REPORT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE CROWNS AIR CANADA'S ROBERT MILTON Robert Milton CEO of the Year The airline industry has planeloads of problems, but less than three years after a humbling court-supervised restructuring, Air Canada is cleared for takeoff and Robert Milton, President and CEO of ACE Aviation Holdings Inc., the airline's parent holding company, is Report on Business magazine's CEO of the Year. In addition to wiping out $8 billion in Air Canada debt and more than $1 billion in annual labour costs, Milton has changed the fundamentals of airline management - from ticket pricing and selling, to fleet renewal, to creating an entrepreneurial corporate culture. [Full text]

WORLD TRAVEL MARKET 2005 WRAP-UP Nearly 49,000 travel professionals thronged this year's World Travel Market in London with travel agent education programs, a Travel Technology section and debate on key industry issues contributing to the record showing. Fiona Jeffrey World Travel Market experienced its greatest year ever with a five per cent overall increase in attendance to almost 49,000 with an 11 per cent rise in the number of overseas trade visitors. Significantly, the number of agents and other trade visitors on the last day of World Travel Market also rose to nearly 3,000 and reflected the popularity of the Wise Up! educational program for travel agents in which five of the largest multiple retailers participated (Going Places, CTTG - Co-op Travel, Thomas Cook, First Choice, Thompson). "This has been a phenomenal year for World Travel Market and, despite the many traumas and problems that the industry has faced over this past year, reflects the nearly six per cent predicted growth for 2005 and, encouragingly, a continued confidence next year," said Fiona Jeffery, Group Exhibition Director. [Full text]

NOLITOURS UPDATES MAYAN RIVIERA, COZUMEL AND CANCUN STATUS Nolitours announced yesterday on its website that the situation in the Mayan Riviera and Cancun is returning to normal. In Playa Del Carmen, many shops, restaurants and bars are now open and there are tourists in the area. On the Riviera Maya, several properties are open now and all but three of Nolitours destination hotels will be open by December 1. All properties in Cozumel are slated for January 3 reopening and dates vary in Cancun. Full details follow. [Full text]

CONTIKI SEES YOUTH MARKET SWINGING TOWARD AGENTS Safety, companionship and anxious parents - key factors driving the backpack crowd to seek organized travel options and advice from agency professionals. Youth travel organizer, Contiki, is experiencing a higher demand than ever before from young travellers choosing pre-planned itineraries rather than heading off with a map of the world, a plane ticket and a trans-continental rail pass. Contiki's Marketing Manager Sarah Brooks said "many 18 - 35's now choose tailor-made itineraries which can be slotted together to create a personalized travel itinerary, rather than leaving it to chance. Aside from the safety issue, this also allows travellers to meet like-minded people and enjoy a far more sociable trip." [Full text]

WESTERN CANADIAN SKI RESORTS OFF TO AN EARLY START Clients eager to hit the slopes are getting a bonus this winter as British Columbia and Alberta report record-breaking early snow conditions. Early season snowfalls have blanketed British Columbia and Alberta pushing forward the opening dates for many ski resorts as they celebrate record-breaking early conditions. Whistler/Blackcomb in B.C. plans to open more terrain this weekend than any other ski resort in the world while ski areas in the Rocky Mountains of Alberta are claiming the best start to the season in over 10 years. Here is how the top resorts are shaping up: [Full text]

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