Haiti and Turkey Top Cheapflights.ca’s 2011 Global Rising Stars Report

“It’s nice to see Haiti bounce back following the devastation of the earthquake, which hampered visits to the area last year,” said Lauren Sullivan, site editor for Cheapflights.ca. “One of the draws now is voluntourism — a travel trend that Cheapflights.

the online leader in finding and publishing travel deals, today unveiled its 2011 Global Rising Stars Report. This annual report takes a look at up and coming travel destinations as determined by year-over-year searches on Cheapflights.ca.

After compiling search data from the first six months of 2010 and 2011, Cheapflights.ca’s Global Rising Stars Report is a ranking of the five destinations with the biggest per cent increase within five key geographic regions: Europe, Asia/Oceania, North America, South America and Africa.

“It’s nice to see Haiti bounce back following the devastation of the earthquake, which hampered visits to the area last year,” said Lauren Sullivan, site editor for Cheapflights.ca. “One of the draws now is voluntourism — a travel trend that Cheapflights has been tracking — with Canadians travelling there to help rebuild the region. It’s also not too surprising the see the resort town of Ankara, Turkey, faring well this year. As tourist spots in Tunisia and Egypt have had set backs due to political unrest, the beneficial exchange rate and a push to raise tourism has positioned Ankara well as an alternative vacation spot.”

Canadians seemed more open to travelling farther and trying new things, perhaps in the name of the strong Canadian dollar. Interestingly, Gold Coast, Australia is ranked fourth, demonstrating that Oprah’s travels to Queensland, Australia, looks to be paying dividends. And Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, and Havana, Cuba, continue to be vacation hotspots for Canadians.