North Americans will soon have the option to speed through the normal customs and immigration processes at select airports, promising to thin out customs and immigration line-ups greeting international visitors. In March 2003, Canada Customs will launch “CANPASS-Air” on international routes leading into Vancouver and Toronto international airports. A photo ID card in conjunction with a quick iris scan gets returning Canadian and US citizens through customs more quickly. Users can expect to pay CAD$50 per year for the service. While exact details have not been made available, initial applications are expected to begin in January. The move is important for Vancouver International. The country’s second busiest airport welcomed almost 180,000 overseas passengers in July alone this year. Eight other Canadian airports are scheduled for CANPASS-Air. A similar program “NEXUS-Air” is being piloted in Montreal and Ottawa early in 2003. COTA has long been advocating for such bi-national programs through its dealings with customs officials in Ottawa and BC, and its involvement as a member of the Perimeter Clearance Coalition.
Members of the BC Lodging and Campgrounds Association elected their 2003 Board of Directors October 24, 2002, in Kamloops. Newly elected President Juliann Sinnott takes over just as members ratified a decision to move the COTA member towards a sector-marketing organization. Adding to its traditional role of advocacy, the BCLCA is setting up a task force to strategically market BC lodging and camping products under separate branded images. The new President says the move will greatly assist in identifying the product, and setting standards and pricing opportunities that the consumer demands. For almost sixty years, the BCLCA has been representing motels, motor inns, resorts, lodges, campgrounds and RV park properties in British Columbia.
Visit the BCLCA online at www.bclca.com
The BC Tourism Human Resource Task Force is winding-down a province-wide campaign promoting a long-term workforce development strategy. With 4 dates left, the Task Force, headed by the Hospitality Industry Education Advisory Committee, Tourism British Columbia and COTA, will be hosting industry forums on November 22 in Prince Rupert, early on November 27 in Whistler, and later that day in Nanaimo. The People Development for the Tourism Industry campaign winds up with a daylong forum in Victoria. Audiences around BC have heard what is being done to address tourism’s skills shortage, recruitment and people development needs. As a Task Force member and co-founder of the Destinations employment program, COTA works actively with industry and government to grow tomorrow’s tourism workforce. For more information contact Terry Hood, Planner for BC Tourism Human Resource Development, at (604) 681-4554 or by emailing thood@c2t2.ca.
