Canadians not letting economy impact vacation plans

A new survey indicates that Canadians are not letting the somewhat gloomy economic environment affect the travel plans they have scheduled over the next few months.

Conducted by Leger Marketing on behalf of BMO Bank of Montreal, the poll found 61 per cent said they will be vacationing some time this fall or winter. Respondents said that while they were aware of the global economy experiencing a rough patch, they weren't letting it impact whether or not they would travel to their vacation destination.

Robert Kavcic, economist for BMO, said Canadians' resoluteness to travel could serve as a boon to the country's financial well-being.

"Tourism generated about $30 billion for the Canadian economy in 2010, or 2 per cent of GDP, and about 4 per cent of the labour market has a direct link to the tourism industry," said Kavcic. "So, if travel plans can hold up despite economic uncertainty and lower consumer confidence, it would certainly be welcome news for the Canadian economy."

The survey also looked at whether age played a role in the likelihood of Canadians travelling outside the country. It found that individuals 44 years of age and younger were twice as likely to be heading outside of Canada than others. Still, the most popular travel destination among respondents were locations within the country.

In a separate survey conducted in the late spring, BMO found that affordability was a key consideration into whether or not they would travel. However, a separate BMO poll in September found that only 13 per cent said they would use travel-related rewards from their credit cards to defer some of their vacation expenses.

"In today's economic environment, I would encourage every Canadian vacationer to take full advantage of their travel-related rewards to reduce their holiday expenses," said Su McVey, vice president of customer communications and marketing for BMO.

She added that consumers may want to consider travel insurance when they're away. If accidents or illnesses occur while they're on vacation, it could be a hefty expense. With the appropriate coverage, unforeseen travel expenditures can be avoided.

Most standard travel insurance policies cover a variety of circumstances, such as trip cancellation or interruption and costs for medical emergencies that require hospital care. Other types of travel-related insurance policies, such as car rental collision coverage, may need to be purchased separately.