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Minister Kupka supports the resumption of direct flights between Canada and the Czech Republic

At the end of September, a gala evening was held in Ottawa on the occasion of the Czech Presidency of the Council of the EU, the aim of which was to raise awareness of the Czech Republic in the post-Cold War era and to help strengthen tourist exchanges between our countries. The event was successfully implemented with the financial support of the Ministry of Regional Development of the Czech Republic, as an economic diplomacy project PROPED in cooperation with the Embassy of the Czech Republic in Ottawa and the CzechTourism agency

The Czech Presidency Gala Dinner was hosted by the Minister of Transport, Martin Kupka, who was accompanied by a business delegation from the Czech Chamber of Commerce. Guests at the Gala Dinner included officials from Canada and its provinces, members of the business community, representatives of academic and cultural institutions, tourism operators and other personalities from across Canada.

The main objective in the trade and economic area was to resume negotiations on the reopening of seasonal direct flights that existed between the Czech Republic and Canada in the past. Prior to the outbreak of the pandemic, direct seasonal flights were operated by Air Transat on the Montreal - Prague route and by Air Canada Rouge on the Toronto - Prague route. The meetings with representatives of both airlines were successfully implemented and Minister Martin Kupka, together with Jan Herget, Director General of CzechTourism, met with David Waugh, Executive Director of International Relations of Air Canada, and Michèle Barre, Vice President of Air Transat. Minister Kupka confirmed his interest in the resumption of direct flights, which would significantly simplify travel between our countries. More than 90,000 Canadian tourists arrived in the Czech Republic prior to the pandemic, and despite the current rising costs associated with travel, the number of Canadian travellers abroad in the post-holiday period is increasing rapidly and even surpassing 2019 numbers. The Czech Republic continues to be seen as an attractive destination, and representatives from both companies have promised to explore the possibility of reintroducing direct flights, with their sights on their eventual launch towards the summer of next year. In the coming months, the economic potential for the resumption of these routes will be evaluated, while further discussions need to continue and preparatory negotiations need to be initiated in due course. Interest in air travel is returning after the pandemic, but airlines are struggling with aircraft shortages or high fuel prices. Uncertainty about the Russian invasion of Ukraine is also having a negative impact. However, the Czech Republic is a perfectly safe destination in this respect, having been in the top 10 safest countries in the world for the last few years.

The aim of the event was also to raise awareness of the Czech Republic as an interesting tourist destination, which was certainly achieved thanks to the promotion of our country in the form of an exceptional gala evening programme, including a concert by Czech music stars. The project also included a meeting of sector partners led by representatives of the CzechTourism agency and an audiovisual presentation of tourist opportunities.

The event also focused on promoting traditional Czech brands, including Czech cuisine, with Czech recipes served during the evening together with Czechvar/Budvar from České Budějovice, and Czech design. The Czech Mint donated special edition silver coins for the occasion and its CEO met with potential Canadian partners during his stay in Canada. The event was also attended by a representative of GZ Media, the largest manufacturer of vinyl records, which has one of its production plants abroad in Canada, and which was one of the important partners of the gala. Other interesting participants included a representative of Colt Canada as a member of the Colt CZ Group, a Canadian representative of the Czech IT company Principal Engineering, a representative of Tesla Batteries, Blažek and the Cape Smokey project of Czech investors in Nova Scotia, and last but not least, members of the trade mission of the Czech Chamber of Commerce, whose business activities during their stay in Canada can be found here.

Given the huge negative impact on tourism caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated restrictions, any event like this that helps to raise awareness of the Czech Republic and thus increase tourism between our countries and especially inbound tourism to the Czech Republic is extremely important. The potential for tourism to the Czech Republic is considerable. In 2019, Canadians took more than 12 million trips abroad outside the U.S. and Canada's post-holiday tourism is on the rise again and we need to take advantage of this. That's why it's also great that the Czech Republic will have a national booth at the major Travel Show in Montreal at the end of October, where it will be able to showcase itself to both Canadian audiences and local travel agents.

Jan Kubačka, Economic Diplomat
Embassy of the Czech Republic in Ottawa