ACTA Conference - Toronto, ON

Monday, November 3rd, Giannina, Laurie, Kim and Lindsay along with Erin, Simone, Morgan, Sarah, Chelsea, Bekka, Halle, Katrina and Caitlyn flew to Toronto from Thunder Bay to be a part of the ACTA conference. 

What is ACTA you may ask?  

"…Established in 1977, the Association of Canadian Travel Agencies (ACTA), is a national trade association representing the retail travel sector of Canada's tourism industry. ACTA is an industry-led, nonprofit, membership based organization."
This conference presented a great opportunity for students to attend a professional conference, learn more about different areas of the industry and their job criteria.

We boarded a Westjet Encore Q400 plane at 0630 while the sky was still dark and within two hours we made it safely to Toronto Pierson International Airport. After our arrival we had a bus tour of the tarmac where we saw several planes, plus we learned the basic rules of the runway. Then, we checked into the hotel before heading downtown Toronto to Ripley's Aquarium. There were a lot of children but the building was well laid out and the vast variety of marine life was amazing!

We looked up at the CN Tower but decided that we rather spend our money shopping then going to the top. A group of us walked to The Eaton Centre and proceeded to shop to our hearts content.

The next day, we went to the conference and met with professionals within the travel industry. They answered some questions from students, gave valuable information, and handed out some prizes. Before we had left Thunder Bay, we made a video to be entered in the contest ACTA held to show the importance of travel agents "Without A Travel Agent... You're On Your Own". We won the contest, which added so much more excitement to an already wonderful trip.

Thank you G for inviting us, this trip was awesome and an experience that won't be forgotten.

Erin

Yay! We won the contest.

Touring the tarmac and huge jets of YYZ airport. 

Morgan, Caitlyn and Simone in the tunnels with the sharks at Ripley's Aquarium.

Is Confederation College The Right College For Me???

How to find the right college for you

I grew up in SW Ontario for most of my life.  I've tried many different programs in a few schools since graduating high school in the 90's.

I started off with a Hotel & Restaurant Management program which halfway through and decided it was not for me.  Eventually I chose to study as a Medical Office Assistant and graduated with a certificate.  Another few years went by and I looked into Event Management at another college in western Canada where I was living. Later I decided to study Human Resources at another college and earned a certificate. Unfortunately, with the economy being the way it was, and where I lived, jobs were hard to come by so I continued as an office administrator for several companies throughout the years. 

I wanted to do something with my life, to have a purpose and meaning. One day, I decided to quit my job and looked into voluntourism. Voluntourism is a form of tourism in which travellers participate in voluntary work, typically for a charity.

I leaned about eco-tourism and how important it is to our world and people.  I learned about conservation and helping the environment. I experienced eco-tourism in Mexico knew that I wanted to continue with eco-tourism. To do this, I decided to go back to school. 

So I started to research schools around Ontario and across Canada.  I used the ACTA endorsed-full-time-programs link and looked into full-time programs.  I made a spreadsheet of pros and cons and looked into my finances. I narrowed my choices down to two. One in Vancouver was a private college and the other Confederation College in Thunder Bay. This is what sold me -"Tourism and Travel-Adventure and Ecotourism is a distinctive hybrid travel and tourism program, which provides the student with in class training, on-the-job experience via our cooperative education work placement program, utilizes the great outdoors as an ideal environment for practical learning, and gives you the opportunity to experience another culture by travelling abroad."

A lot of people that are at this college are from the surrounding areas, but there are a few of us who have travelled from Southern Ontario to come to what I call the Great White North.

I know I am only in my 3rd month now but I love it.  The teachers (Giannina and Rod) are amazing.  The school is a good place, and Thunder Bay is pretty nice too.  I will be here for 2 years. I do not regret coming here, making new friends, participating in school activities, joining clubs and learning tons.  I love it. I highly recommend it. 

Come visit and see what I see.

Sincerely,

Erin

Halloween - class picture of those who dressed up

ACTA Conference video

Adventure Expeditions Wilderness Canoe Trip - 2nd Year September 2014

Adventure Expeditions Wilderness Canoe Trip

This year our canoe trip took us to Finlayson Lake and Marmion Lake from September 6th to September 8th. In spite of very warm weather, all enjoyed the beautiful environment that we were lucky enough to paddle in. We explored Finlayson Lake and then transferred to Marmion Lake. On Marmion Lake the students earned ORCKA Certification in Safe Canoeing and Basic Canoeing.

A lot of students enjoyed the sun (got extra tans in from the beautiful weather), ate delicious meals and had a blast.  The 1st year students cannot wait to take this trip next September - let's hope that the weather is just as good!!!