More than 24,000 immigration documents could be suspended by Ebola border measures

OTTAWA - The Immigration Department says more than 24,000 travel documents could be suspended by the federal government's measures to keep Ebola out of Canada.

The government has announced a 90-day suspension of a variety of immigration and travel documents for people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and South Sudan. The suspension took effect at 11:59 p.m. ET on Wednesday.

In an email, a department spokesperson said there were about 12,600 DRC residents and 11,500 Ugandan residents with valid travel documents as of May 19.

The government estimates there were 470 South Sudan residents with valid immigration travel documents as of May 21.

World Cup expected to boost Toronto tourism even if hotel bookings haven’t surged

TORONTO - Hotel industry and tourism groups in Toronto are optimistic that FIFA World Cup matches will bring many people to the city and boost the local economy despite a lack of surge in hotel bookings and high ticket prices.  

Sara Anghel, president and CEO of the Greater Toronto Hotel Association, said the soccer tournament will definitely have a positive economic impact, even after FIFA cancelled thousands of hotel room bookings in Toronto, Vancouver and other host cities.

"We've never had the opportunity to host something of this magnitude," she said in an interview. "It's basically six Super Bowls in the city over the span of less than a month."

Destination Toronto's vice-president of destination development, Kelly Jackson, said typically hotels are at about 80 per cent capacity in June and July and they expect it will be similar this June. 

Conservative MP Michael Chong travelling to Taiwan to ‘assert Canadian sovereignty’

OTTAWA - Conservative MP Michael Chong is travelling to Taiwan this week in a self-described bid to assert Canadian sovereignty.

The former cabinet minister says the trip is to show solidarity with Taiwan, and also to spite China's ambassador to Canada.

In an interview with The Globe and Mail last month, Beijing's envoy to Canada said any MPs travelling to Taiwan would risk damaging the new partnership between the two countries Prime Minister Mark Carney signed this year.

In a news release, Chong said Canadians "do not take direction from a foreign government about where Canadian MPs can travel internationally."

Staycations stay popular as summer camping starts over May long weekend

After a long, dark Prairie winter, Abby Dowell is determined to be outdoors and touch grass — regardless of whether or not the green blades are coated in hoarfrost.

"I just feel like I really need to get out of the city," said Dowell, from Edmonton.

"Look at some mountains, look at some scenery that's not concrete."

Dowell is among the campers and travellers planning to spur off at the sound of the summer season starter pistol: the echo of the last clock tick to Friday evening and the beginning of the May long weekend.

Travel industry insiders aren’t worried about the future of cruises, even with outbreaks

While a pair of high-profile outbreaks on cruises might have a temporary chilling effect, those in the industry predict the ships' siren song will lure travellers back in short order. 

Lorn Sheehan, a tourism expert at Dalhousie University, says cruises were able to bounce back after COVID-19 and he expects the same will be true in the case of a hantavirus outbreak that locked down an Antarctica-bound adventure cruise, sickening 11 passengers and crew members, including three who died. 

He says the travel industry is resilient, and the growth of cruise tourism outpaces that of the sector as a whole. 

He says travellers appreciate cruises for their convenience, likening them to a "travelling resort" that takes you between destinations.

Spam fries, ramen doughnuts: Calgary Stampede unveils artery-clogging menu

Candied pickles on a stick. Crispy fried century egg on a bao bun. Pizza dipped in corn dog batter, dusted with Cheetos seasoning and tossed in the deep fryer. Who's hungry?

Rise in American tourists signing up for Maine to Nova Scotia ferry service

HALIFAX - The operator of the ferry service between Nova Scotia and Maine says bookings for the new season are up about 30 per cent over last year with renewed interest from Americans looking to travel to Canada. 

Bay Ferries Ltd., which operates The CAT ferry between Yarmouth, N.S., and Bar Harbor, Maine, said it has almost 17,800 reservations for the sailing season that began Thursday morning. That's about 5,000 more bookings than the service had at the same time last year. 

Mark Wilson, the ferry company's CEO, says 2026 is shaping up to be a strong rebound year as more Americans book the vehicle and passenger ferry. He says U.S. travellers traditionally make up 75 to 80 per cent of ridership, and the number is climbing. 

“We're still seeing … increased numbers on that up into the 85 per cent range, which is really what the service is about, bringing high-value tourists into Nova Scotia and the Maritimes,” he said in an interview. 

Canadian Grand Prix organizers prepare for earlier race date, possible Habs run

MONTREAL - Organizers of the Canadian Grand Prix say they're ready for their new, earlier slot on the Formula One calendar, even if it raises the possibility of overlap with a Montreal Canadiens playoff run.

Formula One has rescheduled the Montreal race from mid-June to May 24 in order to reduce travel and environmental impact by moving the event closer to the Miami Grand Prix.

The new schedule allows teams to have consecutive races in North America, avoiding the pitfalls of the last schedule that required travelling back and forth for races in Europe.

Sandrine Garneau, the race's chief operating officer for brands and strategy, said staff were able to start mounting the track facilities in the fall instead of the spring to accommodate a race date that's about three weeks earlier.

EU commissioner warns of potential jet fuel shortage in the long term

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — The European Union's energy commissioner said Wednesday that while there is no immediate threat to jet fuel supplies, the possibility of a longer-term shortage cannot be ruled out.

Commissioner Dan Jørgensen told reporters that any shortage will depend on how the Iran war and the situation in the Strait of Hormuz will unfold, as well as how airlines will react after some companies — including the German owners of the airline Lufthansa — canceled a significant number of flights.

Fighting around the Strait of Hormuz, from which a fifth of the world’s oil typically passes, has disrupted supplies and caused fuel prices to spike around the world.

While Jørgensen said “we’re not there yet” in terms of a jet fuel shortage, he said the bloc’s executive arm will start talks with member states “on how best to address the situation,” without offering any specifics.

Blind side: Why World Cup economic impact on Vancouver and Toronto may never be known

VANCOUVER - Vancouver Foodie Tours is hoping to dine out on an influx of visitors for the FIFA World Cup, when soccer fans begin converging on the city next month.

"We've actually custom curated the script and the tastings in each three of our tours to be themed with what's going on in the city for that time and to really highlight the history of football in Vancouver," said Veronica Irvine, operations manager for the company, which takes food lovers on dining journeys through the city.

Irvine said the company previously did themed tours for fans in town for Taylor Swift's Eras Tour in December 2024. 

"Event-driven experiences have been on the rise and Vancouver really comes alive when these events come into the city, and it just makes a lot of sense to just be a part of it," Irvine said.

Sojourn to Habs’ hallowed home also makes time for primo poutine

It was a bleu, blanc et rouge takeover inside the Canada Life Centre on Feb. 4.

The Jets may be royalty around these parts, but on that night, their home rink was packed with Montreal Canadiens fans who watched the Original Six franchise cruise to a 5-1 victory.

“Yeah, that’s pretty disappointing,” Jets head coach Scott Arniel said at the time, referring to the crowd. “That’s probably the worst that I’ve seen it in my four years back here tonight.”

The Tampa Bay Lightning experienced a similar invasion last Sunday in Game 7 of its first-round playoff battle against Montreal — and, improbably, the Canadiens rewarded their well-travelled supporters with a 2-1 win despite managing just nine (!) shots on goal.

Experts understand anxiety about hantavirus, but say it’s unlikely to be next pandemic

TORONTO - Infectious disease specialist Dr. Allison McGeer has lived and worked through SARS-1 in 2003, the H1N1 flu pandemic in 2009 and the COVID-19 pandemic, which began in 2020.

With the trauma of the COVID pandemic so fresh in people's minds, she understands why many are anxious about the hantavirus outbreak on board the MV Hondius cruise ship 

But McGeer, who works at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto, says it's highly improbable that this virus will become another pandemic. 

"I was losing sleep about COVID in the first week of January of 2020. I am not losing sleep about this," McGeer said Friday.  

Air India slashes flights to Canada amid soaring jet fuel prices

MONTREAL - Air India has slashed its flight schedule due to soaring jet fuel prices, leaving Canadian residents hoping to visit the subcontinent with fewer options and higher fares.

In an internal message to staff verified by The Canadian Press, CEO Campbell Wilson said the airline has cut flight volumes for April and May, with plans for more schedule trims in June and July.

"This is in response to the massive rise in jet fuel prices which, together with airspace closures and longer flying routes, has caused many of our international flights to become unprofitable to operate," Wilson said in last week's memo.

"To partially compensate for the huge spike in costs, we have increased airfares and imposed fuel surcharges but, understandably, these higher airfares impact customer demand, so we can only raise fares so far before people decide to stay home."

Parade of ghostly icebergs brings joy and wonder to Newfoundland and Labrador

ST. JOHN'S -

At the top of Signal Hill in St. John's, N.L., on Tuesday afternoon, a steady stream of people walked around a rocky cliff and gasped.

Some cheered, some took out their phones to capture the moment — a rush of awe as an iceberg floated in the ocean below, cleaved off from a Greenland glacier and delivered by the Labrador current on a cloudless spring day.

It's a banner year for icebergs in Newfoundland and Labrador, where tourists and residents alike are gathering on shores across the province to welcome the ancient visitors.

New space cleared for prayer at city’s airport

If you like to get grounded before you’re airborne, the Winnipeg Richardson International Airport has a place for you.

The airport now has a designated space where people of any faith can take a few minutes of quiet solitude to pray while they’re waiting for their flight.

It’s a small, carpeted area enclosed by movable panels against one of the glass walls of the arrivals and departures wing between Gates 9 and 10.

The prayer space is behind security, accessible only to passengers who are travelling.