THE CERCLE DE TOURISME DU QUÉBEC

Introduction
Created in January 1994, the Cercle de tourisme du Québec is the result of a partnership between Université du Québec à Montréal’s Transat Chair in Tourism and Amex Canada Inc. With some forty members, the Cercle is chaired by Beth Horowitz, President and CEO of Amex Canada Inc., while Michel Archambault, Chairholder, acts as President. In March 2007, Air Canada became a major partner of the Cercle, thus joining American Express, the main partner of the Cercle since its inception.

Mandate
An association of tourism industry decision-makers from various sectors – hotels and restaurants, attractions and events, resorts, travel agencies, transportation, arts and culture, financial institutions, natural sites, and so on – the Cercle de tourisme du Québec provides a forum, encouraging members to exchange ideas and information, identify issues that could affect the economic development of the industry and nurture business ties among players from the industry and related sectors. The Cercle hosts luncheon-meetings featuring a speaker on a strategic topic, organizes tours of interesting locations and suggests possible research topics for the Transat Chair in Tourism. The first study sponsored by the Cercle de tourisme du Québec was “Seasonal Fluctuations: Analysis and Strategies for the Tourism Industry,” published in April 1998. The conferences “Tourism and the Trend Towards Consolidation” and “Tourism & Entertainment: A Star Couple for Attracting Visitors,” as well as their accompanying background papers, were also Cercle de tourisme and Transat Chair in Tourism initiatives aimed at encouraging the development of the tourism industry.

Air Canada
Air Canada is Canada’s largest full-service airline and the largest provider of scheduled passenger services in the Canadian market, the Canada-U.S. transborder market and in the international market to and from Canada. Together with its regional affiliate Jazz, Air Canada serves over 32 million customers annually and provides direct passenger service to over 170 destinations on five continents. Air Canada is a founding member of Star Alliance™, providing the world's most comprehensive air transportation network.