Another Toronto Olympic bid (this time 2024); maybe third time is the charm?

I try to stick to travel on my travel blog (what a concept). But sometimes I can't help delving into other topics for a bit, especially when it's something as global and political and fascinating as the Olympics.

I headed up the Star's coverage of Toronto's 1996 bid against Atlanta, et al..., and also our coverage of the 2008 bid against Beijing. Both, as I recall, were losing efforts on Toronto's part. I also covered Vancouver's bid for the 2010 Winter Games, which had a happier ending.

It is, therefore, with great interest that I see yet another bid in the making. Bob Richardson, the chief operating officer for the 2008 Toronto bid and an unabashed Olympic junkie, is talking up a bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics.

He'll have to get the okay from Mayor Rob Ford, and probably from the province and also from the feds. First up would be the city, without which nothing happens.

Mayor Ford's team turned away Richardson's effort to drum up support for a 2020 bid, saying the city's financial situation didn't allow for such things. It's a fair point, but in August Councillor Doug Ford - the mayor's brother and sometimes political spokesman - said he'd be open to a bid at a future date.

There was talk of a Quebec City bid for the 2022 Winter Games, which would've put Toronto on ice. But Quebec's mayor ruled out a bid a couple months ago, clearing the decks for a Canadian entry for 2024, at least in theory.

There's still a huge need for better amateur sporting facilities in Canada, especially of the summer variety and most notably in our most populous province. The Pan Am Games would help, but the Olympics are a star of a much greater intensity and would, if handled properly from a financial standpoint, bring in that much more.

I don't know if the security costs are worth it these days, but if you don't mind a billion dollars or two in federal/provincial/local money for fences and x-ray machines and police overtime it could work.

The issue becomes, of course, whether 2024 is winnable. Toronto 1996 bid leader Paul Henderson was right when he said Athens wasn't guaranteed the 1996 Games, notwithstanding it was the 100th anniversary of the birth of the modern Olympics, held in Athens in 1896. He was right, but it was Atlanta that elbowed its way into the winners circle for the 1996 Games.

The Toronto folks knew they were up against it for 2008, when they took on the behemoth Beijing bid. They shot themselves in the foot with Mayor Mel Lastman's talk about cannibals in Africa, but they were never going to win the 2008 Games unless China did something really stupid on the international front. They didn't, and they ran a very good Games, albeit one lacking in soul (see photo of the famous Birds Nest stadium in Beijing).

So now we come to 2011. The last Olympics in North America were the largely forgettable 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City, Utah. The last Summer Games - and the IOC tends to think of their two babies as separate entities - on our continent were the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.

Here's how the Games have gone since Atlanta: Nagano, Sydney, Salt Lake, Athens, Turin, Beijing. Vancouver. Next: London, Sochi (Russia), Rio de Janeiro and Pyeongchang, South Korea (the 2018 Winter Olympics).

Those bidding for the 2020 Summer Games? Doha (Qatar), Rome, Madrid, Istanbul, Tokyo and Baku, Azerbaijan. The short list comes out next May and the vote will be in 2013.

None of those cities are in North America, of course. But there’s talk of Denver or Reno-Lake Tahoe for 2022, as well as Munich and Norway (a sentimental favourite given the now-legendary status of the Lillehammer Winter Olympics).

The IOC and the United States Olympic Committee still aren’t on the best of terms given disputes over television money and other issues, but there’s at least a possibility of a North American winner. That might scupper a Toronto bid, but, given the vagaries and outright unpredictability at times of the International Olympic Committee, it might not.

Either way, 2024 appears at this early stage to be a lot more winnable than the 2008 effort.

Is it worth doing? I don’t quite know yet. Is it worth watching? Absolutely.

 

 

 

 

Global brand index says Canada world #1. But there's no Canadian love for T.O.

They love us. They hate us.

It's a week of decidedly mixed news for those of us who live in The Big Smoke. First off, and on a somewhat serious note, there was news on Thursday that a group called Future Brands has, for the second year in a row, named Canada as number one in their Country Brand Index.

The index, which featured on-line interviews with travellers from all over the globe, takes into account a number of factors, including the qualities that people think of when they hear a country’s name, read or see images of a location, or plan a business or leisure trip.

FutureBrand praised Canada for being a country that "actively manages its country brand to constantly improve performance." It noted use of natural landscape imagery and the "iconic maple leaf" to promote the country.

"As the United Kingdom prepares to leverage the power of the London 2012 Olympic Games, it would do well to emulate Canada's treatment of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics, where the event was used as a platform to build sustainable brand strength across every dimension," FutureBrand said in a statement.

For those who missed it yesterday, here's the 1-10 ranking: 1. Canada. 2. Switzerland. 3. New Zealand. 4. Japan. 5. Australia. 6. USA. 7. Sweden. 8. Finland. 9. France 10. Italy.

It's obviously, or seemingly, a little biased to western countries, which makes me wonder about the sample base. Future Brands said they consulted some 3,500 folks, but it still seems pretty Euro-white-centric, notwithstanding Japan's presence in the number four slot.

Quoted in the Vancouver Sun, Jack Jedwab, executive director of the Montreal-based Association for Canadian Studies, said it's not surprising Canada's brand has such appeal.

"(People in other countries) think we're a very open, diverse, welcoming country," he said. "That's a widely held view when you travel abroad."

It's certainly great news for our tourism industry to see us at the top of the Future Brand chart. There IS something kinda special about this country of ours, and there's nothing wrong with a bit (just a bit) of chest-thumping, especially when you look at how the U.S. fell from fourth in 2010 to sixth this year, and how the UK dropped from #9 in 2010 to a relatively woeful 13th spot in 2011, the Royal Wedding notwithstanding.

It's interesting that the Future Brands report came at the World Travel Mart in London, where a lot of the talk is about the London Summer Olympics next year. As well, it's notable that U.S. tourism folks used the Travel Mart meetings this week to unveil their new global approach to tourism and show off a new logo.

Oddly enough, the U.S. has never had a nation-wide approach to boosting tourism, relying instead on individual states or cities to get their message out in Germany and Ghana and elsewhere around the globe. I don't much care for the logo, although at least it doesn't have Uncle Sam. I believe they intentionally shied away from the red, white and blue as polling showed too many folks around the world think of the U.S. (shockingly) as brash and arrogant.

So maybe they're taking a page from the Canadian songbook, eh?

As good as the Future Brands news was for Canada, we here in Toronto had to know it was too much of a good thing. Sure enough, there was news this week that a new poll had found the most hated city in Canada (by Canadians, not the good folks in Japan or Finland) is ... Toronto. The most loved? Surprisingly, I think, it was Ottawa.

A story on CTV's website says Leger Marketing surveyed 2,345 Canadians on behalf of the National Capital Commission and the Association of Canadian Studies, asking if they had a very positive, somewhat positive, somewhat negative or very negative perception of eight major cities.

The results showed that 19 per cent of respondents felt negatively toward Toronto, and the anti-love was highest in Western Canada. Thirty per cent of Albertans said they disliked Toronto, a sentiment shared by 27 per cent of respondents in Manitoba and Saskatchewan and 23 per cent in British Columbia.

Ontario's capital fared best among those inside the province, but 15 per cent of survey participants responded negatively. (Hey, all you folks in Thunder Bay and Windsor, thanks a lot.)

Montreal was right behind T.O. in the hate vote, with 18 per cent support (or lack thereof).

Ottawa was ranked highest (a nice nod to national unit) with 82 per cent positive support, closely followed by Victoria (81) and Vancouver (80).

 As someone who grew up on the west coast of the U.S. and always resented all the major baseball awards being won by eastern players (or so it seemed), I kinda understand how folks out west feel. A lot of times, when you ask someone from Alberta or B.C. why they hate Toronto, they talk about having to watch Leafs' games on Saturday night. Given the team's play the last, oh, four decades, you can hardly blame them for that.

Of course, there's more to it. As nice as we are to visitors, and we're tremendous with foreign tourists for the most part, I honestly think more Canadians hate Toronto than Americans hate New York, and I don't quite know why. Maybe we're arrogant. Lord knows, there are lots of people in downtown Toronto who make fun of me for living north of Eglinton, let alone the people who live in Brampton or Port Hope.

Some of that hatred probably is deserved. But this is a wonderful city, filled with great folks who go out of their way (a lot of the time) to help. Sure, we don't let each other into our lanes on the 401 at rush hour. But I also see plenty of neighbourly behaviour on a day-to-day basis all over this city; the sort of things you'd associate with Leave it to Beaver TV shows.

Anyway, it all makes for some pretty interesting discussions on a Friday morning. Have a great weekend. And, remember to send out nice thoughts to all those lovely folks in Calgary and Saskatoon and Prince George.

 

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Forbes lists hotels of the world with best views ... and a few of my own ideas

Nothing like starting off the week with a nice list. In this case, it belongs to Forbes, which did something the other day on the world's hotels with the best views.

It's completely subjective, of course, but it's a pretty good list, and not at all USA-centric (as many travel lists tend to be). Here's a look at what they came up with, along with a few thoughts of my own.

- Jade Mountain, St. Lucia - luscious hotel with incredible views of the Pitons; green-clad rock formations that jut out of the blue Caribbean. Often listed on lists such as these. See photo at right.

- Shangri-La, Paris - A relative newcomer, it's said to have stunning views of the Eiffel Tower, the Seine and Les Invalides.

- Le Sirenuse, Positano, Italy - Another spot often found atop world's best hotel lists. A beautiful part of the world, for sure.

- Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge, Peru. Great views of, um, Machu Picchu.

- Salto Chico Lodge, Patagona, Chile. Another one I don't know, but the view of a nearby lake and incredibly jagged mountain-tops look tremendous.

- Enchantment Resort, Sedona, Arizona. A lovely hotel in an area known for dramatic rock formations and, allegedly, one of those geo-magnetic places that bestow healing powers. Or something like that.

- Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong. A recent, towering addition to the Kowloon skyline with remarkable views over to the main island and the bustling harbour.

- Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, Alberta. See photo. Enough said.

- One and Only Cape Town. Pretentious name, but nothing lame about the views of the city's waterfront and picturesque Table Mountain.

- Blanket Bay Lodge, Glenorchy, New Zealand. Great views of Lake Wakatipu and The Remarkables mountain range (which are featured on in Saturday's Travel section in a story I wrote about Queenstown).

Like I said, it's a good list, with representation from all over the world. I was surprised to see they didn't have anything in the South Pacific, particularly Bora Bora or  Moorea. But Tahiti does just fine in these lists most of the time, so what the hey.

The Park Hyatt in Sydney offers stunning views of the Sydney Opera House and the Harbour Bridge, and that's a tough combination to beat. It's also hard to top the views of Waikiki Beach and the Diamond Head volcano crater from the Royal Hawaiian Hotel in Honolulu and the views of Rome from the Hassler Hotel, high atop the Spanish Steps. I guess you could make a point in favour of any of the hotels with great views of Niagara Falls, as well.

Personally, my favourite unsung view would have to be the Park Bled on Lake Bled in Slovenia. It's not a fancy place, but the views out over a crazy-blue-green lake to the castle on the north shore and the small church, with towering, snow-clad alpine mountains in the distance, is one of the great delights of the world. I probably took 100 photos from my balcony in 10 minutes when I checked in a couple years ago.

They also make a great Bled cream cake, which has custard-like cream and vanilla and powdered sugar. Tremendous stuff and a legend in Slovenia.

Got any personal faves? Drop me a line at travel@thestar.ca and maybe pass along one of your own photos...

 

 

 

Underwear exhibit at N.Y. museum ... Lonely Planet's top food destinations

I've heard of the sex museum in New York City. I even went in once and found it rather unexciting, to be honest.

But now comes something slightly different; an exhibit about underwear through the ages. It's being staged at the History Center in Ithaca, N.Y. - only a few hours drive from Toronto if you're so inclined.

A piecein USA Today says the exhibit features "woolen long johns, corsets and cage crinolines -- a rigid structure worn under long skirts, which not only made sitting impossible, but, in a stiff wind, could lay a hapless wearer flat."

"If anything, this exhibit shows that women have long suffered for fashion," says The History Center's executive director, Scott Callan.

But men have been victimized by their underwear, too. Woolen long johns were standard issue into the 20th century, as were corsets, worn by high-ranking military officers, Callan notes in the USA Today piece.

"I'm happy when someone comes in and has a good laugh," Callan said. "After all, everyone can relate to what's in the exhibit. "

Given how stiff some museum types can be, Callan sounds like a good guy.

TOP FOOD DESTINATIONS - NO USA?

Lonely Planet has a list out of its top 10 food destinations. Thailand, which I'd have to put right up there, was listed first although the LP folks said the countries weren't listed in any particular order.

Also on the list are Greece, China, France, Mexico, Spain, Italy (naturally), India (ditto), Japan (for sure) and Indonesia/Malaysia. It's hard to argue with those, although I might have put Argentina in there for a bit more geographic balance and a bit of old-fashioned steak and potatoes sort of thing.

I guess it's because Lonely Planet is based in the U.S., but I still was surprised to see the USA not listed. I mean, any place that can deliver awesome barbeque, original Cajun recipes and fresh takes on cuisine from around the world deserves a mention.

I'd probably put Thailand and Italy at the top of my list. I can think of no better soup in the world than Tom Yum Goong, with its spicy, rich flavours and shrimp and lemongrass and mushrooms and coriander and chiles. Italy, of course, for pasta and wine and olive oil and great cheeses. I've been making bucatini alla amatriciana a lot since gorging on it in Rome last summer, and it's really terrific.

 

 

 

Surprisingly sexy destinations in Europe ... Venice in danger of vanishing?

Fun item at cnn.com/travel this morning on five "surprisingly raunchy destinations" in Europe. It seems a gent by the name of Tony Perrottet has written a book about European travel and sex, calling it "The Sinner's Grand Tour: A Journey Through the Historical Underbelly of Europe."

It's a great concept. We don't want to admit it, but obviously sex has a lot to do with travel. I mean, those British guys who set out to see Istanbul and Paris on Grand Tour's weren't simply interested in old buildings, right?

"They're very intertwined, sex and travel," Perrottet told CNN. "You didn't just want to go to Rome to see the Colosseum. You didn't go to Paris just to have a look at the Eiffel Tower or the Seine. There was a sense of sexual liberation in these places."

(We here at Star Travel did our own Grand Tour of world destinations last fall, but somehow missed the sexual stuff. Oh, well.)

The CNN item lists five places that are surprisingly raunchy. The one big surprise to me was the Vatican. Until a few minutes ago, I had no idea there was a bathroom in the papal apartments called Stufetta del Bibbiena that featured erotic (not pornographic) paintings by Raphael. There are some two dozen images painted in 1516 that feature the goddess Venus in various poses with Cupid.

Fascinating.

Also on the cnn list: a small village in the French Pyrenees called Montaillou, where there apparently were all sorts of sexual shenanigans played out in the Dark Ages; Paris (naturally) from the Belle Epoque era, including a chair for highly overweight royal family members that allowed them to more comfortably engage in sex; Casanova's Venice, and Lacoste, France - one-time home to the Marquis de Sade. I don't know if the book as a whole has so much on France, but it's interesting that three of the five places mentioned in the CNN story are in France.

VENICE IN TROUBLE?

USA Today is reporting that Venice is "under siege" by tourists and faces "irreversible" catastrophe if limits aren't imposed on visitor numbers. They cite a report issued July 4 by Italy's "leading heritage group," Italia Nostra (Our Italy).

A report from Reuters says the Italian government (perhaps too absorbed with sex scandals?)  has been "underestimating the devastating effects of past and future development projects and tourism policy" and that UNESCO will be asked to put the city on its endangered list and consider pulling it from its list of World Heritage sites.

Some 60,000 tourists a day pour into Venice. I went for part of a day in 1979 and haven't been back. I guess I should go some time, but the day I went I was tired and without much cash and didn't think as much of the place as I had expected.

Either way, the new reports about the city's future are worth watching.

 

World's Most Beautiful Cities list - no mention of Moncton or Mississauga...

This blog is dedicated to a colleague of mine at the Star who simply LOVES lists.

I spotted an item on the forbes.com website the other day listing the world's most beautiful cities. Not the cities best for doing business or best quality of life but, simply, most beautiful. A lot more open to interpretation and less scientific, but probably just as valid as anything more business-oriented.

Forbes pulled together architectural and city planning types (they're always eager for publicity) and came up with the following list. I don't think it was in order but I could be wrong. There are some surprises, so without further adieu here ya go:

PARIS

VANCOUVER

SYDNEY

FLORENCE

VENICE

CAPE TOWN

SAN FRANCISCO

CHICAGO

NEW YORK

LONDON

CAMBRIDGE (ENGLAND)

TOKYO

Fully deserved marks for Vancouver, for sure. On a clear day, there's perhaps no city more beautiful in the world. On a day-to-day basis, I'd take Paris. But on a lovely spring day with a dusting of snow on the mountains Vancouver can't be beat. Even San Francisco falls a bit short.

Ontario, not surprisingly, gets shut out again. Not to mention New Brunswick, Alberta, Florida, Ohio and Arkansas.

The list has some surprises. I think Cambridge is lovely, and the publicity with William and Kate as Duke and Duchess probably doesn't hurt, but I don't think of it as a city so much as a big town. Anyway, it's just fine.

I was surprised to see Chicago on the list, to be honest. I know the new "bean" sculpture is popular and it's a very handsome city to be sure, but I'd probably put Stockholm or maybe Barcelona above Chicago.

Tokyo is an interesting choice. The editors said it was partly physical beauty but also the way the whole city works, which I couldn't agree more about. It's remarkable that way. There aren't many gorgeous buildings and the physical geography is nothing special, but the way it all knits together, along with the pockets of stunning gardens and temples, make it awfully impressive as a whole. So kudos for thinking outside the box a bit on that one.

But still, it's odd to see just the one Asia city, compared to four in North America and five in Europe, all in England, Italy and France. There's nothing in South America; no Rio de Janeiro or Buenos Aires, which is too bad.

Anyway, as my colleague would no doubt agree, that's what make lists so much fun. Right? I mean, Ilove listening to the top songs of all time on the radio but if I hear one more Oldies 1150 Countdown with "Satisfaction" as top song of all time I'm gonna hurl. Great song, but SO OVERPLAYED. See also: "Hotel California" and "Hey Jude," the latter a huge fave of mine but there's only so much you can take.

You know what? It would be like dating Penelope Cruz every night. After, oh, I don't know, 83 or 84 years you might want something else.

 

 

Yorkshire, England in the news...Romans flee city for fear of earthquake?

First, of course, you roll into Malton and make sure you have your suitcase. Then you head to Pickering, then over to Scarborough to admire the views of the water.

After that, a quick nip along the water's edge to Whitby, then go back along the coast to the Humber and a visit to Hull, then finally nip over to Grimsby for a snack, then double back to York for a nice dinner. It makes for a busy day in Ontario and Quebec. But it's far more fun to do it in Yorkshire, England, which is where all these place names that surround us here in Toronto come from.

I've thought of it before, but it's fun to check out a map of Yorkshire and see all the towns and villages and cities that folks came from when they settled in what is now Ontario and Quebec. Sadly, we don't have anyplace in Ontario that I know of called Scunthorpe of Masham or, even better, Horton-in-Ribblesdale. I've never been, but I bet there's a great pub in Horton-in-Ribblesdale. Probably some lovely girl who wants to go to St. Andrews in Scotland and meet her Prince Charming. Oh, yeah, that's been done.

Anyhoo, the folks from Yorkshire are in the news of late as Yorkshire is home to the Railway Children, which is now playing in Toronto. It's also home, I was told yesterday, to Dame Judi Dench.

With interest in Will and Kate at such a high, and with the Queen ready to celebrate her 60th anniversary on the throne next June with her Diamond Jubilee, they're gearing up for some real royalty experiences and have created 70 links to the royal family in Yorkshire alone.

They also have a Turner trail to celebrate famed English painter J.M. W. (William) Turner, with 80 sites folks can visit. Great gardens, good food (they have five restaurants with Michelin stars) and top-notch golf courses also are part of the menu for the coming tourist season, officials said. Not to mention two five-star hotels, one already open in York and the other on its way.

Sounds like a great summer. Perhaps I'll stop by if I get the chance. I found a website, which I highlighted above, for Horton-in-Ribblesdale and it looks pretty nice. Apparently it's on the famous Roman Pennine Way and is a centre for hiking what are called the 3 Peaks - Pen-y-ghent, Ingleborough and Whernside. Check this website for a great song about the Pennine Way.

I wonder if Turner ever painted Horton-in-Ribblesdale?

A PERFECT DAY TO VISIT ROME

Geez. Some siesmologist dude in the 1970s ago is said to have predicted a major earthquake for Rome on May 11 of this year and suddenly the city has gone bonkers.

Reports suggest people are fleeing as if it was the start of the August holiday period, and that the streets are eerily quiet. It's probably a little late, but it's tempting to hop on a plane right now and get over there and have some great meals in an uncrowded restaurant in Trastevere or to wander around the Spanish Steps or something...

There are varying reports as to whether the seismologist, Raffaele Bendandi, actually predicted a quake for this particular day. But it doesn't seem to matter, as reports suggest some 18 per cent of Roman workers have asked to take the day off. I don't know that anyone will notice, to be honest....

 

 

 

 

Hey, America, we're keeping you in business...Canada's very strange borders

Got a note from the folks at Canadian Visa to say that over the past two years, Canadian Visa cardholders have been the NUMBER ONE contributor to the U.S. tourism biz. In 2009, the collective "we" spent $7.8 billion down south. In 2010, that rose to $9.2 billion in spending on our Canadian VISA cards, which is a pretty good hike (18 per cent).

Nobody really comes close. UK Visa cardholders spent just $2.5 billion in the U.S., while Mexico was third at $2.0 billion. Slackers.

"Canadian tourists continue to have a positive impact on the U.S. tourism economy," said William M. Sheedy, Group President, The Americas, Visa Inc. "The strong willingness and desire of Canadians to travel across the southern border reinforces the important of the North American tourism industry to the region's continued economic growth."

So the next time you get hassled by a U.S. immigration officer at Pearson, I think you should write this down on a card and say it, very slowly but loudly.  "Hey, buddy, you're giving me a hard time? We Canadians are keeping you all from the unemployment line. Yeah, Canada. Our dollar is higher than yours and we're keeping you all from financial ruin and Florida-type bank disclosures. So next time you're thinking of hassling someone, pick on the guy from Portugal."

Yeah, maybe not. But Sheedy's comment made me think for a minute. Southern border? We never think of it, do we? I mean, we all say we're going over the border or south of the border. We never talk about going NORTH of the border unless we're referring to the act of coming home from the U.S. so we can our fix of curling highlights.

Probably this is because we don't search out trips to the Arctic Circle to cross over to Russia. Or as a way of reaching other countries that claim some sort of Arctic sovereignty, including Norway and maybe some other Scandinavian nations. But then I started thinking again about our other borders. Basically, we kinda get ripped off in that department. I mean, Switzerland is landlocked and all but they can get in their Smart Cars (everyone in Switzerland has one) and be in Italy in five minutes, sipping cappucino and slurping plates of spaghetti carbonara. They can drive around the corner and be in France, sampling one of the 4,793 types of cheese the French make or strolling down the Champs Elysees. Shoot, they can take the subway to Munich (and know that it will ALWAYS be on time), or climb every mountain and end up in Austria (not that they'd want to). They can go any time they want to Leichtenstein, for gosh sakes, and how great is that!??!!

Over in Asia, China does pretty good in the border department, with a list of neighbours that includes Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Kazakhstan and Russia, as well as Mongolia, a sliver of Afghanistan and North Korea. Great takeout food options, for sure, and wonderful vacation spots (well, maybe not ALL of them). Our only real option without an icebreaker or a pack of sled dogs is the U.S., and even though it's a great place it's kinda boring to have only one real southern neighbour.

Anyway, so what about our other borders? I'm glad you asked. Our most immediate western border is with the United States, as Alaska borders on the Yukon, right? I don't think we really have a western border for British Columbia, although the Kuril Islands south of Kamchatka, Russia would be next if you cross the Pacific along the 49th parallel. Our eastern border? Denmark, that would be, as the mighty Danes control Greenland, which butts up against some of our property up around Baffin Island.

Further east? I didn't know this, but if you draw a line directly from St. John's to Europe, you cross into France somewhere in Brittany. Not really a border, I don't think, but still interesting if you're a person who wakes up at 3 a.m. and wanders downstairs to read the atlas.

 

 

 

 

 

Hotel bargains in 2010 topped by Europe, especially Ireland, says hotels.com

If you thought it was a little easier to travel last year compared to previous years, you win the prize. The folks at hotels.com sent out their Hotel Price Index for 2010 today and found a stronger Canadian dollar and the still shaky global economy helped Canadians find "significant" travel savings last year.

The study found Canadians paid eight percent less for a hotel room in Europe (averaging $159.67* per night), "as many European economies recovered at a slower rate than Canada.  On a national basis, Canadian hotel room prices were unchanged at $136 per night."

I always tell folks that Europe isn't as expensive as you might think. You can almost always a clean but modest hotel in a big city for $150 or so, and this study bears that out. I find Best Westerns to be a little sharper and sexier overseas than they are here in North America, so those almost always are worth checking out in Paris and London and such. I've stayed in some nice, small hotels near St. Germain-des-Pres in Paris for $150. And don't forget most European hotels throw in your breakfast, so that's a bonus.

The hotels.com study found that great deals were to be had in Ireland, with an average paid rate (not advertised rate but what was actually paid out of pocket) of just $112.22 per night, down  a whopping 19 percent from 2009.  In Italy, room rates were down by nine percent, while Canadians paid two percent less on average for rooms across the U.K.

“In many cases, like Ireland, there were significant savings for Canadian travellers,” said Victor Owens, vice president of North America for Hotels.com. “Even in the U.S., where the discounts were perhaps not as dramatic for Canadians, the strong Canadian dollar, coupled with discounted rates, made travelling south of the border very attractive.”

The Hotel Price Index found five of the top international destinations visited by Canadians were all in the U.S., where Canadians paid six percent less ($135.93) for rooms than they did a year earlier. Las Vegas was the top destination, followed by New York, Seattle, Orlando and San Francisco.  London dropped from number three a year earlier to number six. (Seattle is a bit of a surprise to me but it could be Vancouver folks out for a weekend in a fine city, or perhaps lured south by cheaper air fares to other destinations. Or maybe they're just Seattle Seahawks fans?)

At home, Canadians travelled most frequently to Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. Prices were up four percent in Toronto ($135.62), pushed higher in part by the city hosting the G20 Summit.  The return of F1 racing to Montreal helped prop Montreal rates up six percent last year to $147.79.  Vancouver saw prices drop two percent to $140.41 from 2009 when room prices averaged $142.58. In the first half of 2010, Vancouver room rates averaged $147, indicating that room prices returned to more normal levels after peaking during the Olympics.

Canada’s top resort cities were the most expensive to visit.  Rooms in the resort area of Tofino, BC were the most expensive at $230.11 (up 7%).   Lake Louise, AB, wasn’t far behind at $213.99 (down 4%). Mont Tremblant, QC ($209.19), saw an increase of 10%, as did Whistler, BC ($177.73), according to the study.

 

Friendly, helpful French folk and terrific taxis; Kudos to Paris and the Grand Tour

PARIS - It was a wild night at the Galeries Lafayette near the Opera metro station. The sidewalks were jammed with Christmas shoppers, and I was looking for a gift for my daughter.

I wanted to check out the Longchamp purses on the main floor at the Galeries department store, which is about the size of the entire Eaton Centre from what I could see, and there was a lineup to get into the small Longchamp section.

I finally got through the line and stopped to ask a sales person, perhaps in her mid 20’s, about a specific style.

“I don’t think we have that one,” she said with a slight French accent. “I’m sorry my English isn’t so good.”

A few days later I was at the Novotel at Charles deGaulle Airport. I just made it in time for dinner at the hotel restaurant – they make a pretty good Peruvian-spiced chicken by the way – and was struck by how the server apologized for what was pretty good English.

We all know the stereotypes about the French. Maybe there are a few snobs still hanging about that demand we speak with the perfect Parisian accent. But I didn’t find a single one of them on a week’s visit to Paris and Provence. Not one.

Without fail, everyone I dealt with spoke at least a little English. And they repeatedly apologized – many, many of them – for not being more proficient. And here I am, speaking hardly a word of French and hailing from a bilingual country. I’m the one who should’ve been apologizing. I think I did a couple times, actually.

You can think what you want about visiting Paris or France as a whole, I don’t care. Personally, I don't know how anyone can resist French food or the romance of Paris. But my point is that whatever your preconceived notions might be, don't let language – or the hospitality of the people – be any kind of a factor at all. From the waiters at Les Deux Magots in trendy St.-Germain-des-Pres to the workers at the harried department stores, I found virtually everyone I dealt with to be warm, kind and hospitable. Several, including the cab driver I talk about in Saturday’s Grand Tour finale in Star Travel were downright fabulous.

Another thing that struck me were the cabs. They start the meter at about 2.50 Euros, I think, which is better than Toronto. And the cabs I saw were remarkably clean and bright and well-made cars; high-end Renaults and Peugeots and even a couple Mercedes. Not a dud in the bunch.

Anyway, it’s been a great ride with the Grand Tour. Star Travel guy Adrian Brijbassi took you to the stunning scenery of Cape Town and the magnificent palaces of St. Petersburg. He also provided an intriguing glimpse of life in historic Jerusalem and got to check out the cafes in lovely and lively Buenos Aires, where I keep thinking he’s going to move one of these days.

As for me, I enjoyed my time at the Mina A’Salam resort at the Madinat Jumeirah, with its shops and terrific beach, as well as learning about Islam at the Sheik Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding. Tokyo was a blast, especially the fish market and the beautiful temples and the crazy  energy. Maui I absolutely adore for its beaches and mountains and rain forests and fresh seafood and that simple Hawaiian spirit. Rome was outstanding, especially the views from my room at the Hassler Hotel (see photo at right) and my walks around the Trastevere neighbourhood. And what can you say about Sydney? Great food and bars, incredible scenery and wonderful people.

So thanks to everyone for reading our Grand Tour stories. I hope you enjoyed them half as much as I enjoyed my visits.

Happy holidays to all!