Great Trips To Celebrate Dad, Plus News from Air Canada Vacations, WestJet, And More

The power of travel is tremendous and offering the gift of travel truly demonstrates the value of a relationship, especially for dad and other amazing father figures. Insight Vacations, the global leader in premium escorted journeys, wants to take dad on magical journeys full of Insight Experiences to celebrate his efforts for Father's Day with year-round departures.

Particularly designed for those who are interested in discovering France's Champagne region and wine capitals, the sparkling secrets of Spanish bubbly, Portuguese port wine and stylish cocktail lounges in Latvia along with the spirit culture of Russia, these journeys offer dad memories to last a lifetime and are a thrill for the senses.

"There's no better way to distinguish appreciation than by offering an experiential gift and travel enables ideal bonding time, creating long-lasting memories," said Brad Ford, president of Insight Vacations in Canada. "With Europe continuing to be most popular especially in the summer months, we're meeting demand by offering culturally immersive and magical experiences to spark dad's special interests."

Packages include French Heritage trips to explore the Champagne region and Burgundy, as well as visits to the wine country of Spain and Portugal.

The Bitter End Yacht Club in the British Virgin Islands is excited to announce that after more than 20 months of demolition and cleanup from Hurricane Irma related damage, including the removal of over 100 structures and remediation of more than 64 acres, the process of rebuilding Bitter End is now underway. Launched in 1969 as a remote island outpost that catered to visiting yachtsman, Bitter End will soon revisit its origins as a rollicking nautical village while the owners plan to Bring Back Bitter End better than ever.

"We have a unique opportunity to return to our roots by welcoming back the sailing, yachting and watersports communities first," said Richard Hokin, Managing Owner of Bitter End Yacht Club. "Bitter End launched in the 1960s as a hangout for adventurous sailors and has evolved over the last 50 years to become the world's favorite playground for those who have a passion for playing in, on and around the water."

Given Bitter End's legacy it is fitting that the marina village, the heart and soul of Bitter End, will be the first element of the property to be redeveloped following the devastation wrought by Hurricane Irma. During the 2019-2020 season, Bitter End will debut all new world-class marina facilities to include a two-story, open-air marina complex featuring a lounge with expansive views of the North Sound and setting sun, enhanced amenities such as marina-wide WIFI, upgraded bathing facilities and hospitality offerings that will make even the most sea-worn sailor feel right at home.

Evening music in the cobblestone streets of Quebec City, a seafood festival in Halifax, or the eclectic vibe of Vancouver's art, photography and film scenes - from East to West, your favourite Canadian cityscapes are easy to explore with Air Canada Vacations. Plus enjoy FREE standard seat selection and
a $100 future travel credit per couple (conditions apply).

Trips must be booked by June 23 and travel must be completed by Oct. 31, 2019.

Luxury Gold, the global leader in luxury escorted journeys, is pleased to present its exceptional 2020 Americas mini-magazine with 12 journeys beyond the ordinary to North and South America. The collection includes some of the award-winning brand's most popular journeys such as Majesty of the Rockies, Treasures of the Incas, and Indulgence in Eastern Canada as well as three brand new journeys to Colombia, Ecuador and Canada & the USA. This year, Luxury Gold is also offering recently enhanced journeys and six itineraries with notable Chairman's Collection VIP experiences on select departures. Clients can book early and take advantage of the popular Early Payment Discount, offering savings of 10% if they book and pay in full by December 18, 2019*. Furthermore, valued and loyal past guests of Luxury Gold and sister companies are offered a 5%** Past Guest Discount off all trips until August 3, 2019 in addition to the Early Payment Discount.

"We are delighted to be offering our truly immersive 2020 Luxury Gold Americas journeys by bringing back the golden era of travel with our exclusive VIP experiences, exceptional dining and carefully chosen luxury hotels," said Brad Ford, president of Luxury Gold in Canada. "Our valued clients will enjoy the expert knowledge of their Travelling Concierge, special small group departures and opportunities to make travel matter while learning to travel more sustainably with our partner, the TreadRight Foundation."

A grand, new look for Toronto's grand dame of hotels.

The Fairmont Royal York Hotel celebrated its 90th birthday this week and also unveiled a sleek, sexy and very much updated look that no doubt will give the hotel a huge lift.

Surrounded by employees, guests, and members of the community, hotel officials unveiled its transformed lobby, designed by Rockwell Group, and the new lobby bar, called CLOCKWORK in honour of the jazzy new clock; a meeting place for Torontonians for nearly a century.

Hundreds of people crowded the famed lobby for the celebrations, which were inaugurated with entertainment from Big Smoke Brass Band. Present at the grand reveal event were such dignitaries as Toronto Mayor John Tory, Regional Vice President, Accor Central Canada and General Manager of Fairmont Royal York, Edwin Frizzell; Project Lead for KingSett Capital, Paul Campbell; and Partner at Rockwell Group, Greg Keffer.

The new look features plenty of art deco notes and pale pink lighting, as well as gold accents and tons of nods to the hotel's historic past.

Scenic Luxury Cruises & Tours has announced that Scenic Eclipse, the world's first Discovery Yacht, continues to move closer to her official launch on August 15, 2019 with the successful completion of extensive sea trials.

"It was a real pleasure to take Scenic Eclipse out to sea for the first time," said Captain James Griffiths, Scenic Luxury Cruises & Tours. "Sea trials are a critical milestone in the construction process as it is the first time all the ship systems are operated together and is a key opportunity to confirm the theoretical information from the tank tests and computer modelling. The results from these trials surpassed every expectation."

Captain Griffiths added, "I have worked extensively with Azipods on other ships like Scenic Eclipse's, and these sea trials confirmed to me how incredibly versatile and powerful they are, particularly when coupled with our oversized Bow Thrusters. I was also delighted with how quiet the ship is. She was vibration free and virtually silent during all our trials, exceeding our expectations in terms of stability, maneuverability and performance. Scenic Eclipse really does manage to combine small ship maneuverability with big ship levels of comfort and quietness; it's quite remarkable to experience it."

With sea trials complete, Scenic Eclipse will now undergo the final touches to its interior and exterior and the final training of the onboard teams before the official launch and commencement of schedule of sailings.

Following the successful launch of WestJet's Dreamliners from Calgary to London (Gatwick), Paris and Dublin, guests travelling across WestJet's global network can now experience the airline's elevated amenities and on-board experience.

Tailored to showcase WestJet's authentic Canadian story, enhanced service offerings and products are featured across WestJet's Boeing 787 Dreamliners, 767 and 737 transatlantic service. Guests can expect to see updates continue to roll across the WestJet fleet throughout 2019 and 2020.

"Our guests are going to love our uniquely Canadian products and we are proud to showcase our like-minded partners who share our passion for thoughtful, quality products created in Canada," said Louis Saint-Cyr, WestJet's Vice-President, Guest Experience. "WestJet continues our global transformation and these elevated products and services complement the award-winning onboard experience we are known for."

The Boarding Sessions with Sean Jones
For the first time in Canadian music history, guests will hear a soundtrack of soulful music onboard an aircraft from Canadian Juno award-winning recording artist Sean Jones. During boarding guests are treated to original music and classic covers of iconic Canadian artists - like The Band, Sarah McLachlan and The Guess Who - that Jones drew inspiration from for his album. The album is available for download and the story behind The Boarding Sessions is available to watch onboard WestJet's Dreamliners.

Business Cabin Amenity Kits featuring Matt & Nat and Province Apothecary
Business cabin guests departing on European-bound transatlantic flights will receive tan-coloured amenity kits, designed by Montreal's Matt & Nat, while guests departing to Canada receive navy-coloured kits. These beautiful kits feature organic skincare products from Toronto's Province Apothecary that use only the highest quality ingredients sourced from provinces across Canada.

Canmore's Rocky Mountain Soap Company Premium Cabin amenities
Guests flying on select flights in WestJet's Premium cabin receive Rocky Mountain Soap Company kits that feature handmade products with simple, natural ingredients for healthy and beautiful skin. Rocky Mountain Soap Company lavatory products including foaming hand wash, hand cream and refreshing wellness sprays are also available throughout most of the airline's Premium and Economy cabins.