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There were plenty of political memes and stories shared online Tuesday, on the heels of Donald Trump's second presidential victory, but one company took it a step further by offering disenfranchised voters a clear path forward.
Canadian airline, WestJet, ran ads on Instagram that offered “one-way flights to Canada,” seemingly targeting American citizens who were perhaps looking to leave the country after the election night results rolled in. They may be on to something: searches for “flights to Canada” spiked on Google on Wednesday, less than 24 hours removed from Trump's presidential election victory.
WestJet
While the “one-way flight” ads don't appear on WestJet's official Instagram or Twitter pages, followers were quick to screengrab the sponsored post online, while shouting out the airline's savvy sales tactic. “Hey WestJet,” one user commented. “Someone in marketing deserves a raise.”
Headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, WestJet is a mid-size airline that currently flies to 39 cities in Canada, with US departures from Atlanta, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and New York, among others (WestJet also flies to more than 20 others countries around the world, in addition to the US and Canada). Founded in 1994, WestJet was launched as a lower-cost alternative to Canada's other national airline, Air Canada.
ESCAPE TO CANADA
WestJet Flights
Looking to escape to Canada (for a few days… or forever?) You can search for cheap WestJet flights right now on sites like Kayak and Expedia. You can also check out the latest WestJet reviews on TripAdvisor.com.
Canada isn't the only option people have if they're looking to leave the US for a little while. According to Hotels.com, searches for international destinations have gone up in the last few weeks (though it's more likely due to holiday travel than politics).
If you want to stay close to the US, the site says Mexico City and Montreal are the most popular North American destinations, with travelers able to find average hotel rates for under $200/night in the Hotels.com app. Nightly rates are lower right now as both cities are in the middle of what is known as the in-between “shoulder season” — Mexico City is coming off of Day of the Dead celebrations and ski tourism in Montreal doesn't ramp up until December .
November is also off-peak season for a number of European destinations, and Hotels.com says top destinations right now include Dublin, Amsterdam, Lisbon, Barcelona, Florence and Madrid, with hotel stays from $225/night. “November is off-peak for these spots as weather tends to be rainy or cooler and they haven't yet ramped up for festive Christmas markets,” the site explains.
And if you really want to escape and head to the Far East, Hotels.com says “East Asian locales just coming out of typhoon or rainy seasons and may see some shoulder season affordability.” Among their trending destinations: Japan, Seoul, Taipei and Singapore, with each city offering “vibrant culture and budget-friendly hotel options.” See a full list of destinations and deals at Hotels.com.
It isn't just airlines and hotels seeing a surge of interest in leaving the country: Airbnb says it has seen a 25% increase in searches for international travel, with a 30% increase in bookings for destinations more than 3,000 miles away. For the site, top destinations right now include Paris, London, Tokyo, Mexico, Costa Rica and Brazil. Much of the search interest is of course tied to Christmas and New Year's getaways.
And while a comedian at a Trump rally may have referred to it as “a floating island of garbage,” Airbnb says there is one city that US families are increasingly searching for this holiday season: San Juan, Puerto Rico.
