that would involve an experience created from some travel that they took.”

This was the opening paragraph of my last letter to you and I wanted to repeat it for the following reason: It is missing something or rather someone. It does not emphasize enough the travel consultants that are here to help you. Over the past 5 weeks, when the travel world simply stopped, a group of people did not stop. Tirelessly they assisted clients trying to get home, then process refunds and credits from suppliers whose rules and procedures were changing on a daily basis. This group of people continued to provide outstanding service even after they and the entire global industry was laid off. As countless testimonials received indicate this service by our Travel Consultants was not only provided to our clients but to ANYONE that phoned, emailed or otherwise contacted us.

It was heartwarming and extremely inspiring to receive so much positive feedback from those we helped in some of the worst days in travel.  Here are just a couple of the messages we received:

• The dedication and charity that you and your staff are showing is astounding, Ian. I will never forget it and will retell it many times.
• I would like to commend Martha Banias for the amazing assistance she provided me in getting my son Kevin home from France just before the flights ended. She went above and beyond the call of duty and was a real angel of mercy. (This client’s son had booked his flights “online” and couldn’t receive any assistance from the online company)

Read More >

Faceless, online electronic booking systems proved during the current COVID-19 crisis just how much they care about their “customers”. Expedia, the largest online travel agency in the world, proved just how much it cares about its clients. The hundreds of thousands of complaints, the high level of frustration being unable to even get through to their call centers and the start of class action lawsuits all point to a company that was unable to provide a service to their clients. They can handle huge amounts of automated bookings, but when it comes time to handle customer service issues, their systems totally fall apart and fail. And who pays the price for that failure? Their “clients”.

As a small business operating out of brick and mortar offices in Winnipeg and Edmonton, Canada, our clients know who we are, they know where to find us, they know they can get in touch with us, they know who they’re entrusting their travel plans to.

When you book online, do you really know who you’re buying from?

For interest sake, let’s take a look at the world’s Online Travel Agencies or travel booking engines that so many travellers use. Essentially there are only two: Expedia Group (running under 23 different brands) and BookingHoldings (previously PriceLine, running under the brands of Bookings.com, Priceline, Kayak, Open Table and Agoda). These two giants combined control 82% of the world’s online bookings!

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Iceland Scuba Diving – one of my Best Days Ever!

I am a Scuba Diver. I have dived hundreds of times in Mexico, Roatan, Belize, Cuba, Thailand and Canada. But, my single best dive was at the Silfra Dive site in Iceland with my eldest son David.

  Silfra is a fissure between the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates in Thingvellir National Park. It was formed by earthquakes in 1789 when the tectonic plates tore the earth apart and created this fissure. It is a “living” dive site in that the continents drift apart at a rate of 2cm per year. Silfra is the only place in the world where you can dive (or snorkel) directly in a crack between two continents.

The Silfra fissure cut into the underground spring and filled with glacial melt-water from the nearby Langjökull glacier. The water is filtered through porous underground lava for 30-100 years before reaching the spring that feeds into Silfra. The water is therefore extremely pure by the time it reaches the north end of Thingvellir lake and it allows for underwater visibility of over 100 meters in Silfra. For reference good visibility in the ocean is about 100 feet (33 meters). The underwater visibility of the water in Silfra will rarely, if ever, be surpassed. Silfra is said to have the clearest water in the world. Read More >