The Most Influential Travel Brands Right Now

Donald Wood
by Donald Wood
 Last updated: 1:20 PM ET, Thu June 22, 2023

The American magazine company TIME released its annual list of the 100 most influential companies in the world, with several travel-related brands making the list.

The list comprises five categories—Leaders, Disrupters, Innovators, Titans and Pioneers—by TIME editors who evaluate each company based on key factors, including impact, innovation, ambition and success.

In the Leaders category, adventure tour operator Intrepid Travel made the annual list, with the magazine highlighting the brand’s environmentally and socially responsible options. Intrepid “saw record-breaking booking days after launching a flight-free program (and more than 100 Indigenous-led tours) last year.”

SpaceX also found itself listed among the Leaders category, partly due to the company’s dedication to the emerging space tourism market. Elon Musk’s company launched 61 Falcon 9 flights last year, “making it the world’s workhorse rocket.”

“It’s fantastic to see that TIME focused on

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Top Travel Trends for Czech Travelers

TORONTO, June 13, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — According to the travel app Visited, the app allows users to map their travels, tick off famous destinations by categories and get inspired by discovering new destinations all while getting personalized travel stats.

The Visited travel app has over 1.7 million users across the globe and offers a unique glance to popular destinations. Based on the app’s data, Czechia is currently ranked as the 13thrd most visited country among global international travelers.

The travel list feature allows users to check off destinations based on interests. Travel lists include famous beaches, national parks, art museums, culinary experiences and more. With over 150 customized travel lists, users can discover new destinations. For those visiting Czech, the most popular destination is Prague. Prague is currently ranked 7thth as the most visited Capital in the world, while Prague castle being the most popular castle in

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Travel firms say Brexit is blocking UK workers from being EU chalet hosts

Brexit has resulted in a sharp drop in the number of UK workers in EU holiday jobs, new figures show.

Only 3,700 people from the UK are being employed in the bloc to do roles such as chalet hosts, holiday reps and tour guides, travel trade organizations said.

That is a 69% drop from 11,970 in 2017.

Employing UK workers in popular EU destinations such as Spain, France, Greece, Italy and Austria has traditionally been a vital part of UK holiday companies’ overseas operations.

Complex paperwork, extra costs and a lack of agreements is impeding the process, according to Abta and Seasonal Businesses in Travel (SBit), which released the employment figures.

Prior to the end of the Brexit transition period on December 31 2020, UK workers were entitled to live and work in the rest of the EU with no restrictions.

Abta and SBit said since the UK’s withdrawal from

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Maison du Musée: The Art of Fine Dining

Many of Tokyo’s museums and art galleries have a restaurant or cafe somewhere on the premises, but Maison du Musee turns the concept completely around: The elegant French restaurant is an art museum in itself. Encompassing one of Japan’s finest art deco collections, it delivers a dining experience quite unlike anything else in Tokyo.

A short walk from Omotesando Station, Maison du Musee is housed in a former Western-style residence with almost 90 years of history. In addition to fine dining for lunch and dinner at the restaurant, there is also offers a cozy basement wine bar and a French patisserie. The main restaurant opens onto a garden, where the flowers are rotated on a monthly basis to ensure a beautiful view at any time of year. Both the restaurant and the wine bar can be rented out for private functions, and the garden makes an ideal venue ideal for

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Jamie West pushes for an increase in Northern Health Travel Grant

Sudbury MPP told the Ontario Legislature that the mileage rates and hotel allowances are not sufficient to cover travel costs

Sudbury MPP Jamie West is pushing the Ontario government to make the Northern Health Travel Grant more accessible for financially strapped patients who may not be able to afford the up-front costs for medical travel.

Speaking at Queen’s Park Thursday during the final Question Period for the current sitting of the Legislature, West said many Northerners need to travel to Southern Ontario to receive specialized medical treatment that might not be available to them at home.

In order to qualify for the medical travel grant, a Northern Ontario patient must fill out a form to determine if they qualify for financial assistance. Patients must fill out a new and separate application form for each trip they take. Under the current system, patients must pay for trips and accommodation on their

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The Nature of Kyoto: Writers in Kyoto Anthology

Japan’s ancient capital is loved as much for its nature as for its culture. The myriad of temples are revered for their stunning green gardens as much as they’re respected for their venerable history. Anyone sitting on the banks of the Kamo River flowing through Kyoto would agree that the city has maintained an enabling balance of the natural and the urban. Coincidentally, that is exactly where the fifth anthology of the Writers in Kyoto (WiK) had its al fresco book launch this May.

Coming out of a pandemic, I’d be remiss not to remark on the fact that so many of us turned to nature more than ever, whether it was the plant-buying craze, or the walks and picnics. WiK too have selected nature as a theme of their fifth anthology. This refers both to the physical nature around us, but also to the “inner nature,” or the spirit

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Fungal meningitis outbreak at Mexico clinic kills four patients from US; what to know

Fungal meningitis outbreaks at cosmetic procedure clinics in Mexico have killed four people from the US and likely infected many more, health officials announced this month.

The deaths were announced after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a travel advisory last month urging travelers to “practice enhanced precautions” in the area.

Nearly 200 people in the US may have been exposed to the deadly fungal meningitis at two clinics in Matamoros, Mexico, which provided procedures such as implants and liposuction, NBC News reported. The exposure probably occurred in patients who underwent epidural anesthesia, health officials say.

The two clinics, River Side Surgical Center and Clinica K-3, were closed on May 13, the CDC said.

The CDC said last week that it was collaborating with the Mexican Ministry of Health and US state and local health departments to respond to the outbreak among patients who traveled to Matamoros, which

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Free bus rides in Greater Victoria on Clean Air Day

Bus riders in Greater Victoria can travel for free on public transit on Wednesdays as BC Transit marks Clean Air Day.

The move is in part to encourage more environmentally-friendly transportation options, BC Transit and the Victoria Regional Transit commission said in a joint statement. HandyDART users will also receive free service Wednesdays.

Transit was free for those who boarded their bus with a bike helmet last week as part of a Go By Bike Week initiative.

Children up to age 12 have been able to ride on the BC Transit system for free without fare or identification since 2021, with supervision required for those five and under.

A number of transit systems across Canada will be offering free transit on Wednesday as well, including Prince George in BC as well as Fredericton and St. John in New Brunswick.

Clean Air Day was first declared in 1999 by the federal

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How To Travel To 7 Or More Countries In Europe By Train For Less Than $300

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Are you traveling Europe this summer and still can’t make up your mind on where to go now that the entire continent is open restriction-free for the first time in three years? We might have just the solution for you.

You can travel to 7 or more European countries by train in under a month paying less than $300. Here’s how:

The Amazing Benefits Of An Eurail Pass

Traditional Red Tourist Train Traveling Through A Picturesque Region Of Switzerland, By The Alps, Where A Small Swiss Village And Alpine Lake Is Located, Central Europe

We know planning a Euro trip can be challenging. With so many fairytale towns, world-class city breaks, and iconic landmarks to pick from, we always get huge FOMO (fear of missing out) when flying across the pond.

While it’s impossible to cramp every single European highlight into a single trip, you can cover a lot of ground, and easily tick off as many as seven countries, during a month of traveling. Thanks to

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Government Pilots Travel Assistance Program for Surgical Patients

Some Nova Scotians who need to go to other parts of the province for surgery will soon have support for travel and accommodation.

A new pilot program will reduce out-of-pocket costs for eligible, lower-income patients who have to travel within the province for scheduled surgery, or endoscopy or cystoscopy procedures, including for the day of their surgery/procedure and some related appointments. It may also help some patients get their surgery or procedure more quickly if they can travel to a site with a shorter wait time.

“Some surgeries and procedures mean Nova Scotians have to travel quite a distance from home and sometimes stay overnight to be closer to the hospital and those costs can add up,” said Health and Wellness Minister Michelle Thompson. “This pilot program will ensure patients pay less for travel and accommodation to get the surgeries or procedures they need.”

The pilot program will begin Thursday,

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