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= NEWS Wage Subsidy (CEWS) and Cana- ROAD TO RECOVERY STILL LONG FOR TRAVEL IND USTRY Eng fn Say (CERS) set to wind down in Sep- tember, some say they won't IEGAN DELAIRE months away." prospective vacationers are make it through the year. =Halton Hills | Thursday, July 22,2021 | 2% mdelaire@toronto.com Canada's travel and tourism industry was at its height in 2019, enjoying unprecedented growth. “Many moved Canadian Travel Agencies. "We were atour strongest right before the pandemic." Then COVID: 19 hit, and for the past 16 months, Paradis says reve- nue has been down by more than 90 per cent across the sector. Canadians are begii ginning to make tentative ve Vacation plans as vaccination rates rise and travel restrictions loosen, put Paradis doesn't expect the industry to joy the benefits of those plans for ths. “Canadians are booking for Christmas holidays and winter vacations right now," Paradis said. "But we can't recover until they actually travel, so Delivery service Based on consumer polling and search trends on travel book- ing platforms like Expedia, Cana- dians are eager to return to inter- national travel as soon as they're fully vaccinated inst CO- VID-19 and travel restrictions al- low it. According to data from Travel- week's June 2021 consumer sur- vey of 2,599 Canadian respon- dents, 15.7 per ' cent said they were reaming of sun and sand. “Canadians are craving sun, beach, pools and warm weather and we're seeing this with Mexico and U.S. sun destinations topping the charts with interest for the back end of the year," said Expe- dia spokesperson Mary Zaje Additionally, between june 7 and 13— the week the federal gov- ernment announced it planned to start easing travel restrictions —_— Richard Lautens, photo Survey and online search data show eager to pack their travel desti- 5per cent already nations. More than 34.7 per cent said they would travel within Canada once restrictions lifted, 19.7 per cent said they would trav- el to the United States and 18.1 hoped to head to the Caribbean. Overall, 59.7 per cent of respon- dents said they hope to travel out- side of Canada this year. +t — 46.9 per cent — are in- terested in a beach vacation, while 15.4 per cent want to travel for history and culture and 13.1 per cent hope to take a cruise. Th- ese numbers align with Expedia's search data, which reveals most fo) mi (ol ce t-tarexe| (=) businesses that = gets the job done. ,~ Metroland Parcel Services helps businesses deliver packages to customers across Ontario in a reliable, affordable and timely v manner. But don’t just take our word for it: “Moving away from a well-known logistics company that we had been > ie increase in international and do- mestic searches for hotels. “I think this really comes back to there being so much pent-up travel demand over the last year a half," Zajac said, adding seaman are definitely eager and excited for the future and to get away once possible again." Travelweek's data also sup- ports Zajac's observation, with 63.5 per cent of respondents hav- ing saved money throughout the pandemic for potential future travel, and 39 per cent saying they hope to travel between one and To help our communities we have created an online business directory that features local businesses that are open, hours of operation and how customers can sulteazes and take to the skies - or roads - again. free months after restrictions " aecove ery is almost within reach, but industry organiza- tions worry the boom won't bene- fit businesses that don't survive long enough to enjoy it. Many Ca- hotels, restaurants and attractions that rely on interna- ional summer tourism have lost another season of business, and with federal financial supports such as the Canada Emergency Let your community know you’re open for business. A recent survey of Canadian travel and tourism businesses by the Coalition of Hardest Hit Busi- nesses found 60 per cent expect to fail before the end of 2021. ition is calling on the federal government to establish a tailored wage and fixed-cost sup- port program for businesses ex- periencing pandemic revenue losses of more than 40 per cent. “If businesses in the hardest- hit sectors are allowed to fall vic- tim to the..CEWS and CERS withdrawal, staggered travel and tourism reopening and Canadi ans' unavoidable urge to exit the country in the cold months, we will see the loss of our vibrant tourism and travel industry," reads a letter from the coalition to Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland. “Much of the investment the government made into keeping these businesses afloat will be lost if they become insolvent just a few months before they are al- lowed to recover." from your store. Signing up is easy and free. Our business directory can be accessed from anyone of our 25 Community sites in Ontario. Visit metroland.com to ind the community site in your area. working with for 10 years was a little scary, but 3 months in and we could not be more pleased." Visit our community website in your area and click on the banner at the bottom of the page - Kim Barrington, General Manager Detour Coffee Roasters © BEDI cickthe “add Business link © TT comet and submit the form OFe 1 Blo Visit our website at metrolandparcelservices.ca Scan for more information metroland PARCEL SERVICES | semen metroland theifp.ca