Heat waves and record temperatures directly impact vacation season

By Paul Hollingsworth

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    TORONTO (CTV Network) — The ongoing heat wave in Europe, with temperatures soaring well past 40 C (104 F) in some areas, has caused the closure of tourist attractions and landmarks, including the Acropolis in Athens.

“Temperatures keep rising as we saw this June when we broke every temperature record in the decade,” Hellenic Red Cross spokesperson Konstantinos Gavriilidis said. “So we must learn to live with this and protect ourselves.”

In Canada, heat warnings remain in place in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, Northwest Territories and British Columbia.

Conditions have cooled off somewhat in the Maritimes.

Elaine Elston travelled to Halifax from Delaware, escaping conditions that have reached intolerable levels.

“It’s 105 Fahrenheit with the heat index,” said Elston, who added she and her husband plan their summer vacations to escape the overwhelming heat and humidity back home. “We will go to be cool in the summertime, so we have been here and we have been out west to Wyoming.”

Hot weather can set the stage for prosperous tourism during the vacation season.

“This time last year, Halifax had 10 cruise ship arrivals,” tourism operator Dennis Campbell said. “This July we have 24 cruise ship arrivals already.”

However, severe thundershowers are also very common this time of the year, and they can prove to be problematic for air travellers.

“That’s when we see flights grounded, delays on (the) tarmac, flights cancelled, things like that,” CAA spokesperson Julia Kent said. “We also see cruise travel affected, and we see routings change, ports cancelled, when hurricanes come.”

Bottom line, Kent said the intense heat brings a mix of positive and negative outcomes that are felt by vacation travellers during the summer months.

“You want it to be hot, but not too hot to impact you negatively and make it comfortable to do things in the summer for your vacation that you want to do,” said Kent, adding that all of these weather factors are affecting vacation season in Canada and around the world.

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