Canada’s Atlantic Provinces Once United Now Divided on Summer Tourism Reopening
Photo Credit: New Brunswick (pictured here) burst the Atlantic bubble first in June by reopening to all Canadians who have received a first Covid vaccine dose. Flickr Commons / James Mann
Skift Take
With vaccinations in the picture, who needs a bubble? The competition is heating up for Canadians' travel dollars this summer. But only a U.S. border reopening would make a real difference after a devastating year.
It was the travel bubble that seemed to outlast all others — the Atlantic maritime provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Prince Edward Island enjoyed unrestricted travel last summer across their respective borders, while remaining closed to the rest of Canada.
The bubble paused in the winter due to Covid spikes, with plans to be reinstated this year. But with vaccines advancing more rapidly in Canada, following an earlier snag, plus low Covid rates in the Atlantic region, the temptation of recouping summer tourism revenue may have been too strong.
On June 16, New Brunswick exited the bubble and reopened its borders to all of Canada, with no isolation requirement for those with a single dose of Covid vaccine.
“We met our 75 percent one dose vaccination before July 1, so we were able to open up the borders earlier, which was phenomenal,” said Carol Alderdice, CEO of Tourism Industry Association New Brunswick, a 450-member non-profit organ
