American Airlines has a contract deal with flight attendants, and President Biden is happy about it

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — American Airlines and the union representing its flight attendants said Friday they have reached agreement on a new contract that includes pay raises, and President Joe Biden said the deal avoids a strike that would have hurt the U.S. economy and consumers. Terms of the proposal were not disclosed. The agreement, covering 28,000 workers, faces a union ratification vote. The Association of Professional Flight Attendants previously rejected an American offer that would have increased pay immediately by 18% followed by annual 2% raises. The union was seeking 33% upfront, followed by four annual increases of […]

Five things to know about Quebec’s unique, two-week-long construction holiday

MONTREAL - It's one of Quebec's many idiosyncrasies that in the dog days of summer, when everyone wishes they were on holiday, virtually the entire construction industry and a good chunk of the rest of the province close up shop for two weeks.

On Sunday, Quebec's annual construction holiday will officially begin. It's a 50-year-old tradition unique to the province that has a major effect on the region's tourism industry — and on its roads.

Here are five things to know about the construction holiday.

It started more than half a century ago

U.S. eases border rules for dogs from Canada as Liberals try to secure exemption

OTTAWA - After much hounding by federal officials, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control is giving Canadian dogs a slightly longer leash when it comes to new rules aimed at controlling the spread of rabies.

Health Minister Mark Holland said Wednesday that he's been able to secure some changes to the regulations for dogs entering the United States from Canada after a series of meetings in Washington, D.C.

"We made good progress, I think it significantly improves the situation, but it's not enough," he said.

The federal government is arguing that Canada should be exempt from the rules entirely because there is no dog-maintained rabies virus in this country.

Francis Ford Coppola’s ‘Megalopolis’ wrapped at this Georgia hotel. Soon, it’ll be open for business

PEACHTREE CITY, Ga. (AP) — Two years ago, Francis Ford Coppola stopped at Georgia Film Academy on the hunt for apprentices for his upcoming film, ” Megalopolis.” Jordan Holifield, then a 23-year-old student, did a double-take when he saw one of the application questions — did he know how to disassemble IKEA furniture? Months later, Holifield, one of four selected apprentices, pulled up to Coppola’s hotel — which was originally a Days Inn motel. But gone was the IKEA furniture from the old motel. The suite Francis Ford Coppola stayed in at The All-Movie Hotel during the production of "Megalopolis," […]

Tourism association calls for end to LCBO strike, says dispute hurting operators

The Tourism Industry Association of Ontario is calling for a swift resolution to an ongoing strike by the province's liquor store workers, saying the labour dispute is affecting tourism operators during their peak season.

Approximately 10,000 workers at the Liquor Control Board of Ontario walked off the job July 5 and the Ontario Public Service Employees Union that represents them has said the province's alcohol expansion plans that would see ready-to-drink cocktails sold outside LCBO stores are the main issue in the dispute.

The tourism industry association says the strike – which has shuttered LCBO stores – is affecting tourism and hospitality businesses due to limited product availability and slow fulfillment and delivery times.

It says restocking capacity has been affected for larger operators requiring wholesale quantities and for small operators unable to order large wholesale quantities.

The last cards have been dealt as the iconic Mirage closes its doors on the Las Vegas Strip

LAS VEGAS (AP) — A final blast from The Mirage’s signature volcano marked the passage Wednesday of an aging Las Vegas resort that wowed crowds when it opened in 1989 and went on to revolutionize the casino resort industry and reshape Las Vegas as a tourist destination. “What would The Mirage be without one last volcano eruption?” asked Joe Lupo, property president of The Mirage, as he ended a closing ceremony that drew hundreds of onlookers, including 137 employees who worked at the 3,044-room resort from the beginning. Jim Allen, head of the property’s new owner, Florida-based Hard Rock International […]

New boutique hotel in Fargo offers top-notch rooms, facilities and delectable dishes

Since I was in my 20s, I’ve been travelling to Minneapolis to catch concerts, usually at the city’s venerable First Avenue venue.

Thirty years ago, a lack of vacation time and money often necessitated a quick turnaround in the Twin Cities — on more than one occasion, friends and I would motor down to see a show, spend one night crammed into a single hotel room and drive home early the next morning, a straight shot right back to Winnipeg.

Oh, to have such stamina!

Nowadays, I’d rather take a more leisurely pace, stopping halfway home, and instead of looking for a budget-friendly Motel 6 I might splurge on the kind of hotel that’s a destination in and of itself.

Airline regulator prods passenger to keep quiet on complaint rulings

A consumer rights organization says the Canadian Transportation Agency is pressuring passengers to stay silent about its rulings on their complaints — a move the country's airline regulator says falls squarely within its mandate under the law.

The agency has asked at least one complainant who posted a decision on the Air Passenger Rights’ Facebook page to delete their post, said Gabor Lukacs, president of the advocacy group.

“The decision was posted in the group by one of the passengers involved in the decision, who has since removed the post at our request,” reads an email from an agency director to Lukacs, who posted it online.

The message asks Lukacs for his group’s “collaboration in preventing future public sharing of confidential information.”

Delta and an airline that doesn’t fly yet say they’ll run flights between the US and Saudi Arabia

Delta Air Lines said Tuesday it has entered into a partnership with startup Riyadh Air with the goal of operating flights between the United States and Saudi Arabia.

Riyadh Air, which plans to begin passenger flights next summer, is backed by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign-wealth fund and is part of the country’s plan to diversify its oil-based economy and boost tourism.

Atlanta-based Delta and Riyadh did not give a timetable for beginning flights or financial details around their partnership. Their CEOs said neither airline is taking an ownership stake in the other.

Delta CEO Ed Bastian and Riyadh Air CEO Tony Douglas said they envision selling tickets on each other’s flights — a practice known as codesharing — that requires approval from the U.S. Transportation Department.

The Camino, a Catholic pilgrimage, increasingly draws the spiritual but not religious

(RNS) — In her early 30s, Rachael Sanborn found herself in a bad relationship and dreaming of an escape to the Camino de Santiago in Spain, a pilgrimage her father had undertaken that had profoundly changed his life. Sanborn, a rebel and adventurer by nature (she dropped out of college to meditate in India for a year), quit her job, gave up health insurance and pooled her savings to take two months to walk the Camino. By the third day of her walk, she promised herself she’d return every year. Nine months later, she was back, guiding her first group […]

Here’s what to know about Boeing agreeing to plead guilty to fraud in 737 Max crashes

Boeing will have a felony conviction if it follows through on an agreement with prosecutors to plead guilty to fraud in connection with approval of its 737 Max before two of the planes crashed, killing 346 people off the coast of Indonesia and in Ethiopia. The American aerospace giant has apparently made the calculation that admitting to a crime is better than fighting the charge and enduring a long public trial. The plea deal is not yet a sure thing, however. FILE - Nadia Milleron, parent of Samya Rose Stumo, one of the victims of the Boeing 737 Max crash […]

Kansas City shuffle: a travelogue of the world's BBQ capital

I was repeatedly asked the same question leading up to our road trip to Kansas City.

“Why the heck are you going there?”

And I would respond with the same three words each time: To eat barbecue.

For those that don’t know, Winnipeg is a 12-hour drive from the barbecue capital of the world. So, my girlfriend and I decided to hop in the car to investigate whether or not the Heart of America deserves such a title.

WestJet warns of disruptions in coming days as it recovers from mechanics strike

WestJet says there will still be flight disruptions, including cancellations, this week after a deal was reached to end a strike by its mechanics.

The airline issued a news release early Monday EDT saying it is restoring operations in a safe and timely manner, but due to the "significant impact" to its network over the past few days, "returning to business-as-usual flying will take time and further disruptions."

“We are grateful to be recovering our operation; however, we fully recognize the continued impact on our guests and sincerely appreciate their patience and understanding,” said airline president Diederik Pen, in another news release Monday afternoon.

When the tentative agreement was announced in a late-night statement, the airline said it had cancelled around 830 flights scheduled between Thursday and Monday and had pared down its 180-plane fleet to 32 active aircraft.

Deal reached in WestJet mechanics’ strike, but travel disruptions still expected

WestJet has reached a deal with its mechanics to end a strike that had disrupted the travel plans of tens of thousands of travellers over the Canada Day long weekend.

In a news release on its website, WestJet said there will still be flight disruptions in the week ahead as its planes are brought back into service.

“The damage to Canadians and our airline is massive, a swift resolution was necessary; we take no victory laps on this outcome but will sleep better tonight knowing further harm has been prevented,” airline president Diederik Pen said in the release, which was posted late Sunday.

In its own news release, the Airplane Mechanics Fraternal Association urged its members to return to work immediately pending a vote on the temporary agreement.

Travellers watch as WestJet cancels flights with no end to mechanics strike in sight

CALGARY - Travellers flying with WestJet continue to watch as the airline cancels more flights due to a sudden strike by its mechanics union.

The Calgary-based airline says it's now cancelled 407 flights over the Canada Day long weekend in an effort to "maintain stability."

Most of the flights were cancelled on Saturday, with 282 trips on WestJet planes being called off.

“Every flight cancellation we are forced to issue represents hundreds of guests, who are being impacted by the continued reckless actions of this union,” said WestJet Airlines president Diederik Pen in a statement issued late Saturday night.