Happy Canada Day: a look at my favourite places in this great country of ours

A golden sand desert that stretches up to the majestic mountains of The Yukon. The sound of small waves galumphing in and out of a lichen-covered rock on a morning canoe paddle in Ontario. The glorious pink cherry blossoms that blanket the Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia in May.

I haven’t seen all of this country, not by a long shot. But I’ve seen enough of Canada’s endless coasts  and wondrous lakes and colourful cities to know we should be celebrating pretty hard when the clock strikes midnight on Sunday and the calendar jumps to Canada Day.

I’ve been hugely fortunate in this job, and in previous posts in my nearly 31 years at the Star, to have seen some magical things. In no particular order, and recognizing I haven’t yet made it to the far north or to Manitoba or Saskatchewan, here’s one very lucky man’s list of some great things to do in a very great country.

-         Sip away in the Okanagan Valley. I’ve been to vineyards all over the world, but none I’ve seen are more beautiful than here. Great wines, too.

-         Tour around in Twillingate, Newfoundland (see photo at right). Majestic icebergs, rocky coasts with romantic lighthouses and signs that say things like “Private Land – Foot Traffic Welcome.” The people here are as nice as advertised. And then some.

-         Drink in Muskoka. Too crowded, yes, but you can still find times when the loons are calling and a lonely canoe paddles past and the pines are lit by the pale morning light and all is right with the world. Hit the Kee to Bala when Blue Rodeo’s in town for the ultimate Canadian weekend. Don’t forget to stop at Weber’s on Highway 11 for a burger.

-         Take a trolley ride on the High Level streetcar in Edmonton. It’s a great old line with vintage cars and guys dressed up like old-time conductors, and you get great views as you cross the North Saskatchewan River.

-         Stroll Rue du Petit Champlain. I like the upper town just fine, but this street perhaps is the most fun in Quebec City. Have a drink at the top of the stairs on the north end and watch the tourists go by, then bed down around the corner at the luxurious Auberge Saint-Antoine or upstairs at the Chateau Frontenac, where they also have a great bar.

-         Ride the peak to peak gondola in Whistler. When you’re finished, tee it up at Big Sky in Pemberton (see photo) an underrated golf experience in Canada. Or rent a bike and check out the forests or ride helter-skelter down the ski hill.

-         Watch the fog roll in from the deep Atlantic on Signal Hill in St. John’s, then retire to a two-person Jacuzzi tub at the Murray Premises hotel. You can make up the rest.

-         Check out the sidewalk cafes of Mile End in Montreal and nosh on a St. Viateur bagel. Stop in for a bologna/salami sandwich with mustard at Wilensky. But don’t dare to ask for substititions. Or request it be cut in half.

-         Take a long walk on the beach in Tofino and watch the winter storms roll in. Splurge and spend a night at one of the country’s top hotels, the Wickaninnish Inn.

-         Drive the Niagara Parkway, preferably in a convertible or on a bike. A tad precious, but one of the prettiest drives in Ontario for sure.

-         Walk along Parliament Hill in the snow, like Pierre Trudeau. It’s a quintessential Canadian experience.

-         Take the gondola to the top of the hill in Banff and watch the sun rise over what feels like the roof of the world.

-         Check out the rhododendron garden in Stanley Park in spring. Then change things up at night with a mai tai in the wonderfully kitschy tiki bar at the Waldorf Hotel in East Vancouver.

-         Ride a bike in a Toronto river valley. We take these playgrounds for granted but our ravines — and the Toronto Islands — are superb spots to enjoy a different side of our city.

-         Take in a lobster supper in a PEI church basement. No pretense, just fabulous shellfish and great, down-home people.

-         Catch the sunsets along Ontario’s Lake Huron shore. There are a million beaches to choose from, but I like Southampton and Port Elgin a lot.

-         Drink in the views of the luscious Annapolis Valley in Nova Scotia. In spring, the valley floor is a carpet of deep green dotted with pink cherry and white apple blossoms, and tall, white church spires rise into the sky. Check out the cemetery in the town of Paradise. Then think about it.

-         Take a drive from Haines Junction and check out Kluane National Park in the Yukon. You might see 10 cars in an hour if it’s a busy day, and the mountains are just as majestic and craggy and moving as those of Banff or Jasper.

Next on my list: Saskatoon, Lake of the Woods, Northwest Territories

Got any suggestions? Drop me a line at jbyers@thestar.ca. You also can follow me on Twitter @jimbyerstravel

 

Brand USA has a new, fresh face charged with increasing tourism down south

Interesting that there's a new sheriff in town for Brand USA, the group trying to boost tourism down south.

It was revealed this week that Jim Evans, the former chief executive for Brand USA, is stepping down. Taking his place will be the top tourism official for California, which has been putting out some pretty good ads (I like the one with Rob Lowe and Betty White) and seemingly knows a thing or two about travel and tourists.

The Los Angeles Times reports that Caroline Beteta, president and chief executive of Visit California, the nonprofit group dedicated to marketing the Golden State, was named interim chief executive of Brand USA, which is in charge of a $150-million media campaign. The times said Betea will continue in her Visit California job.

I've written extensively in this space and in the Star about Brand USA, an international campaign launched in L.A. last month that features singer-songwriter Rosanne Cash and a catchy anthem called "Land of Dreams."

The U.S. Travel Assn. initiated the campaign with the support of several large tourism groups and travel businesses. The campaign will be financed by a $14 fee charged to each international visitor who registers for a visa to enter the U.S., plus donations from private businesses such as hotels and theme parks.

Until recently, the U.S. (to the amazement of many in the industry) had no overall group to try to bring tourists to American soil. Instead, it was left to states or cities to make the effort.

"Brand USA began as just an idea a little more than a year ago, and I have been fully committed to its long-term viability and success, and remain committed to those goals today," Beteta said in a statement.

Prior to her current position with Visit California, Beteta served as vice president of a Washington, D.C., public affairs firm.

While Visit California launched innumerable award-winning campaigns during her tenure, it is probably best known for its television broadcast advertising, which features many of the Golden State's A-list celebrities such as Betty White, the Jonas Brothers, Kim Kardashian, former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and former first lady Maria Shriver, Rob Lowe, Jay Leno, David Beckham, Wolfgang Puck, Clint Eastwood, Jeff Gordon and Jack Nicholson, among others.

WEST JET REWARDS IMPROVEMENTS

WestJet today announced a new agreement with American Airlines that will allow WestJet Rewards members to earn WestJet dollars on flights marketed and operated by American Airlines and its affiliates, American Eagle and AmericanConnection. The agreement provides WestJet Rewards members with the ability to accumulate WestJet dollars faster, especially those guests flying within American's extensive worldwide network of destinations.

WestJet Rewards members earn WestJet dollars on flights and vacation packages with WestJet and WestJet Vacations.  WestJet dollars can then be used like cash and can be used on any date, to any of WestJet's 76 destinations, with no blackout periods, and can even be applied to seat-sale fares. Members also have the flexibility to use their WestJet dollars to either pay in full, or partially pay for their bookings online or through our WestJet Sales Super Centre. Full details of the program can be found at westjet.com/rewards.

Starting today, WestJet Rewards members will also earn WestJet dollars on any flight in American Airline's global network, including North America, the Caribbean, Latin America, Europe and the Pacific. Members can book flights directly with American Airlines or through their preferred travel agent and earn WestJet dollars when they add their WestJet Rewards identification number to the booking.

"This frequent flyer partnership, a first for WestJet, represents the continued evolution of WestJet Rewards," said Marshall Wilmot, WestJet Vice-President, Product and Distribution. "We're pleased to offer a rewards program that's easy, transparent and meets the needs of our guests. We're confident our members will enjoy earning WestJet dollars even faster as they fly with WestJet and on American and throughout its extensive worldwide network."

"Our expanded cooperation with WestJet offers even more opportunities for our AAdvantage members to earn miles on flights to more destinations," said Suzanne Rubin, President, AAdvantage Loyalty Program. "We look forward to continuing our relationship with WestJet and ensuring that our frequent fliers have valuable mileage earning - and eventually redemption - options wherever their travels take them."

The two airlines will continue to expand the relationship further, including the ability for WestJet Rewards members to redeem WestJet dollars on American Airlines flights. A date for redemption for American Airlines flights has not been determined.

 

 

 

A travel editor's still large bucket list includes South America and Africa

Got to talking with family the other day about travel lists, and the places we still want to go. And I realized there are still so many places on mine.

I think most folks figure a travel editor goes pretty much all over the world. But there a ton of places I've never been.

Here are a few. And if anyone has suggestions, please let me know! EMAIL: jbyers@thestar.ca

1. SOUTH AMERICA. I guess I used to figure I'd get stories from this part of the world and that I needed to spend more time in places our readers go to more frequently, such as Europe. But now I look back and think, "Hey, dummy, how come you never have checked out Rio or Buenos Aires (see photo) or the wineries of Chile? I mean, the Inca Road and Machu Picchu get a lot of coverage. Ditto for Patagonia. But there's still a ton I'd like to see, including some of the coast of Brazil and, of course, the Amazon.

2. AFRICA. I once spent three days in Dakar, Senegal but that was covering an International Olympic Committee meeting. I got to see the city a bit and interview the parents of former Toronto Raptor Mamadou N'Diaye. And I got to visit Isle Goree, an island where captured Africans were gathered before making horrible voyages to North America on slave ships. It's a colourful and fascinating but also,ofcourse, very sad and tragic place. I've never made it to Egypt or Morocco or the plains of Kenya or anywhere in South Africa. Needless to say, a safari would be awesome.

3. CAMBODIA. This is pretty high on my list. Yeah, I know; everyone goes to Angkor Wat. But there's a reason some places get a lot of tourists. It's usually because it's a pretty cool place.This explains why tourists go to the Golden Gate Bridge but not so much the Hayward-San Mateo Bridge in the SF Bay Area suburbs. Anyway, I'd love to check out Cambodia and maybe Laos some time, and maybe see some of the islands of Vietnam down in the south. They look pretty cool.

4. MARQUESAS ISLANDS. I've got a real thing about South Pacific culture and this place looks awesome. Remote and artistic (former home to Gauguin, Melville and others) and beautiful, with jagged cliffs and thick jungles and gorgeous water. Definitely near the top of the old bucket list.

5. CANADA'S NORTH. I got a small taste of the Yukon on a recent trip to Whitehorse and Kluane National Park but I'd love to see the Nahanni (see photo) and some of the more remote, beautiful places in the Northwest Territories.

6. PORTUGAL. How I've never made it to Portugal, I have no idea.I just haven't. But I'd love to see Lisbon and the beaches of the Algarve and to explore wineries in the north and eastern parts of the country.

7. SOUTHERN SPAIN. Never been to Seville or Grenada. The village of Ronda looks beautiful and I'd love to check that out some time.

8. SANTORINI. Another must-see spot that has somehow evaded my passport.Come to think of it, the only Greek islands I've been to are Hydra, near Athens and just for a few hours, and Paros, way back in the 1980s. Gotta check out Croatia and the islands of Turkey, as well.

9. UTAH NATIONAL PARKS. I grew up in California but have never visited Zion or Arches or any of those cool-looking areas. Also,I have somehow missed the Custer Battlefield in MOntana, even though I'm a student of the battle and a fan of native American history.

10. MALDIVES. I know it's not that exotic in terms of history or culture (from what I know, anyway), but it just looks so cool and remote, and there are few things in the world that are more enjoyable than an overwater bungalow.

Of course, there are a million great places I HAVE been to. So no complaints at all. Just that this is such a huge, amazing world....

 

Outlet malls and great beaches in northern California/Monterey Bay

SAN FRANCISCO - I’m not much for shopping. But get me to a U.S. outlet mall and I can get into it pretty quickly.

I’m not sure how good the deals are compared to the everyday sort of bargains that U.S. stores put out, but it’s great having so many different stores in one giant area if you want load up on a variety of things.

California may not have the reputation of Florida or New York State or New England for outlet centers, but I find the deals pretty amazing at the Premium Outlets in Vacaville, northeast of San Francisco towards Sacramento and at Gilroy, a half hour south of San Jose.

This time I opted for Gilroy as I wanted to spend some time at the beach in Capitola, close to my family’s cabin in the Santa Cruz mountains. There’s J. Crew and Banana Republic and The Gap and Ralph Lauren and DKNY and lots more, so there’s no shortage of places to buy nice men’s shorts for $30 or shirts for $15 or colourful boxers for $5. That’s especially good if you can find Hawaiian-themed boxers with hula girls or pineapples; the preferred option for men of taste around the world.

From Gilroy, you can take a fine drive through wine and farm country to Watsonville, driving past orchards and farms selling garlic, cherries, strawberries, avocado, peaches and so much more. Watsonville is home to Driscoll’s, which seems to have a world monopoly on winter strawberries and raspberries.

The drive from Gilroy to Watsonville takes you along Highway 152 over Hecker Pass, a winding but not difficult road that goes through forests of pine and eucalyptus trees, ultimately revealing a lovely view out over Monterey Bay.

Capitola is a great, little beach town that’s just east of Santa Cruz, on the north shore of Monterey Bay. There’s a fun shopping district with surf stores and funky clothing shops and some good restaurants along the water.

Sadly, Margaritaville – a Mexican place I’ve always liked – has slid rapidly downhill. Fish tacos were fishy and not at all interesting, and the chicken burrito was cafeteria Tex Mex, I thought. I wouldn’t advise it for food or a drink, as the $9.50 margarita I got was only adequate and quite small – especially by American standards. Better to just order a beer and watch the folks on the beach or gaze on the brightly coloured rental homes along the beach and the small lagoon where a nearby creek empties out.

You can also try the small upstairs patio at Stockton Bridge Café or sit out at Il Pirata or Mr. Toots' Coffeehouse several other places on the water. The beach is about a half-mile long and there’s a great wharf with a restaurant out on the end, and there are wonderful views of the chalky, golden cliffs topped with palm trees and homes with lovely gardens.

I once called Capitola the best California town the Beach Boys never sang about. And I still feel that way…

Getting back to bargains for a minute, I had breakfast with my cousins and family at a place called Dino’s in Castro Valley, in the East Bay, on Sunday. I think they’re trying to establish themselves as a breakfast spot. Either that, or they’re insane, as the breakfast special is two eggs, two sausage links, two strips of bacon and two large pancakes for, wait for it, $2.95.

Yep. Unbelieveable. Okay, the sausages tasted like those microwave types. But even if you don’t eat those, it’s tough to beat eggs, bacon and pancakes for three bucks….

 

Feng Shui airplane analysis is in ... and I guess I'm an isolationist jerk

I got a great item the other day from the folks at FlightNetwork.com, who enlisted a master in the ancient Chinese philosophy of Feng Shui to look at how that ancient art effects people's ... wait for it ... seat selection on an airplane.

I love it.

One of the major principles in Feng Shui (you may know it as the thing that keeps Chinese folks from wanting to buy a house where the stairs of a house empty out towards the street; a sign that good luck will escape your home and, therefore, not a place worth buying) is the Five Elements Theory, said expert Tila Silverio. Those elements, of course, are water, wood, fire, earth and metal.

Silverio says everyone is born into one of these energies or elements and that they effect our personality and choices in life, including why we always sit in the same place in the living room (I like the window) or why we choose the same spot on the airplane (aisle).

Back of the Plane folks (hello, me) are water element, aka "I hate small talk so don't even look at me." Guilty as charged. I HATE chatting with folks on a plane, as it's about the only time I get three-four hours to myself. It's pretty much the only time I read a book or watch a movie. So if someone chats with me, it's infringing on my quality/quiet time. SHUT UP PEOPLE!!

Front of the Plane. Fire element, aka, control freak. They want to be near the airplane controls and think they should be in first class and want to be treated like royalty. Me? Too far from the washrooms, and you keep seeing them slam that curtain on front of you so you dont' see the Champagne cart and the folks dancing naked in the aisles and watching the latest movies in 3D.

Middle of the Plane: Earth element. These folks like to be in the middle of everything. They like to take care of others and will happily (ugh) engage another passenger in conversation. A reminder, people; SHUT UP!!!

Lower Right of the Plane: Metal element, aka "This seat fabric clashes with my outfit but those flight attendant uniforms are FABULOUS." Fun loving and creative people who likely will offer to split their snack with their seatmate. I don't know about these people. I've flown a lot and nobody has ever offered me a bite of their shrink-wrapped, four-day-old, 3 dollar croissant. But I wish they would.

Upper Left of the plane: Wood element, aka "Don't let this book fool you; I'm watching you." These folks love books and often work on their laptop for an entire flight (especially if they have to fly United and watch Adam Sandler movies). But they also have a keen eye for detail and notice where the washrooms are and what's happening and if they're late for departing. And they like to register their displeasure. I think I'm slightly in that category...I gotta admit I often sit in the upper (back) left of the plane. Weird.

So there you have it. I think this is great. Some of it's goofy, but some of it kinda works. I mean, I choose the back of the plane because the seats fill up first up front and the back is likely to have more room. Okay, and less people who want to talk to me and show me photos of their anniversary trip to Paris and their ugly grandchildren. These seats also are closer to the washrooms, an important element at age 55 and nearly 56.

Some folks don't like the back but I don't mind being last off the plane, especially coming into Pearson, because I KNOW MY BAGS WILL TAKE AT LEAST A HALF HOUR TO ARRIVE ANYWAY!!!!!

So now I'm a back of the plane keep your mouth shut Water Element guy and also an Upper Left section Wood Element sort who loves to bitch about airlines and airports on Twitter. Sigh. Maybe I should just fly first class...

Thanks to FlightNetwork.com for the entertaining email!

 

 

Another tragedy in Thailand ... Travel news up and down California

More bad news for Thailand tourism. An Australian travel agent has been killed in Phuket, a popular holiday/beach destination in the southeast Asian nation.

Michelle Smith, 60, a travel agent from Western Australia, was killed during an attempted purse snatching on the island. PerthNow in Australia reports that "Mrs Smith had been walking with a friend, a 42-year-old woman,  near their hotel complex in Kata Noi Bay, on Phuket's west coast, about 10.30pm last night when they were attacked by two men who approached on the bike.

The men had circled the pair several times before attempting to steal their handbags and lashing out with a knife when they couldn't grab them.

The second woman suffered a slash wound to her arm and was taken to hospital in Phuket, but was allowed to leave early today after receiving stitches."

Travelmole and other services report there has been a spate of bag snatching by youths on motorcycles on the island and that women walking on isolated streets are particularly vulnerable.

A young German visitor had her thumb cut off in a similar savage incident in Krabi Town, a province nearby, earlier this year

Just a few days ago, two young women from Quebec were found dead in their hotel room on the Thai island of Phi Phi, apparently victims of poisoning. Travelmole reports six tourists have drowned on Phuket beaches in the space of one month and a day, which is a ridiculously high number and makes me think there's something seriously wrong at play.

CALIFORNIA DREAMING ... ON SUCH A SUMMER'S DAY!

Hey, I'm flying out to San Francisco tomorrow for a family gathering. And I'm looking forward to cooler weather.

Yeah, it's not everyday we here in Toronto want to flee to the Golden State for lower temperatures. But even a heat lover like me is getting knocked out by the high temps and humidity in the Big Smoke the last few days.

As luck would have it, the California tourism folks stepped into the Southern Ontario oven on Tuesday for a soiree at The Courthouse on Adelaide. I also had the chance to chat with tourism folks from Santa Monica, San Diego and Sacramento, as well as Sonoma and the Livermore Valley wine area, which doesn't get enough credit and, yeah, I'm a little biased cuz I grew up not far from there.

San Diego I don't know so well, but they tell me there are more craft breweries - some 40 of them - than almost any city in the U.S. I also was told the La Jolla Playhouse has sent a number of shows to Broadway or London, including Hands on a Hardbody, Peter and the Starcatcher and Jersey Boys.

"The stereoype is conservative folks and the beach," said tourism official Candice Eley. "And the zoo and Sea World. But there's a great food and art scene, and the city has really embraced being a border city."

The pictures she showed me look more like urban San Francisco than "traditional" San Diego. Little Italy (see photo) apparently has become quite the diverse neighbourhood, and looks like it's worth checking out.

Up the road in Santa Monica, Kelly Nagle tells me the LEED certified Shore Hotel is open for biz and that the Fairmont is bringing in a new lounge, The Bungalow, which promises a "Beach Boys/Doors/Led Zeppelin" vibe, whatever that might mean.

The city has a new bike centre where you can rent bikes and also drop off your bags and rent lockers and have a shower. They have bike itineraries for folks who want to check out the beach or the local food scene or arts and culture or even spa/wellness programs.

The Expo Line, which will connect downtown Santa Monica to downtown LA via public transit, is a few years away. But the eastern Santa Monica station should open next year in the Bergamot area of town, which Nagle tells me is filled with art galleries and other fun stuff.

We here in Toronto don't hear a lot about Sacramento, the state capital, but there's a lot to like. The sidewalk cafes go on forever, and there's incredibly inventive food and a great coffee culture in town. There are some 200 wineries within an hour or so of the city, including the burgeoning Lodi area (good, old-vine Zinfandel) and the lovely Amador County wine region, which is up in the lower foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains and has a ton of fun, quirky towns as well as great wine and a casual atmosphere.

I like the Livermore valley quite a bit. The town of Pleasanton is cute a button and also has fabulous cafes and shops and is home to the Alameda County Fair this time of year. Great wineries and golf courses abound, as well. Livermore used to be more of a cowboy town but has become increasingly trendy and boasts such fabulous wineries as Wente, Concannon and Steven Kent.

 

Ottawa kills idea of audio spying at airports (for now), Report from IATA in Beijing.

It's great news that the Harper government has backed down from plans to install listening devices at Canadian airports and border crossings. The crazy thing is, how on earth did it ever get this far in the first place and where does Harper get off lecturing the Chinese about human rights?

For those who missed it, The Star on Monday reported on a plan by the Canada Border Services Agency to introduce audio and video monitoring at Canadian airports.

Cameras we've kinda gotten used to, although their probably are many we don't need. But to listen in on private conversations? Absurd.

The Star on Monday confirmed that the federal privacy commission's office hadn't even received a Privacy Impact Assessment regarding the plan. Maybe the Tories thought we wouldn't notice.

Appalling, really. Maybe airport conversations aren't a national, sexy issue, but you'd have to think the Liberals might gain some ground on this if they play their privacy cards right. After all, the Tories also had that pesky Internet surveillance issue not long ago.

"The recording of conversations obviously constitutes a privacy intrusion," said a spokesperson for the federal privacy commissioner when asked about the eavesdropping issue. "We would want the CBSA to demonstrate the necessity ofr it. In addition, should the measure be deemed necessary, CBSA would have to demonstrate that it has proper safeguards to manage the information, proper compliance mechanisms and appropriate oversight."

Public Safety Minister Vic Toews on Tuesday decided to halt the eavesdropping idea until a Privacy Impact Assessment can be submitted and recommendations from the privacy commissioner can be reviewed by the Harper government.

But that doesn't make me feel confident in any way that this is over.

CHINA ON THE RISE AND SOCIAL MEDIA IN TRAVEL

Star Travel guy Bert Archer files this report from Beijing:

CEOs and other executives of 84 per cent of the world’s airlines were in Beijing last week for the annual general meeting of the International Air Transport Association, also known as IATA.

Given the setting, there was a lot of talk about China. We learned, for instance, that three of the top 10 airlines in the world by volume are Chinese, that Chinese airlines sold 132 million tickets last year, that it was the first country to offer across-the-board e-ticketing, and that Beijing’s enormous three-terminal airport, which handled 77 million passengers in 2011, is now the world’s second busiest. Meanwhile, the English-language Chinese newspapers were reporting that the weakness of the euro against the yuan was encouraging record numbers of young Chinese to take a year or more abroad to study in Europe and travel around the continent while they’re at it. In the travel world, China is getting to be a very big deal indeed.

IATA chief Tony Tyler also reported that in the 11 months and 11 days he’d been at the job, he had taken 165 flights and visited 32 countries. Now that’s a business traveler.

Amid the copious schmoozing that’s the real draw and the real point of such global gatherings, there were formal discussions about social media, the way tickets get sold to passengers, and an odd broadside launched across the bow of Air Canada and more than a dozen other airlines in attendance by an increasingly frustrated, and possibly desperate, Emirates airlines.

It’s in places like this, where all the decision makers are gathered together, that the momentum for changes to the way we all fly and travel can begin to build, so it’s always fascinating to see

In the social media realm, ex-pat Canadian Anita Mendiratta, a tourism consultant for CNN among others, led the discussion of how airlines are using, should be using, and should not be using social media. Execs from KLM/Air France (Martin van der Zee), JetBue (James Hnat) and Air Asia (Azran Osman-Rani) told stories of how well it’s working for them, how it makes every employee a “brand ambassador,” and how it is all, self-evidently, the future and the future is good.

But a poll that IATA took of its membership in preparation for the discussion and found the very few of its members used social media personally, which implied the reason most of the airlines not on the dais make such poor use of this new and possibly permanent form of communication. Among those who did use it, it largely wasn’t Facebook or Twitter, but LinkedIn. “Five years from now,” said Osman-Rani to the gathered airline execurati, “this room has got to be filed with people who have very active social media accounts. If you don’t have that in five years from now, you’re going to be irrelevant.”

One of the more enlightening bits of the discussion was the contribution from Zhao Tian, editor in chief of CN.com, which is behind China’s post popular social media site, Weibo. As everyone in the room had already noticed, you can’t use Facebook or Twitter in China, which made Zhao’s definition of social media, “a way you connect to the world,” either amusing or distressing, depending on your point of view on Chinese insularity.

The other compelling on-stage discussion was about ticket sales. Against the backdrop of the otherwise obscure way airlines use intermediaries to sell their tickets around the world came a heated and mostly one-sided conversation about how backwards it all was.

“Frankly, the sandwich shop on the corner can do more through Google today than the airline,” said retired Air Canada CEO Monte Brewer, “and that’s basically because you have to get data.”

He pointed out that whenever an airline did anything remotely creative, like Air Canada’s own “fare families,” which let people pay more for greater booking flexibility for what are otherwise the same seats, the system through which travel agents are more or less obliged to sell the tickets through – developed in the 70s and still often operated off of green-screen monitors -- has no way to giving any of those details to customers. Unless you buy directly from the airline – including buying through Kayak or Expedia – you’d never know what your options were.

Jeremy Wertheimer, a Google exec, was also on the panel. He said that eight years ago, he put six engineers on the problem for six months and they came up with an entirely new and simpler system for people to be able to get all their information from the airlines themselves using a simple Google search, but had to shelve it when contractual obligations to the old systems prevented many airlines from sharing the requisite data.

The general feeling, among panellists and audience members, was that things were going to have to change, and soon. “I’m 54. I don’t know what I don’t know about what’s happening about what’s going to change and what it’s going to look like," Brewer said in an interview after the panel. He added, “if the industry doesn’t have something in front of them to do it, [if they don’t know] what they want to do and how they want to do it, there’s going to be even more disruption and unhappiness for everybody involved.”

The Dubai airline loaded the media table on the first day of the proceedings with copies of an expensively produced booklet called Airlines and subsidy: our position, in which they set out to convince people that though many airlines are subsidized, Emirates is not, and should therefore be allowed to fly wherever and whenever it likes, instead of having to deal with the sorts of restrictions they’re facing at Pearson from a government that figures they represent unfair – and heavily subsidized – competition to Air Canada.

Air Canada CEO Calin Rovinescu, also in Beijing for the AGM, responded to the booklet by saying it was old news and words to the effect that Gulf airlines are owned by their governments so of course they’re subsidized, and generally made it clear that the issue was beneath his consideration. One got the impression from his bearing that there may be quite a few things that fit into this category, journalists almost certainly among them.

Are cruises safe? Not as much as you think...New Calgary hotels...Amex Pearson

Great story/expose in today's Star by Petti Fong, our Vancouver bureau chief and a regular contributor to the Travel section.

In a story on our front page, Fong writes that nearly 200 people have disappeared off cruise ships in the past decade, eight this year alone.

Most frightening is the seemingly universal lack of law enforcement. The ships themselves have little in the way of policing, even with thousands of "residents" on board. And the cruise companies register their ships in far-flung places that appear more interested in getting tax dollars than investigating potential crimes.

I mean, does anyone REALLY think Liberia or Panama police are going to go out of their way to look for a missing Canadian from a cruise ship registered in their country? It doesn't look like it. Fong writes about ships that fail to lock down after serious incidents and about what look like the most cursory of investigations.

Said Kendall Carver, president of International Cruise Victims: "The cruise ship industry has a reason to cover up any indication that these trips are not safe."

I'm not saying cruise ships are dangerous places to be. Heck, downtown Toronto looks pretty scary the past couple weeks. But it seems the cruise industry hasn't exactly distinguished itself when it comes to missing passengers, and, if nothing else, one would be wise to enter a cruise ship with the same kind of open eyes one would have while walking the streets of a major city.

HILTON COMES TO CALGARY

HIlton is putting up not one but two hotels (in the same complex) in the new East Village area of downtown Calgary.

The city's downtown east end has seen its share of troubles, but the city started a redevelopment scheme a few years ago and it appears to be paying off. The U.S.-based Widewaters Group, a commercial real estate firm, said it will build a pair of Hilton hotels with a combined 315 rooms at Fourth St. S.E. and Seventh Ave. S.E. (and can someone please find the idiots who came up with this system for naming streets in Calgary; it's godawful). According to today's Globe and Mail, one hotel will be a Hilton Garden Inn (usually good value) with 198 rooms and the other will be a Hilton Homewood Suites with 117 rooms/suites (always good for families or folks wanting a bit more breathing space).

Hilton isn't represented in boomtown Calgary, so officials called the project a "no-brainer."

Plans call for 11,000 new residents in the East Village by 2025. There's also a new National Music Centre being built in the restored King Edward Hotel.

Good times for Calgary, for sure.

AMEX AT PEARSON

I'm not sure I like this.

It was announced Monday that American Express Canada cardholders are about to get extra perks at Toronto Pearson Airport, including parking discounts and the ability to skip long security lines. The benefits depend on the type of Amex card one holds, so it may not be available to the run-of-the-mill cardholder.

Still, I don't really like the sound of it. I mean, isn't it bad enough that folks with money can pay to use Highway 407 and most folks are stuck on the 401? Do we really need to take this sort of system to our airports and give rich people more opportunities to stand apart from regular folks?

Amex says the new project will promote its brand and help Pearson strengthen its position as a major North American gateway. Yeah, maybe for elite business types, but not for you and me. Then again, Canadian airports long ago ceased to be affordable for average citizens. So maybe this is the best way for Pearson to stand out amongst the New York LaGuardia's and Chicago O'Hare's of the world....

If Canadian tourism is going down the tubes, then why such silence?

Good story in today's Globe and Mail Report on Business, where columnist Barrie McKenna writes about the new Brand USA campaign.

We've covered the campain in great deal in this space and in Star Travel, with stories on the multicultural nature of the program and the big budget and the fun song by Roseanne Cash. It's a good story for the U.S., which is placing a renewed emphasis on tourism and will be putting out ads aimed at luring Canadians and our nearly equal dollars to places like New York and Chicago and Miami and Los Angeles and, judging by this photo, maybe Wyoming or Colorado.

McKenna today writes about the Canadian angle, though, and notes that the Brand USA campaign "is scaring the daylights out of the tourism industry in Canada."

He quotes David Goldstein, chief executive of the Tourism Industry Association of Canada, as saying that the American giant has awoken.

"They're the best marketers on the planet, and they're putting their shoulder into it. It's frightening to our industry."

McKenna notes that Ottawa in March slashed the Canadian Tourism Commission's budget from $72 million to $58.5 million; a huge cut. And he notes the budget was more than $100 million a mere decade ago.

He quotes Tony Pollard, head of the Hotel Association of Canada, as saying the U.S. is expanding just as Canada shrinks its tourism budget.

"It's a problem, absolutely," Pollard said.

Earlier this year, Pollard was quoted as saying that ten years ago, 35 percent of tourism revenue in Canada came from the international market; today it is down to only 20 percent. Due to lack of funding, the CTC has been forced to exit many markets including Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland and major cuts in Japan and the United States."

The numbers are pretty clear. But here's the deal. Are there any visible signs of a campaign to drive this point home?

Tourism is a hugely important factor in the Canadian economy. But where is the publicity to try to counteract the issue?

Since the CTC cuts came in March, I don't think I've had a single email from anyone in TIAC complaining about the issue. If they did send me one, it was either a one-off note or dramatically undersold. Why not pick up the phone and contact the travel section of the biggest paper in the country? Why not start a social media campaign of some sort, or set up a conference with tourism officials from across the country and get some publicity?

Ditto for the hotel association. If they're so worried about this problem, why such stunning silence? Or if not silence, why such a feeble reaction?

If there's a crisis, folks, somebody ought to making a lot more noise.

GREECE ON THE REBOUND?

Good news from Greece on Sunday, I think, with the election of a government that seems to want to stay in the Euro zone. Reverting to the drachma might make things cheaper for tourists, but a new sense of stability might be better in terms of bringing in tourists.

Travelmole.com today is reporting that Greece "is calling on the help of volunteer holidaymakers and the goodwill of operators, hoteliers and airlines to 'set the record straight' after suffering months of bad publicity.

The tourist office and major Greek enterprises have developed an online interactive platform - TrueGreece.org - for visitors to share their travel experiences in an attempt to counter concerns about the country's economic difficulties and political unrest.

Tour operators, airlines and hoteliers are being asked to give away freebies to fund trips for holidaymakers who will then be asked to write, blog and tweet about their experience.

Tourist chiefs are now on the hunt for goodwill social-media savvy volunteers, known as True Greece's True Supporters, who will work from home, for free, to spread the "good Greek word" about what it means to experience the real Greece."

I provided a link in this space last week to a blog written by Krystal Yee, the Star's Moneyville blogger, on just this issue. She's been in Greece lately and had a wonderful time.

Her story is printed in today's Moneyville section of the Star, but here's the link...

 

Transat suffering in Europe. .. Happy Father's Day to a great traveler!

Interesting that Transat is looking at Asia to supplement - or make up for - their European operations.

Faced with Eurozone issues, Transat on Thursday said it's Europe business was down 3.7 per cent in the last reporting period, compared to 2011.

Brent Jang of the Globe and Mail said today the trouble is more with inter-Europe travel, versus a lack of Canadians heading to the continent. Still, Transat CEO Jean-Marc Eustache said his company is "facing a difficult market in Europe." And it's being reported that capacity from Canada to Europe could drop by four per cent.

According to Jang, Transat is looking at Asia to diversify its traditional offerings. Which only makes sense. Even with the slowdown in China, the Asian market appears to be in relatively good shape.

The Aussies are travelling a lot these days because of the strength of the Australian dollar, as well.

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY

A friend sent me a note during coverage of the U.S. Open golf tourney yesterday, commenting on the Olympic Club in San Francisco - where this year's tourney is being played - and asking if I'd played it before.

Alas, I haven't. But I told him I DID get to play at Flemingdon Golf Club in Toronto yesterday.

For those who don't get the joke, Flemingdon, or Flemo, or the Royal Flem, is a nine-hole course tucked into a valley near the Don Valley Parkway and Eglinton. Not remotely fancy, but a fun little course that's in good shape and is an absolute joy to walk on a lovely day like yesterday. Good food, too, and a great little patio.

But the best part of playing it yesterday was playing with one of my boys and with my Dad.

Golf has always been a big part of holidays with my Dad. We've teed up in together all around the East Bay in the San Francisco area, where I grew up. But we've also had trips together and played in Hawaii (the photo of us is from this year, sitting under the giant Banyan Tree in Lahaina, Maui), Arizona, South Carolina and Florida. And here in Toronto.

My Mom was a travel agent for many years, and my Dad likes to say I got the travel bug from her. But he's just as much of a wanderer as my Mom. At age 80, he's thankfully still going strong and making trips galore; Alaska cruises and Europe trips and occasional forays to Australia or New Zealand. And lots of trips to Toronto of late to catch up with his grandchildren's graduations and take in dinners and golf games.

Our first big trip as a family, at least the one I remember the most, was a driving trip from San Francisco up to British Columbia, then over to Banff, down to Yellowstone Park in the U.S. and then down to Salt Lake City and back to northern California. We stayed at a dumpy motel near Vernon B.C. with a train that seemed to roll through the bedroom every couple hours, but we still laugh about it and the scenery was glorious and my sister and I somehow survived without a DVD player or power outlets.

The next big one was Niagara Falls, New York City (including a climb to the top of the Statue of Liberty), Philadelphia, Washington D.C. (including an endless loop around the Jefferson Memorial and $5 cokes from room service), then Florida and Jamaica and New Orleans. Wow, what a trip that was.

I remember taking a taxi outside of, I think, Ocho Rios and winding along and bumping and grinding (so to speak) along a small road as we headed for an airport. Finally, we looked up and saw a smooth stretch of asphalt in the middle of some trees.

"Great, the highway," my Dad said to our taxi driver.

"No, sir," the driver replied with a grin. "That's not the highway. That's the runway."

I can't even count the number of times we've been to Hawaii, mostly Maui but also Kauai and the big Island and Oahu. My family has always loved the people and the sights and smells of Maui; the sunseets and the golf and the food and the beaches. We usually stayed at Kahana Sunset, a small, perfectly beautiful family condo with a small beach and a lanai and great barbeques!

We play Kapalua a fair bit, the Bay Course, but we really love teeing it up at the Maui municipal course in Waiehu, where there are more holes on the ocean than any course on the island and you meet up with colourful locals and don't have to worry about a thing.

Once, a buddy and I and my Dad made a trek to one of the high-end courses on Maui for a real treat. We got to the club house and the guy told my Dad that we couldn't play because my friend and I were in cutoffs.

"Strictly proper golf attire," the man said, dripping with attitude.

My Dad hates that sort of uppity stuff and said something like, "you can stick a four-iron up your locker," or words to that effect.

"Come on boys," he said, "let's go over to Maui muni."

I'm sure we were a little disappointed. But I've always been proud of my Dad for that; sticking up for my friend and I and all.

We got to the municipal course and my Dad forked over some cash.

"How old are da boys," the guy at the muni course said.

"Seventeen," my Dad replied.

"No, I think they're sixteen," the clubhouse worker said.

"I think they're seventeen," my Dad said.

"No, sir," the man insisted. "It's a reduced rate if they're sixteen. Dose boys are sixteen."

My Dad loves that story. And I love my Dad for his generosity in offering to take us to the posh course and for standing up for my poorly attired buddy and I and for his honesty at the muni course - and in a million other moments.

I've been hugely lucky in my life. My Dad has instilled in me a love of travel and a respect for other people of the world and a sense of fun and adventure that has helped me along in more ways than I can count. To get to play a little golf with him this week and go for celebratory family lunches and dinners and tinker about in the house (there he was yesterday, fixing one of my family-room windows) and in the garden is just about the best way to spend Father's Day I can think of.