STORY BY STEF BEREZNAI
“This is a GPS and tablet-based race,” Roy Stam of TeamBuild Events tells a group of excited travel agents. “Your tablet is your guide. A map of Dublin’s city center will open up. It’s entirely your decision which locations you hit.”
So begins the Air Canada-United Airlines Race 2024. Destination: Dublin!
Air Canada has been holding held “the race,” which is modelled on TV’s The Amazing Race, each year since 2006 (with a hiatus during COVID). The race pits groups of travel agents against each other every year as they run around a fabulous locale, completing a series of challenges that immerse them in hidden gems and not-to-miss photo spots.
This year’s experience is curated by TeamBuild Events and, for the second year in a row, Air Canada has teamed up with United Airlines, making the contest an even more powerful draw.
“United Airlines is our closest partner,” says Vincent Gauthier-Doré, Air Canada’s managing director, Canada and USA sales. “By doing this together, we make it a much bigger event and even richer. Our guests get to experience flying on both airlines, so we make it an all-encompassing experience.”
The race’s popularity is definitely rising. Air Canada says about 600 agencies from both countries applied to take part this year, double the interest from last year. Fifteen Canadians and 15 U.S. agents were chosen to participate to learn more about this important market.
More than 4.5 million Canadians claim Irish heritage and Canada has moved from seventh to sixth place in terms of global tourism revenue in Ireland. It also remains in 10th place for volume with consistent growth over the past 10 years.
Air Canada has been an important player in getting Canadians to this amazing destination, operating year-round direct flights to Dublin from Toronto and seasonally from Montreal and Vancouver.
“Air Canada and United Airlines are key in boosting tourism to Ireland,” says Sandra Moffatt, country manager for Tourism Ireland in Canada.
The agents were divided into six teams, including the self-named The Wilde Ones, which PAX followed every step of the way as they explored Dublin’s cobblestone streets, rich history and the occasional stunted palm tree that manages to survive thanks to Ireland’s mild year-round climate.
There are 20 potential stops, with sub-challenges at each, but “you’re not trying to get to as many places as fast as possible,” Stam tells the agents. “You’re racing for points… Once you get to a location, you click on the icon” and bring your A game.
Some tasks are literally goofy, like posing with Goofy dolls at the local Disney store.
Others highlight local celebrities, like posing with a statue of Oscar Wilde (which inspired the team’s name) outside the bar where he worked at 14, or identifying historic buildings, like the bank located in Parliament House (it’s the Bank of Ireland).
The Wilde Ones demonstrated camaraderie and teamwork throughout, only losing (temporarily) one member along the way.
“I love the intrigue of finding all the spots and not knowing where you’re going and being surprised when you get there,” says Valerie Anderson of Custom Travel Solutions.
But frustrations arise as they “strategically” wait at a tourist street stop in the hopes of hopping on a Viking-themed amphibious tour bus (comprised of repurposed land/water tanks from Saving Private Ryan) to get a photo with some Viking horns. As precious minutes tick by and no bus appears, they opt for plan B: a Halloween store in St. Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre.
The mall was built in the 1980s, replacing an open-air market where U2 played some of their earliest gigs, apparently roughly where a United Colors of Benetton is now located.
As the Wilde Ones don their plastic Viking wear, our TeamBuild rep shares that Halloween originated in Ireland, specifically a pagan celebration known as Samhain more than 2,000 years ago.
A short walk away, the Wilde Ones complete their challenges in St. Stephen’s Green, which was the prototype for Manhattan’s Central Park, then hustle to the finish line to await the final tally.
After a refresh, it’s time for the annual gala to find out which team is winning two return airfare tickets to Ireland per person.
And the winner is…The Shamrock Squad!
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