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| G.A.P ADVENTURES’ ANTARCTIC SHIP HITS ICE |
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Passengers, crew safe after Canadian owned cruise ship hits ice in Antarctic
Canadian Press
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| M/S Explorer | | Passengers and crew from a Canadian-owned cruise liner forced to abandon ship after striking ice in the Antarctic were reported in good condition Friday morning aboard a second cruise vessel. The Explorer, owned by Toronto-based G.A.P Adventures, was completing an ecological tour of Antarctica when the accident took place around midnight Eastern time. Susan Hayes, G.A.P Adventures' vice-president of marketing, said all passengers and crew are safe, thanks to the timely intervention of a neighbouring ship. Hayes said the 91 passengers, including 10 Canadians, are currently on board the Nordnorge, a passing vessel that responded to the distress call. The nine crew members are also safely on board.
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| TOUR EAST’S RITA TSANG WINS ENTREPRENEUR AWARD |
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President and CEO of Tour East wins RBC Canadian Woman Entrepreneur 2007 Award
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| Rita Tsang accepting her award from Rebecca McDonald, Energy Savings Group | | Tour East Holidays President and CEO, Rita Tsang, has been named the 2007 recipient of the prestigious RBC Canadian Woman Entrepreneur Award - one of the highest recognitions in Canada's business community. RBC, part of the Royal Bank of Canada Financial Group, honored Tsang with its "Lifetime Achievement Award" at a gala ceremony in Toronto, November 20th. In making the announcement, RBC said it was recognizing Tsang's entrepreneurial skills over the past three decades, a period in which Tour East Holidays has grown to become Canada's leader in vacation tours to Asia; as well as her philanthropic work, especially her efforts in strengthening multicultural ties in Canada. "I am so honoured by this award," said Tsang, who started Tour East Holidays over 30 years ago. "I share this award with my family and all the staff of Tour East Holidays - my extended family."
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| MSC CRUISES IMPLEMENTS FUEL SURCHARGE |
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Guests will pay $6 per passenger per day on new bookings made Dec. 1st and onwards; applicable on all cruise departures after Feb. 1, 2008
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| MSC Splendida | | MSC Cruises will be implementing a fuel surcharge of $6 per guest per day. The line will protect existing bookings on all voyages that have guest names and are under deposit by Nov. 30, 2007. The non-commissionable fuel surcharge will only apply to new bookings made Dec. 1, 2007 and onwards and will be applicable only on cruise departures after Feb. 1, 2008. No surcharge will be levied on third and fourth passengers in the same stateroom. “In recent months, fuel prices have reached levels that make it impossible for us to offset them, particularly given the already attractive cruise offers we extend to our valued guests,” says Richard E. Sasso, president and CEO of MSC Cruises (USA).
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| ACTA SPEAKS OUT ON CRUISE FUEL SURCHARGES |
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ACTA consults with OPC, TICO, BPCPA on cruise fuel surcharges and regulations
Recently, many cruise lines have implemented fuel surcharges. ACTA has made it their issue to consult with the three authorities regulating travel in Canada (OPC, TICO and BPCPA), and have received confirmation that the retroactive application of a fuel surcharge would not be legal in Quebec and Ontario when full payment has been received from the consumer. In cases where deposits have been made, it would only be allowed under certain conditions. One of these conditions is that the contract provides for such a possibility and that it be a part of the cruise line contract with the passenger. ACTA has informed the cruise lines of these regulations, who confirmed that they are looking into such restrictions and regulations in Canada and the impacts these could have on their fuel surcharge policies.
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| SUNWING OFFERS FLORIDA EBBs |
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Book and pay by Nov. 30 and your clients receive a choice of 3 EBBs
This winter, if your clients book and pay for their Florida vacations by November 30, they’ll have a choice of three early booking bonuses. The bonuses are free of charge and apply to one or two week vacations including air from Toronto, accommodation and rental car departing between January 5 and February 7, 2008. If travelling with children, up to two children (aged 2 to 15) can pay only $65 (plus taxes) for air and hotel. Clients can receive a "buy one, get one free" pass for SeaWorld Orlando or Busch Gardens. Or, if travelling in small groups of 6 or more, they can save up to $300 when booking a three or four-room villa in the Orlando area. Read on for more details.
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| ENCORE CRUISEESCAPES ENHANCES WEBSITE |
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Encore CruiseEscapes adds Agent Group Resource Centre to help agents book cruise groups, increase sales
Encore CruiseEscapes has enhanced its agent website by adding an Agent Group Resource Centre to its dedicated cruise groups section. This was done in an effort to further assist and help guide travel agents in booking cruise groups, as well as helping them successfully work through the planning stages, and ultimately increasing their cruise sales.The website now allows agents to download travel agent guides, request a group quote, view cruise line group policies, see current promotions and offers, check out the recommended group sailings for 2008-2009, see all the Hot Deals for group travel (2008 sailings) and more.
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| CONQUEST AWARDS AGENT WITH NEW CAR |
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Laurie Lennox of Breakway Travel, Oshawa, wins Mazda car in ‘Key to Freedom’ contest
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| Laurie Lennox from Breakaway Travel, Oshawa | | Conquest Vacations recently announced that Laurie Lennox of Breakaway Travel in Oshawa is the second winner in the “Conquest/Mazda Key to Freedom” promotion. Laurie’s name was drawn from ballots submitted by travel agents across the country who have booked their passengers on an upcoming Conquest Vacation. The Conquest promotion, billed as “the largest ever in the Canadian travel industry”, continues throughout the winter season. Every month, Conquest will give away a Mazda 3 car through March 2008 to travel agents who book their clients on one of their vacations. As an added bonus, Conquest will also give away two cars to consumers between now and next spring. The next travel agent draw will take place during the first week of December followed by the first consumer draw on December 15.
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