“It’s all about relationships”: Dina Bertolo retires after four-plus decades of building Canadian travel

She retired once. It didn't stick.

Now, after more than four decades of negotiating contracts, building destinations and helping Canadians discover the world, Dina Bertolo has made it official.

On Friday (June 12), the vice president of product development at Air Canada Vacations officially retired, closing a remarkable 43-year career that has left an indelible mark on tour operating in Canada.

For anyone who’s taken (or sold) an all-inclusive vacation, there’s a good chance Bertalo has had a hand in it.  

But if there’s one thing Bertolo understands, it’s that her story was never just about hotels, contracts, aircraft seats or destination launches.

It was always about people.

Which is why her farewell feels less like a retirement and more like a celebration of a legacy.

A few weeks ago, colleagues and industry friends surprised Bertolo with an emotional tribute/retirement party at D.A.T.E. (the Dominican Annual Tourism Exchange) at Bahia Principe in the Dominican Republic.

Then, just last week, on June 10, ACV hosted a special send-off attended by executives, partners, suppliers, ACV colleagues, family and friends from every chapter of her career. Craig Landry, Flemming Friisdahl and Rhonda Stanley, Nino Montagnese, Jill Wykes, ALBATours co-owner Gianni Bragagnolo: it was a guest list of bold-faced proportions. 

The outpouring of affection isn’t surprising. In product development circles, Bertolo is widely regarded as one of the industry's most respected buyers and negotiators.

Yet ask her about her success, and she inevitably returns to the same theme.

“It's all about relationships,” she told PAX during a video call last Thursday (June 12).

A girl from Guelph with ambition

That simple philosophy has guided her entire career. When Bertolo entered the travel business in 1981, she didn’t exactly have a master plan.

“I had no clue what I wanted,” she recalled. “I had no idea what the travel industry meant.”

Even so, she had an early sense of what travel represents and how it connects people from different places. As a child, Bertolo used to accompany her father to the airport to meet relatives arriving from Italy.

“I loved being at the airport,” she said. “I would just stop and stare at all the people.”

In her late teens, she enrolled in a travel program in college largely because it sounded interesting. But a chance meeting at a trade show, hosted by Barbados, changed everything.

There, she met Noris Zanutel from ALBATours, who offered her a part-time position. Although Bertolo had been accepted to university, where she was going to study languages, she chose the job instead.

“I knew there was something in there for me,” she said.

Her first responsibilities were hardly glamorous. She typed invoices and worked in operations, eventually communicating with hotels through telex machines long before email transformed the business.

“I was a girl from Guelph with long hair, huarache sandals and knee socks…and I had no clue who [ALBATours] were. But I loved working there,” Bertolo recalled.

What she lacked in experience, she made up for with determination.

“I was a very hard worker in those days,” said Bertolo. “I had no prospects of doing anything but advancing my career.”

Breaking barriers in the boys’ club

That drive caught the attention of one man who would alter the course of her career and life: Gianni Bragagnolo, co-owner of ALBATours, a company operated by 12 travel advisors that once served the Italian-Canadian community by offering charter tours to Italy, and eventually, to sun destinations like Acapulco and Cuba.

To this day, Bertolo credits him as her first mentor.

One day, in 1985, Bragagnolo approached Bertolo with an opportunity: “How would you like to be in product and contract hotels?”

Bertolo accepted immediately.

“I had no idea what he was talking about,” she said, “but I also knew that no other man would give me this opportunity. So I took it.”  

It was a bold decision for both of them. The travel industry of the mid-1980s was very different from today. Product buying and hotel contracting were largely dominated by older men. Young women, Bertolo explained, rarely occupied those positions.

“He took a chance on me – a young woman in the ’80s with ambition, but no product experience — and made me a buyer at a time when most buyers were men,” she said.

Apparently, as the story goes, it was Bertolo’s warm and trusting smile that helped seal the deal.

“He saw in me that my smile would maybe open up doors to hoteliers that would have said no,” said Bertolo, recounting a story Bragagnolo shared with guests at that ACV send-off party.

Looking back, Bertolo recognizes the significance of it all. “I had to be one of the first woman buyers in the mainstream tour operating world,” she said.

But the road wasn't easy. “In those days you had to prove yourself big time," she added.

Bertolo remembers situations where travel executives would hand her contracts and say, in a dismissive way, ‘Okay, little girl, here's the contract. Go get Gianni to sign it.”

In those days, Bertolo learned to persevere. “I'd swallow my pride and say, ‘Okay, no problem,’” she said.

Over time, she earned the respect of competitors, suppliers and hotel executives around the world. And in the process, she quietly helped change expectations for the women who followed.

“I like to think I paved the way for some women today. It's a completely different world now,” said Bertolo.

The art of negotiation

Under Bragagnolo’s mentorship, Bertolo learned lessons that would guide her for the next four decades.

“He taught me the art of negotiation,” she explained. “That it’s a two-way street. It has to be good for both parties. Relationships are the foundation of what we do in this business.”

Those relationships would become one of the defining features of her career.

More than forty years later, many people Bertolo worked with back then are still in the travel industry – and many remain close friends.

That reality hit home during that recent surprise retirement party in the Dominican Republic.

When she asked how many attendees knew her from her ALBATours days, nearly half the room raised their hands.

Some people are destined for certain paths in life. One of Bertolo’s favourite stories dates back to her high school years. When she first shared her plans to study travel, a close friend struggled to imagine her working in the industry.

“My friend said to me at the time, ‘You know Dina, I really can't picture you in some Mexican airport counting your pesos. I just can't see you doing that.’”

Some fifteen years later, while travelling through Mexico City on business, reality delivered a moment of irony.

“There I was, in Mexico City airport, counting my pesos to see if I had enough change for a coffee,” Bertolo said. “Go figure.”

Building an extraordinary career

Bertolo’s professional journey mirrors many of the major shifts in modern tour operating.

She joined ALBATours in 1981. By 1986, she had become director of product. In 1997, Airtours PLC acquired ALBATours and merged operations with Sunquest Vacations, where she was promoted to vice president, product development.

When Thomas Cook acquired Airtours, she eventually became executive vice president product.

Then came her first retirement. In 2011, Bertolo stepped away from the business.

“I thought, that's it. I don't want to work anymore,” she said, recalling the moment.

In the end, what Bertolo really wanted/needed was “a big break” from the biz. Time to decompress and hit the reset button.

But after two-and-a-half years away, she realized she still had more in the engine, and at precisely the right moment, Michael Friisdahl – then president and CEO of Air Canada Leisure Group, which included Air Canada Rouge and Air Canada Vacations – came calling.

Rouge had just launched. Capacity was expanding rapidly. New opportunities were emerging.

“I had this burst of energy,” said Bertolo, who, in 2014, joined Air Canada Vacations as vice president of product development. “It couldn’t have come at a better time. I was ready for the challenge.”

The destination builder

Throughout her career, Bertolo became known for her ability to spot opportunities.

Long before social media, Google and ChatGPT, product development relied heavily on deep research, courage and visiting destinations.

“You have to use your instincts,” she Bertolo, describing the job.

In some cases, the timing wasn't always right.  

Bertolo remembers trying to launch a program in Panama in 1990. At the time, the U.S. army were still stationed there following the removal of dictator Manuel Noriega during the U.S. military intervention known as Operation Just Cause.

“Our ground handler took us to potential beaches and there were still army barracks set up,” Bertolo recalled, “but I knew it had potential.”

That willingness to experiment helped shape countless vacation programs over the years.

“You go with the flow,” she said. “You research what competitors do. You also listen to your hotel partners who've opened up.”

Cuba: a lifelong passion

Few destinations are more closely associated with Bertolo than Cuba.

Going back to her ALBATours days, she witnessed the island’s tourism evolution from the earliest days of Canadian sun vacations.

“Cuba was one of my fortes,” she said.

She watched the country grow into one of Canada's most important sun destinations, particularly after Sol Meliá (now Meliá Hotels International) opened the landmark Sol Palmeras resort in Varadero in 1990.

“That was history in the making,” she said.

She also developed a deep appreciation for the Cuban people. “They're beautiful people, I love the culture,” she said.

One memory, in particular, stands out: meeting Fidel Castro at FIT Cuba, the destination’s premier travel and tourism event, back in 1997.

“He’s really tall,” said Bertolo, recalling a moment when she was invited to join the Cuban politician and revolutionary for a picture.

“I had my hand on his back for the photo, and it was hard, like he had some bulletproof vest on or something,” she said.

It didn’t take long for Castro’s bodyguard to ask Bertolo to remove her hand. (She did, however, manage to plant a kiss on Castro after asking him in Spanish).  

Bertolo's connection with Cuba was unwavering, which is why recent tourism struggles in the destination have been painful to watch.

She has one word to describe the current geopolitical situation in Cuba: “Devastating.”

Yet even amid the hardship, she remains inspired by Cuba’s resilience. “They're strong-willed, resilient people, and they will survive,” she said.

She points to the remarkable loyalty Canadians have for Cuba. She remembers, back in 2017, visiting Cayo Coco in the aftermath of Hurricanes Maria and Irma and seeing Canadian tourists, arriving with suitcases full of supplies to donate.

“Canadians are so loyal to Cuba, and that's beautiful to see,” she said.

Family behind the success

While Bertolo's professional accomplishments are substantial, she is quick to acknowledge she did not achieve them alone.

Central to her success has been the support of her husband, Albert. A retired Air Canada pilot, he deliberately remained on aircraft assignments that offered more predictable schedules while Bertolo's travel commitments intensified.

“He did this as an act of love so I could build my career further,” she said.

That partnership also allowed Bertolo to advance while raising their children, Angelica and Stephan.

It's an experience that shapes the advice she now offers younger women entering the travel industry.

Is it possible to be a mother and have a successful career? “You're damn right you can do both,” Bertolo affirms.

“Having a partner that will be there for you, to support you in your career is very important, but it can be done,” she said.

She acknowledges that she made “mistakes” along the way – like hiding in bathrooms on family vacations to answer emails on her BlackBerry.

But her message is one of confidence, balance and peer-to-peer support.

“Don't feel guilty,” she said. “With kids, it doesn't necessarily have to be quantity. It’s about having quality time. I really didn’t like being away from my kids, but when I could, I was always with them.”

She stresses the importance of achieving a work-life balance. “Find more time for yourself,” she said, “because you know what, the work will be there tomorrow.”

She also believes in the power of supporting the colleagues around you.

“As women, we have to support each other, but even male colleagues as well,” she said. “In travel, you're one big family. You have to have confidence and take pride in what you do. It's also an industry that accepts failures, too.”

Knowing when it's time

Unlike her first retirement, this one feels different. Bertolo turns 67 this year. Her husband, who flew Triple Sevens for Air Canada, retired three years ago. And a grandson has become, in her words, “the light of my life.”

After achieving every milestone imaginable, she wants to leave while still energized and engaged.

“You want to go when you're on a high note,” she said.

That note appears to be exactly where she is. At Air Canada Vacations, she helped oversee product expansion during one of the company's most transformative periods.

She helped navigate industry disruption, globalization, changing distribution models and evolving consumer demands.

And she did it while maintaining the relationships that always mattered most.

More adventures to come

Retirement, however, won't mean standing still. Far from it, actually.

It might be Bertolo’s final boarding call, career wise, but travel is firmly at the top of her to-do list.

Where does she intend to go? She wants to see Australia, for one, along with Budapest, Prague, Japan, Vietnam and more of Italy. She also wants to cross the Atlantic aboard the Queen Mary.

“Travel, without a briefcase,” as she put it.

She plans to learn piano. Her daughter will teach her tap dancing. She wants to ski again, read more books, spend more time with family and friends, and do it by her pool.

“Listen, I'll never get bored,” she said.

No one who knows Dina Bertolo doubts that. After all, this is someone who retired once already and returned because the industry pulled her back.

Perhaps that's why saying goodbye is emotional.

Over 43 years, Bertolo became much more than a product executive. She became a mentor, a pioneer, a negotiator, a destination builder, a trusted partner and a role model for countless women who followed in her footsteps.

Now it's her turn to unpack the world, on her own terms.

And if her remarkable career has taught us anything, it's that wherever Dina Bertolo goes next, she'll leave a lasting impression there, too.

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