TORONTO In a year that saw the global grounding of planes, the closure of international borders and a halt on tours and cruises around the world, there’s no question that the COVID-19 pandemic has devastated the travel & tourism sector, across the chain, at all levels. Here in Canada, with little-to-no bookings coming in, over 800 store-front travel agency locations have been forced to close from March 2020 to March 2021, while members of CATO (Canadian Association of Tour Operators) and other tour operators are faced with year-over-year revenue drops of more than 90%, says CATO Chair Brett Walker.
With many travel and tourism businesses being forced to shutter their doors, concerns over consumer protection are at an all-time high as travellers scramble to get refunds for cancelled flights, cruises and tours. In the case of Ontario retailers that were unable to provide travel services due to bankruptcy or insolvency, Ontario’s Compensation Fund, put in place to cover such an
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Some year soon, ardent cruisers Tim and Cindy McKee hope to actually take their dream trip down the Danube River. The Eganville couple were supposed to have gone in March 2020, but the trip was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The river cruise was rescheduled for July 2020, cancelled, booked for May 2021, cancelled, and is now rebooked again for May 2022.
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A transatlantic cruise the McKees booked from Capetown, South Africa, to Rio de Janeiro for December 2020 was also scrubbed and rescheduled for December 2021.
Bonus commissions, agent rates, contests and more: Here are the Travel Agent Day 2021 promotions
Date: May 7 2021
TORONTO It’s Travel Agent Day, the day for celebrating all the hard work, devotion and enthusiasm travel agents show for their jobs week in and week out.
Now at almost 14 months into the pandemic, this day takes on new meaning for Canada’s travel agents as they continue to face some of the most daunting challenges of their careers.
And while the industry never expected to be dealing with the pandemic for a second year in a row, suppliers are rallying to support Travel Agent Day 2021 with special offers ranging from bonus commissions, to agent rates, to contests and more.