(The Canadian Press)

By Ian Gustafson

Travelling abroad

Local travel agency sees increase in demand for international trips

Jul 13, 2021 | 5:05 PM

A local travel agent in Prince Albert has said there is an increased demand for residents looking to book a trip now that health restrictions have been eased in Saskatchewan and the federal government removed the 14-day quarantine for fully vaccinated international travellers.

Susan Currie, an independent contractor under Travel Masters Prince Albert told paNOW there is a pent-up demand for residents to travel.

“I know personally I took my first trip and I know it was honestly, mentally it was just such an exhilaration to get on a plane again and I think so many people are feeling that,” she said. “I’ve had so many calls recently just starting to look at options for their next winter.”

She believes the lifting of the 14-day quarantine for people who are fully vaccinated travelling internationally has made people more willing to travel.

“What we had over this last time with the 14-day quarantine if somebody was going to go away for a week, basically it was taking up three weeks of their holiday allotment so that was a real barrier,” she said. “I think this is definitely a positive. There are still some things you have to do even if you’re fully vaccinated but it is definitely opening things up.”

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The calls to book trips she said have mostly been for the winter season. Their most popular destinations are the winter getaways such as all-inclusives to the Caribbean or Mexico. She added a driving force for many is knowing they have a trip booked giving them something to look forward to.

“We live in Saskatchewan. It’s dang cold in the winter,” she said. “There’s still people that are thinking of Europe but that’s still not quite there yet. I think our warmer all-inclusive destinations are the popular point right now.”

The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the industry, Currie said. There have been a lot of agencies within the industry that didn’t survive the pandemic and she said it’s been devastating and will be for a long time before they can make up what they’ve lost.

However, she said people looking to travel has been a step in the right direction adding as more people travel, she believes residents will reach out to their local agencies.

“I think we still do really need to keep growing that confidence level but my trip I travelled to the U.S. this past week and the airports were full,” she said, adding when she arrived in Saskatoon there were few people but as she moved into Toronto and New York, it was crowded.

“It is coming, and it’s been a long year. So it will take a bit of time to get that confidence level up, but it will come back. I’m definitely feeling encouraged and optimistic that my business this time next year I will be in a very good place.”

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Ian.Gustafson@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @princealbertnow