Travel Manitoba’s blog What’s Hot (www.manitobahot.com) has been seeing a lot of visitors lately – over 5,100 visits in November, up 1,400 from October and up 3,800 from August.  Visitors who came to the site from Facebook spent an average of 6:45 minutes visiting 3.5 pages on the site. Our organic Google searches are up 165% over last year and visits from Canadian residents have gone up over 1,000% from last year while visits from U.S. residents were also up – by almost 550%. What’s Hot recorded visitors from around the world, including the United Kingdom, Germany, India, France, Brazil, Poland and the Philippines. Get your event, attraction or special offer on What’s Hot – for no charge! Send to Kirsten at kneil@travelmanitoba.com.

Complete: The dream is to turn the Trans-Canada Highway into the "longest, greenest highway in the world."

And to that end, Sun Country Highway has enabled Canada to become the first country in the world to have a coast-to-coast network of stations to power electric cars.

Partnering with more than 80 Canadian businesses and tourist destinations, the wholly Canadian-owned company has installed nearly 100 electric car charging stations at hotels, restaurants and cities along the Trans-Canada so people with electric vehicles can drive across the country — for free.

"We see ourselves as a movement that the average person can actually partake in," SCH founder and president Kent Rathwell said in an interview with CFRA News Talk Radio in Ottawa.

"Electric vehicles start at around $30,000 and migrate up to over $100,000. But it’s something that the average family can still partake in. Now that they can go coast to coast, there’s no excuse on infrastructure and they can save themselves some money."

Rathwell is driving from Newfoundland to B.C. stopping at the free chargers along the way in the hopes of convincing more people to go green.

This week, he rolled his flashy electric Tesla Roadster into Carberry and Virden to charge up at the new charging stations the company installed in those Westman towns.

The chargers, touted as the "world’s fastest level 2 chargers," are placed every 100 to 200 kilometres and can be used free of charge.

"We have embarked on this project to help raise awareness on the capabilities of electric vehicles as efficient and exciting vehicles to drive," he said.

"Our objectives are not only to reduce carbon emissions, but to show the world how renewable energies combined with sustainable forms of transportation, can be the stimulus for the next industrial revolution."

The SCH plan is to ignite regionalized economic development and to simultaneously challenge electric vehicle manufacturers and auto parts suppliers to ramp up plug-in electric vehicle production.

Ultimately, Sun Country Highway hopes to have close to 200 charging stations in total throughout all provinces in Canada.

http://www.brandonsun.com/local/company-creates-network-of-electric-car-charging-stations-183335631.html

A downtown development agency wants to purchase the Carlton Inn, raising speculation it could be the future home of a new hotel next to an expanded Winnipeg Convention Centre.

On Wednesday, Mayor Sam Katz said CentreVenture needs the city to back a $6.6-million loan guarantee so it can purchase the Carlton Inn, the 108-room hotel located across from the Winnipeg Convention Centre on Carlton Street. City council voted to approve the loan guarantee, which will see the agency's line of credit increase to nearly $20 million, so it can acquire "strategically located properties" downtown.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/second-hotel-for-centreventure-183305581.html

TORONTO - It looks like Santa won't be the only one on the move this holiday season.

The Bank of Montreal (TSX:BMO) says a strong loonie and a relatively stable economy is fuelling a desire by many Canadians to get away over the Christmas-New Year's period.

According to the bank's 2012 Holiday Travel Outlook released Thursday, some 60 per cent of Canadians plan to travel over the holidays, spending an average of $563 apiece on their trips.

The survey found that while some 39 per cent planned to travel within their home province, almost one in five, or 19 per cent, were looking to go abroad.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/business/60-of-canadians-to-travel-over-holidays-to-spend-an-average-of-563-bmo-183331191.html

Front-line border officers at North America's busiest border in Windsor, Ont., are back on the job today following a protest over mandatory name tags.

A work refusal snarled bridge traffic at the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor and at the Blue Water Bridge in Sarnia, Ont., on Wednesday. Delays were as long as two hours at times.

However, officials at the Windsor bridge said there were no delays coming into or leaving Canada on Thursday, a day after a federal labour program ruled name tags do not pose a safety risk to border agents, as the Canadian Immigration Union claimed.

The union continues to disagree. So does the NDP's border critic, Windsor West MP Brian Masse.

Border officers started returning to work with their name tags after the Labour Canada ruling.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/windsor/story/2012/12/13/wdr-cbsa-agents-windsor-name-tags.html

Yukon’s Tourism Industry Association is looking for private operators to take over tours at Parks Canada attractions such as Dredge No. 4 near Dawson City and the SS Klondike sternwheeler in Whitehorse.

Neil Hartling, head of the association, said the cancellation of guided tours at the attractions by Parks Canada will deeply hurt tourism in the territory.

The association has put out its own request for proposals for the private sector to provide the tours. Hartling said it's necessary because the federal government hasn't done anything.

He said action is needed now to save the 2013 tourism season.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/story/2012/12/12/north-yukon-parks-canada.html

GENEVA - Airlines' profits will improve to $8.4 billion in 2013, mainly reflecting cost cuts and restructuring measures taken to compensate for stalling economic growth, the global industry's trade group forecast Thursday.

For 2012, the industry anticipates net profits of $6.7 billion based on strong second and third quarters — particularly for larger carriers with bigger economies of scale — despite high fuel prices and weaker demand.

But the 2013 results would still be below the $8.8 billion earned in 2011 and $15.8 billion in 2010. The net profit margin, at 1 per cent, would also be well below the 7 to 8 per cent officials say is needed to recover capital costs.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/business/airlines-industry-expects-2013-profits-to-rise-to-84-billion-thanks-mainly-to-cost-cutting-183325571.html

TORONTO - A video promoting Canada as a tourist destination has been an online hit around the world, generating about 1.6 million views since its Nov. 20 launch on YouTube, says the Canadian Tourism Commission.

The video, produced in 30-second and two-minute versions, was pieced together from some of the 8,000-plus submissions the commission received this past summer in response to a contest calling for visuals that "captured the essence" of Canada.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/travel/canadian-tourism-video-an-online-hit-being-screened-in-uk-cinemas-183227731.html

HONG KONG - Flight attendants at Hong Kong airline Cathay Pacific Airways are threatening to withhold food, alcohol and even smiles from passengers during the Christmas holidays over a pay dispute, a union official said Thursday.

Cabin staff at the airline, which has a reputation for top-notch service, voted at a union meeting this week in favour of industrial action that could also result in flight delays.

The union is demanding a 5 per cent pay increase but the airline, which is struggling to cut costs after posting a first-half loss of 935 million Hong Kong dollars ($120.5 million), has offered 2 per cent and a 13th month bonus.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/business/cathay-pacific-cabin-crew-threaten-no-smiles-booze-in-pay-dispute-with-hong-kong-airline-183286431.html

WASHINGTON - Passengers arriving in the U.S. from international airports who miss connecting flights because their checked bags have to be rescreened could get some relief under legislation passed Wednesday by the House and sent to the president for his signature.

The "No-Hassle Flying Act" gives the Transportation Security Administration the authority to waive rescreening requirements for flights from international airports that install U.S.-equivalent baggage scanning processes and equipment.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/travel/congress-votes-to-end-second-bag-checks-on-some-international-flights-183241112.html

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - The deal was sold to New Mexicans in classic Richard Branson fashion. If taxpayers would build the colorful British businessman a $209 million futuristic spaceport, he would make New Mexico the launching point for a space tourism business catering to the rich and famous.

Now, with Spaceport America nearly complete but still mostly empty, a Virgin Galactic official says the company will reassess its agreement if lawmakers don't pass liability exemption laws for its suppliers, raising the possibility it could take its spacecraft elsewhere.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/travel/quarter-billion-dollar-spaceport-is-built-but-virgin-could-take-space-flights-elsewhere-183241752.html

(Excerpts from an complete article published originally in the WFP, Dec.  '71)

"A 25-pound northern pike can be worth $1,000 to Manitobans," said the newly elected Norman tourist and convention association branch president, Jack Thompson, in an interview here Friday. He explained that for this particular species to bring in such a return it would need to be on the line of one of the many United States guests who annually frequent Manitoba lakes. Mr. Thompson, who had developed and operated his own highly  successful fishing and recreation lodge on Lake Kississing near Sherridon over the last 10 years, recalled that it was not so long ago that northern pike was not listed as a game fish and was open to unlimited commercial catches. They used to sell for 50 cents apiece. The upgrading of northern pike is one of seven regulations which Mr. Thompson has worked to establish over more than 25 years. He says that United States sportsmen take to this fish because of its fighting qualities. They are prepared to pay $500 for the opportunity of landing a 25-pounder, and tourist officials estimate that their visits are worth another $500-to the province in terms of the various purchases and services they use. To Mr. Thompson the story of the northern pike is in many ways the story of tourism in Manitoba. It has, in his view, a vast potential if there is the imagination and initiative to develop and market it. Even in its present state, he says, it surpasses agriculture as Manitoba's foremost industry with an out of province income of $70 million annually…       …To be ready for such an influx they feel that a number of new facilities may need to be created and old ones updated. Mr. Thompson speaks with considerable experience about what it takes to establish a new facility. "You need a lot of optimism," he said "plus a low interest loan of about" $75,000." From his experience a new operator will spend about $25,000 on building cabins and a lodge plus' boats, motors and other equipment. Another $25,000 will be needed for operational costs in the initial few years, and $25,000 will also be required for advertising and such barnstorming missions as Mr. Thompson takes in the south. "If you can survive the first three years you make it," he predicts, "then word of mouth propaganda will carry you." From his experience government backed development loans can be had if the prospective developer can back up his proposition with pretty solid projections and statistics. Both Mr. Thompson and Mr. Lengerke say that there is a need for men with experience in establishing a tourist facility to sit on the board of the Manitoba Development Fund. "The experts on the MDF," Mr. Lengerke said, "are too often misplaced bankers." Ninety per cent of Mr. Thompson's tourist trade is fly-in guests, mostly arriving directly from the United States. During the season the lodge and fishing tours employ between 40 and 50 persons. A settlement of about 100 year-round residents has grown up around the enterprise. An electric power plant, sewer and water and garbage collection have been provided from the earnings of the lodge which have largely been plowed back into the development Training staff is an important feature of the business, Mr. Thompson says. His Cree-speaking guides, he says, have developed quite a repertoire of jokes and stories which the guests can enjoy.