During winter’s dark days when the wind chill blows a nasty Ð30, farmers are like the rest of the dwellers of the Great White North.
Everyone wants the return of the sun’s light and heat. And some pay hundreds of dollars to go south for an early dose.
Travel agents across the Prairies say farmers are going to those sun destinations, although not as many as in the winter before the September 2001 terrorism.
Travel has come back, but not to the same extent, says Cynthia Wong of the Saskatoon CAA travel department.
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“Everything is dictated by airplane seat sales. If it’s cheaper, people will book.”
For Saskatchewan farmers, Mexico and the Dominican Republic are top vacation choices. In summer, it will switch to bus tours of Europe while the fall is the Maritimes or cruises to Alaska. Travel to the United States is mainly to the Disney theme parks in California and Florida.
A spokesperson at the Altona, Man., Mall Travel agency said she has found her clients are replacing Mexico with Cuba and the Dominican Republic. While travel is up from last year, it has not recovered to the 2000 level. She also found fewer “snowbirds” heading into the U.S. for extended stays.
While farmer tourists pick destinations based on novelty and “trendiness,” the price of a winter vacation is also important, said Jo-Anne McRae at Betcher Travel in Swan River, Man.
Hawaii is a little too costly for most, but Costa Rica is “coming on” and Mexico remains popular.
She said a lot of farmers use their credit cards to pay for their chemicals and other crop inputs to collect Air Miles. They then use this point program to get free air travel, and avoid going through a travel agent.
McRae said another popular travel option is bus tours within Canada. These are hassle-free, informative and less stressful because hotels and food are all included and selected.
“I’d actually like to take one,” McRae said, because the bus tour guides have games and icebreakers to create a social group.
There are some regional differences to travel. Laura Lee of Bow Island Travel said many of the farmers in her southern Alberta area are Dutch, so she often books trips to Holland for three or four weeks in January and February. Lee also observed there are fewer snowbirds.
“A significant number has dropped off. Whether they’re too old or the cost? I’m not sure where that next young seniors group will choose to go.”
Farmers in the drought area around Vegreville, Alta., aren’t travelling.
“They’re nervous,” said Phil Pirie of Phil Pirie Travel.
“The dugouts are dry and recouping will take a couple of years. … If we get some rain, there will be an explosion in travel.”
Pirie said Hawaii is being bypassed this year in favour of Mexico and the Caribbean.
For those who can’t pay to get away to a foreign locale, there are winter respites via prairie bed and breakfast businesses.
Lester Wyatt, a farmer from Canwood, Sask., said he has used the Calder House Inn in Saskatoon three times since Christmas.
“When we can fit it in, we go to the city and do business. It’s a nice way to finish your day,” to stay overnight.
“Not that I don’t like going south.”
Wyatt said farmers who can’t afford a sunny vacation should try a short break.
“If they see fit to free up a few dollars I would suggest this is a good way to do it. You need to recharge your batteries.”
Wyatt said he found discovered the Calder House Inn through the internet. He liked its antiques because it added to the “flavour of the experience” and enjoyed the personality of the owner, Mauri Noonan.
“We farm organically. I got a sense there’s a good fit.”
Noonan said she gives a discount to farmers at her inn because “I like farmers in my life.” Her grandparents farmed and some of her regulars are producers. She said she offers flexibility for short-term stays or longer-term bookings because rural people need to come into the city for health appointments or there might be a blizzard stranding them away from home.
The inn is celebrating 10 years of business and Noonan said the first bride and groom that stayed with her are returning in August for their anniversary.
A few farmers use the services of the Alberta Country Vacations Association, says president Carol Ohler. But most of the B&Bs cater to either European tourists looking for a farm stay, or else people looking for a short break.
Ohler and her husband, Dan, are finetuning their own B&B, located west of Edmonton, to take in more corporate getaways and workshops.
