US Tourism On The Decline, Cruise News and Barbados Food: This Week's JimBits

Europe is still king. But Mexico is gaining strength. And the U.S. is on a slide.

New figures from the United Nations World Tourism Organization show France is still king of the world tourism castle, with 86.9 million visitors last year. That's a healthy increase of 8.3 per cent.

Spanish tourism, fuelled in part by a steady hike in visitors to Barcelona, rose 8.6 per cent last year and reached 81.8 million; not that far off the gold medal position.

The U.S. still managed a third place finish, but visits to the land of Trump fell 3.8 per cent last year; a marked contrast to figures in almost every other part of the world. The U.S. recorded 75.9 million visitors last year, the UNWTO said.

The next three were China (60.7 million, up 2.5 per cent), Italy (58.3 million, up 11.2 per cent) and Mexico, which saw visits surge by a full 12 per cent, rising to 39.3 million arrivals.

Rounding out the top ten were the UK (37.6 million, up 5.3 per cent), Turkey (37.6, up a truly remarkable 21.3 per cent), Germany (37.5 million, an increase of 5.2 per cent) and Thailand, with 35.4 million visitors (up 8.6 per cent).

U.S. Travel officials met with President Donald Trump on Tuesday of this week to express concern about the travel and tourism industry, which is a major economic driver for the American economy. Attending the session was U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow, as well as senior officials from Marriott, Hilton and Wyndham hotels.

More than 180 sales team members from Canada, the US, South and Central America, the UK, Europe and the Caribbean attended the annual Sandals Global Sales Conference held recently at Sandals Barbados and Sandals Royal Barbados (Aug. 23 - 26, 2018)

Hosted by Gary C. Sadler, O.D, Senior Vice President of Sales, Unique Vacations Inc, the conference featured notable speakers including Tammy Gonzalez, CEO; Unique Vacations, Inc; Jeff Clarke, COO, Unique Vacations, Inc and Gebhard Rainer, CEO, Sandals Resorts International. The Hon. Miss Mia Amor Motley, Q.C., M.P., Prime Minister of Barbados, delivered the keynote speech. Throughout the weekend conference, all sales team members participated in team-building and learning activities with interactive talks by Sandals executives, breakout classes and more.

Four members of Unique Vacations Canada were recognized with individual honours during the highly-anticipated awards ceremony, including two of the evening's top prizes:

Winston Chang - Business Development Manager, Western Canada - won two awards: Regional BDM of the Year, Canada and National BDM of the Year - North America

Teresa Villanueva - Inside Sales Manager, Canada won for Outstanding Team Player, Canada

Grant Lawlor - National Groups Manager, Canada won the Spirit of Excellence, Groups Department

Omar Josephs - National Manager, Industry Relations won the Warren Cohen Award - Posthumously named in honour of the longtime Sandals executive, the award celebrates exemplary team spirit and dedication to the organization.

Scenic Eclipse, the World's First Discovery Yachts, are redefining the standard of ocean cruising, setting new benchmarks in design, innovation and luxury. This week sees the rollout of the company's state-of-the-art Airbus H130 helicopters, which will provide Scenic Eclipse guests with unparalleled access to some of nature's most beautiful sites.

As one of the quietest helicopters in the skies, the H130 sets the standard for tourism operations worldwide. Its reduced sound levels are seven decibels below the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) requirement and is quieter than the most restrictive sound limits defined for flights over national parks, animal and nature reserves across the world. The H130 is also one of the most environmentally friendly helicopters on the market with an efficient fuel burn that ensures lower emissions and less fuel usage.

Scenic Founder and Chairman, Glen Moroney, said the two helicopters on board Scenic Eclipse will offer guests a unique opportunity to go above and beyond. "Scenic has always sought to venture beyond the horizon and with our helicopters we provide guests with the opportunity to enjoy unparalleled access to some of nature's most beautiful sites. We have specifically selected this model for its wide, unobstructed cabin space which can accommodate the pilot and up to six passengers, with outstanding visibility for all passengers."

Contiki (www.contiki.com), the original travel company designed exclusively for 18 to 35-year olds, is encouraging young Canadians to extend their summers with the launch of its new campaign, dubbed 'Extend Your Summer', that will introduce its new adventures in Asia.

From hitting the surf on the sun-drenched coastlines of Weligama to visiting a care facility for orphaned and injured baby elephants, Asia is a land of colourful contrasts with so much to explore. With new adventures in Sri Lanka, Thailand and Cambodia, Contiki will be delivering more incredible Asia trips packed with food experiences, accommodation and adventures that are local, unique and utterly authentic. Asia isn't the only sunny paradise Contiki has on its extended summer wander list. From Latin America to the South Pacific, Contiki's new campaign has the perfect trip for every winter weary young Canadian looking to live out their dreams in paradise. Beginning now until October 31st, 2018, clients can save up to 15% off* on select adventures and receive $100 off their airfare. As an added celebration of all the Asian excitement,

Contiki is giving away two $50 Lululemon gift certificates during the campaign. Agents are encouraged to take a photo of themselves in their best yoga poses, from a selection of 12 pre-designated poses that range from the Bow to Boat poses, and upload it on the Contiki Canada Agent's Facebook group by October 31st, 2018. The two best yogis will win one gift certificate each.

As part of its new Asia 2018-19 program, Contiki will be expanding to Sri Lanka for the first time. From water to wildlife, there's a ton of magic to capture with its' new 10-day Pure Sri Lanka adventure. Clients will ride the famous Kandy to Ella train and see the tea plantations glide by before setting off on an even bigger adventure - an included Udawalawe safari. They'll spot Sri Lanka's 'Big 5' - elephants, leopards, sperm whales, sloth bears and blue whales - a truly unbelievable wildlife experience. For those keen for a bit of R&R after all that adventure, Contiki offers a beach stay at Unawatuna where clients can relax and visit the Kosgoda Turtle Conservation Centre to see the work being done to protect the sea turtles.

Air France, the official airline of the Toronto International Film Festival, is welcoming guests to its pop-up café in downtown Toronto.

The Air France Bistro, located next to Roy Thomson Hall on King St. W. at Simcoe, is a pop-up café that serves chocolate or ham and cheese croissants with sparkling (faux) wine.

They've got Paris-style tables and chairs, as well as a four-metre-high Eiffel Tower (beats the heck out of our concrete tower, don't you think?)

While at the bistro, visitors can enter a contest for a seven-night stay in Cannes that includes tickets for one of the evening galas at the 2019 International Cannes Film Festival. The winner also gets two business-class tickets from Toronto to Nice on Air France.

Entries also will be accepted online at https://www.theredcarpetexperience.ca.

"We are pleased to be able to add a little French touch in the middle of Toronto, and we're proud to sponsor the Platinum program (at TIFF) and present the award to the winner of this category, aimed at showcasing the next generation of filmmakers," said Vincent Etchebehere, Vice-President and General Manager Air France-KLM Canada.

For the first time in its nine-year history, the Barbados Food & Rum Festival (October 17-21, 2018) will transform its format to focus on local culinary and cocktail talent. In the past, Barbados' homegrown talent was often eclipsed by the existing notoriety of visiting international celebrity chefs. The shift contradicts the conventional setup of high-profile Caribbean food festivals, which typically put several western chefs at the helm, providing a North American experience of sorts.

With 2018 serving as Barbados' Year of Culinary Experiences, the tourism board (Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc.) sees this festival development as necessary to educate foodie travellers on the wealth of award-winning chefs and mixologists on the island, and inspire visitation specifically for Bajan food and rum. Many travellers, including Canadians, often do not know of the nuances that separate one Caribbean island's cuisine from another. This will be a tasty way to learn how Barbados, the proclaimed Culinary Capital of the Caribbean, does it best!

The new model of the festival also seeks to elevate the reputation of Caribbean fine dining - much of which requires the same level of culinary mastery as French or Mediterranean fare.

2018's line-up includes Chef Damian Leach, Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association 2016 Caribbean Chef of the Year and 2018 Barbados Chef of the Year - who also studied his culinary craft in Ottawa! Local favorites such as Chefs Craig Greenidge and Michael Harrison, and pastry guru Javon Cummins will also take center stage (more on them below).

Not to completely upend tradition, the festival will still maintain one international ambassador - London's Tom Aiken. This will be the Michelin-starred chef's second time participating in the festival. He will be tasked with promoting it and infusing his dishes with locally sourced ingredients.

Princess Cruises started with a single ship sailing out of the Port of Los Angeles to Mexico in 1965. In 200 days, the cruise line welcomes Royal Princess, one of its new large ships recognized around the world for having been officially named in 2013 by Her Royal Highness, Catherine, The Duchess of Cambridge. Royal Princess will arrive with great fanfare to the City of Angels and embark on her maiden voyage to the Mexican Riviera on March 23, 2019.

"The anticipation of the arrival of Royal Princess is growing as we officially announce the 200-day countdown that will welcome one of our newest, most elegant ships in our global fleet to the U.S. west coast and long-term home at the Port of Los Angeles," said Jan Swartz, Princess Cruises president. "Now guests have the opportunity to experience this exquisite floating resort, our world-class service and best-in-class dining to sought-after destinations like the Mexican Riviera, California Coast, Hawaii and Alaska."