Air Canada wants travellers to take flight

Ever since the pandemic hit this past March and shut down most of the world, Lorraine Simpson has been advocating for rapid testing in order to help save the $1.5 trillion-dollar global tourism industry.

The concept of rapid testing is simple: find the best way to test people faster and let them travel if their results are negative.

Fast forward to now as we enter the Holiday Season and her tireless advocacy efforts are paying off.

You see, Air Canada just announced that they are collaborating with Shoppers Drug Mart to deliver COVID-19 RT-PCR testing solutions for customers.

COVID-19 Testing: What you need to know

Pre-departure testing will be available as of December 7, 2020, for Air Canada customers in Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia.

Canadian travellers will be exempt from 14-day quarantine in Hawaii with a negative test.

Results will typically be available within 24-48 hours.

“The Air Canada and Shoppers Drug Mart partnership will give the travel industry a massive reboot, and this is very exciting news for everyone,” says Simpson. “I am elated that pre-departure testing is being offered with quick result-times, which will greatly benefit the industry as a whole – from travel agents to travel consumers, and from airports to hotels, and everything in between.”

She adds, “The pandemic has hit our industry very hard and I have long been advocating for rapid testing. Now that it’s finally here, thanks to Air Canada and Shoppers Drug Mart, we can all get traveling again and hit all our post-pandemic bucket list destinations with our family and friends.”

While the new testing is soon being offered, Simpson highly advises that everyone book their trips now while prices are low.

“Book now and don’t wait – our industry is based on supply and demand. When less people travel, prices are lower, and when more people book, then travel prices go up, up and up,” adds Simpson.

“There are deals right now that are amazing and you won’t see these prices again,” she says. “Dust off that credit card now and get booking all the places that you have dreamed of visiting while stuck at home in this long and drawn out pandemic.”

Air Canada’s and Shoppers Drug Mart Official Statement

“Many countries now require a pre-departure negative COVID-19 test and we are pleased to facilitate this process for our customers, making their travel experience easier and safer by recommending the RT-PCR test at select Shoppers Drug Mart locations. We believe that testing is one of the keys to protecting employees and customers, and an important step to safely reopen travel around the world, easing travel restrictions by providing alternative testing solutions in managing risk,” says Dr. Jim Chung, Air Canada’s Chief Medical Officer.

“Our stores and pharmacy teams are a convenient, trusted resource for Canadians. We want to continue to be a part of the solution as the country looks for ways to manage COVID-19. We’re pleased to work with Air Canada to make COVID-19 RT-PCR tests accessible to travellers, and to help customers plan their travel safely and with confidence,” says Ashesh Desai, Executive Vice President, Pharmacy at Shoppers Drug Mart.

This test will be available for customers flying to any destination requiring a negative COVID-19 test, including Hawaii and the Caribbean (namely, the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, Antigua, Barbuda and St-Lucia).

Canadians are now eligible to be exempt from Hawaii’s mandatory 14-day quarantine on arrival in the Hawaiian Islands via a pre-travel testing process. Visit the Hawaiian government website for more details: https://travel.hawaii.gov/#/

Air Canada’s service to Hawaii from Vancouver begins on Dec. 17 and flights from Calgary start on Dec. 18.

Other testing options are also offered to our customers who are flying to Hawaii, including travellers from Quebec. For more details on the list of approved testing entities by the Hawaiian Government, visit www.aircanada.com/covid19testing 

Air Canada has been at the forefront of the airline industry in responding to COVID-19, including being among the first carriers globally to require customer face coverings onboard and the first airline in the Americas to check passengers’ temperatures prior to boarding. In May, it introduced a comprehensive program, called Air Canada CleanCare+, to apply industry leading biosafety measures at each stage of the journey.

Meet Lorraine Simpson

Lorraine Simpson knows travel, inside and out. Who better to share insights and perspective on the reinvention of the industry that has been battered globally by COVID-19 than someone who has reinvented their own travel persona? Simpson has the experience, know-how, and insight that will help guide a realignment of the $1.5 trillion-dollar industry.

In a small unfinished basement, she set up her first travel company focused on destination weddings in 2005. Fast forward to 2010 and with no financial backing, Simpson transformed her company into a $4 million success story. As part of her own reinvention, Simpson then shifted into the luxury group speciality travel market, and her story comes full circle this year with a move from travel agent to travel personality and leading travel expert in national and international media. With this enhanced public profile, Simpson is helping travel brands reinvent themselves amid global uncertainty in the industry.

Simpson is a two-time Magellan Award winning travel entrepreneur and now the CityLine TV Travel Expert. She has recently launched her own TV show, What’s On Your Post-Pandemic Bucket List? She is a popular keynote speaker at travel events and conferences across North America and round the world and works as a travel advocate with ACTA (Association of Canadian Travel Agencies).

Visit Lorraine online today: www.lorrainesimpson.com