'More work for no pay': Travel agents say they're in trouble after slew of trip cancellations

When the federal government prohibited flights from South Africa in response to Omicron, Kerwin Dougan took calls at odd hours to help his clients navigate a patchwork of travel bans and COVID-19 testing requirements.

Since then, he says, the situation for travel agents like himself has only gotten worse.

"Right now, we're just trying to survive," said Dougan, the co-owner of Voyages G Travel in Gatineau, Que.

Dougan and other area travel agents told CBC Ottawa that, after two lean years, a combination of holiday trip cancellations, travel rules and lacklustre financial support is putting their businesses in jeopardy — just as the industry appeared to be recovering.

International travel partly rebounded in 2021, returning to around one-quarter of pre-pandemic levels by October of last year, according to the most recent Statistics Canada data available.

The revival quickly reversed, however, as Omicron spread around the globe.

On Dec. 15, federal health minister Jean-Yves Duclos asked Canadians planning to travel abroad for the holidays to cancel their trips. 

Dougan estimated his agency has lost nearly half its bookings to cancellations since the advisory came out.

The federal government currently requires all international travellers over five years of age to submit proof of a negative COVID-19 molecular test, among other requirements, to enter Canada.

Wendy Paradis, president of the Association of Canadian Travel Agencies, said those requirements, coupled with global test shortages, are a major deterrent for travellers.

"It is going to be a devastating winter," she said.

Dougan said he's grown accustomed to cancellations after two years, but this time around his business isn't able to access federal support.

"They're not helping us," he said. "That is the bottom line."

Most travel agents — around 80 per cent, Dougan estimated — work on commission.