Ironic, isn’t it – while hordes of holidaymakers pore over guidebooks planning an Okanagan vacation, we sift through stacks of brochures plotting our own escapes.
by Laurie Carter
Even living in one of Canada’s favourite destinations doesn’t immunize us from the winter blahs. Just like every other Canuck from coast to coast to coast, come January, we’re dreaming of burning sand and sweating umbrella drinks.
Fantasies aside, getting away can seem like more trouble than it’s worth when your whole vacation depends on making a crucial connection that could so easily be sabotaged by fog or snow or a mechanical glitch. Fly early to the gateway city and you’re pretty sure to make the sun flight but you’ll also waste a couple of precious vacation days and have to shell out for those memorable airport hotel nights.
Recognizing a ready market when it sat up and begged, tour operators Sunquest, Transat, Signature and Conquest, along with Harmony Airways and Westjet Airlines, have brought fly-direct convenience to popular winter sun spots. Mexico tops the list with resort packages in Cancun, Los Cabos and Puerta Vallarta while Las Vegas and Hawaii round out the menu.
Lynn Dergousoff, commercial director for Sunquest West, says that Kelowna was selected as a gateway because it’s “a growing area of the B.C. Interior and with many of the surrounding towns also growing in population, this is now a convenient hub for our Interior clients to use instead of making the long drive to Vancouver. Our travel agent partners have been asking for this type of service from Sunquest for several years now, so we are very excited to fulfill their requests.”
Confirming this assessment, Sherri Van Doren, owner of Horizon Travel in Westbank, says, “It’s hard to find space. These products started selling early and lots of dates for January were sold out by early December.”
Van Doren has clients from Osoyoos and Oliver all the way up to Vernon and even Kamloops taking advantage of the Kelowna departures. People love that they don’t have to worry about stopovers and connections in Vancouver, she says, adding that “even with a $50 or $100 premium on the package price, it works out the same or less.”
Not surprisingly, Van Doren has found that seniors really love the ease of a one-flight getaway and working people particularly like being able to enjoy a full week’s holiday while using up just five days of vacation time.
Although most of the programs are currently seasonal, Dergousoff is optimistic about the future saying that Sunquest “intends to continue to grow in this marketplace” and Van Doren expects to see repeats and even additions to the line up for winter 06/07.
WHAT ARE THE HOT SPOTS?
“Both Los Cabos and Puerto Vallarta are proving to be very popular and Sunquest Vacations is the exclusive tour operator for the destination of Los Cabos out of this gateway,” says Dergousoff.
Van Doren, who handles all the destinations, doesn’t think it makes much difference. “There’s something to suit every taste and budget and they’re all selling extremely well.”
With the exception of Harmony Airways’ Hawaii and Westjet’s Las Vegas air-only and a few à la carte resorts like the 2-1/2-star Los Arcos Suites in Puerto Vallarta, the tour operators are providing a selection of all-inclusive packages. Properties range from Puerto Vallarta’s mid-level 3-1/2-star Las Palmas by the Sea to the ultra-upscale 5-plus-star RIU Palace in Los Cabos.
HERE IS THE LINE UP...
LOS CABOS
Los Cabos (The Capes) is among Mexico’s most beautiful and exclusive destinations. Lying on the southernmost tip of the Baja California Peninsula, it features a year-round friendly climate with an average temperature of 26º C. Resorts and restaurants line the Corredor Turistico highway, which stretches 33 kilometres from San Jose del Cabo to Cabo San Lucas.
At Los Cabos, the waters of the Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Cortez (also called the Gulf of California) join. UNESCO has declared 244 islands and protected areas of the Sea of Cortez a World Heritage Site.
Winter visitors are privileged to witness the courtship, mating and birth process of the gray whale. Magdalena Bay is perfect for scuba diving, kayaking, sportfishing and romantic getaways on a pristine beach.
Los Cabos works for the entire family with golf courses, sport fishing, endless water sports, eco-touring, beaches, restaurants and nightlife.
Sunquest is the only tour operator that sells Los Cabos direct from Kelowna with seasonal Skyservice flights departing Saturdays. All-inclusive starting prices range from $1219 to $1899 for seven nights.
Flight time: 5 hours
Puerto Vallarta/Vallarta Nayarit
(formerly Nuevo Vallarta)
Puerto Vallarta is nestled between the foothills of the Sierra Madre Mountains and Banderas Bay, the second largest bay in the Western Hemisphere. Much of the surrounding region is forested with rivers and waterfalls cascading from the highlands. The average temperature is 27° C.
Playa Mismaloya, which gained fame after director John Huston filmed The Night of the Iguana there in 1963, is a popular celebrity hangout. The city hall boasts Manuel Lepe murals, the Malacon Boardwalk by the sea is lined with romantic bronze sculptures, and downtown is chock-a-block with shops and galleries dealing local paintings and sculptures. Off shore, the highlights are whales, dolphins and snorkeling.
Nearby Vallarta Nayarit, one of the most modern luxury tourist resorts in Mexico, spans a five-kilometer beach with marina, hotels, seafood and other restaurants, nightclubs, condominiums, a residential zone and terrific sunsets. You can sail around the estuaries and islands of the river Ameca, which provides refuge for hundreds of birds. To the north lie Punta Mita, El Anclote and Nuevo Corral del Risca, home ports for tours of the Islas Marietas.
Sunquest flies Skyservice to Puerto Vallarta/Vallarta Nayarit on Fridays. Starting prices range from $1039 for seven nights in a non-inclusive to $2379 all-inclusive. Transat Holidays flies via Air Transat on Saturdays. Its seven night packages start at $1149 and run up to $1729. Signature Vacations is code sharing to Puerto Vallarta – reserving a certain number of seats on both Skyservice and Air Transat flights – at similar rates.
Flight time: 4 hours, 45 minutes
CANCUN
Cancun is Mexico’s most important tourist destination and one of the world’s best-known resorts. Located in the state of Quintana Roo on the Yucatan Peninsula, its subtropical climate guarantees sunny days throughout most of the year and average temperatures ranging between 27º C and 35º C.
The resort was badly damaged by Hurricane Wilma, and hardest hit were Cancun’s legendary white sand beaches bordering the turquoise Caribbean Sea. However, many properties have reopened and others are furiously rebuilding. By the winter of 06/07, there is every expectation that tourism will be pretty much back to normal with tons of water activities.
Along the hotel strip, which spans more than 30 kilometres, the resorts and spas line up alongside shopping malls, more than 500 restaurants and bars and discos where the parties rage all night.
Out and about, you can tour the Mayan Riviera and check out Playa del Carmen, Xcaret and Xel-Ha, ancient Mayan ports and the ruins of Chichen Itza. Nearby Tulum is a fascinating archaeological zone by the sea and the only walled city built by the Mayans. Offshore the snorkelling and diving is great around the reefs of Isla Mujeres and Cozumel.
Transat Holidays provides service to Cancun via Westjet on Mondays. Its 4- to 5-star resorts are priced from $1599 to $2269 for seven days all-inclusive.
Flight time: 5 hours, 35 minutes
HAWAII
The six major islands that make up the state of Hawaii have long been favourite destinations for Western Canadians. A common language makes it comfortable while the cultural diversity and different traditions add some spice. City, country or seaside – you can catch the buzz in cosmopolitan urban centres, explore the landscape and eco opportunities or let loose and hang ten.
Harmony Airways offers non-stop seasonal winter service from Kelowna to Honolulu. Hotels and car rentals are offered through the company’s in-house tour wholesale division, Harmony Vacations. From April 2 to April 26 flights will depart Kelowna on Sundays. From November 10, 2006 to March 10, 2007, Kelowna flights will run on Tuesdays. Harmony flights arrive in Honolulu in time to make same-day connections to other islands.
Travel time: 6 hours, 50 minutes
LAS VEGAS
Las Vegas – dazzling lights, themed hotels, 24-hour entertainment, shopping, world-class golf courses and gaming galore. That about covers it. Take the family, escape for a romantic pas de deux or sneak off for a weekend of solo fun.
Westjet will take you there Thursdays and Sundays. Conquest Vacations offers 3-, 4- and 7-night packages with a choice of 41 hotels tied in with Westjet’s schedule. Prices vary.
Flight time: 2 hours, 30 minutes
The final word…
“Don’t wait for sell-offs,” says Van Doren. “We haven’t seen any.”
These direct-from-Kelowna vacations are so popular that you have to plan ahead. Van Doren says the two-week itineraries go first and if you’re looking at Christmas or March Break, she warns that you’ve got to book in the fall.
Plan early. Get in touch with your travel agent and, when the new winter line-up is
announced – be ready to pounce.
See more of this article in the March issue of Okanagan Life - on newstands now! |
