Air Canada’s new San Antonio flight: a slam dunk sign of hope? Tourism board brings message courtside

A buzzer-beater moment to shift momentum?

For Visit San Antonio, the upcoming launch of Air Canada’s non-stop flight between Toronto and San Antonio on May 1 is exactly that.

With Canadian visitation to the United States down amid tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump, his annexation rhetoric, and the weak loonie, the new seasonal route —the only direct flight between Canada and San Antonio — signals confidence and connectivity.

To drive that point home, Visit San Antonio, in partnership with redtag.ca, hosted key Canadian travel partners at Wednesday night’s NBA matchup at Scotiabank Arena, where the San Antonio Spurs faced off against the hometown Toronto Raptors.

For Tamer Attia, Visit San Antonio’s senior manager of global development, it wasn’t just a game. It was a full-court press on Canada.

Air Canada’s new San Antonio route, running from May through to October, is “very exciting for us,” Attia told PAX during a pre-game chat. 

“It may be seasonal, but we’ll take it,” he said. “Hopefully we can enjoy traffic both ways, from San Antonio to Toronto, and the other way around. It’s important.”

“Whenever you're ready, we're here”

The evening kicked off steps from the arena at e11even restaurant, where partners – Hayden Adair of Elite Sports Tours, Nancy Jeronimo of Air Canada Vacations, Cheryl Green of GMS, Anita Emilio of Flight Centre Travel Group, and Sam Youssef of redtag.ca and TravelBrands – gathered over dinner before the game.

Despite ongoing reports about the ongoing decline in Canadian visitors to the U.S., the mood was upbeat.

Attia pulled out his smartphone and showed the group that San Antonio was enjoying nearly 30-degree weather that day—a stark contrast to Toronto’s subzero temperatures.

“We’re trying to make sure that people know we’re still warm and welcoming to Canadians,” Attia said.

Attia, based in San Antonio, was back in Canada after attending Brand USA’s “Canada Connect” conference last year, where he saw encouraging signs of a market resiliency, despite the geopolitical conflict.

“Everybody listened to us. There was no shutdown,” he said, recalling last year’s event, which involved Canadian tour operators and travel advisors. “Of course, everybody shared their point of view, which I loved. But at the same time, people were willing to listen and see what we offer.”

Attia’s message is simple: whenever Canadians are ready, San Antonio will be too.

“It’s like building a new destination with new awareness,” he said, explaining the current U.S.-Canada dynamic. “Our message is, whenever you're ready, we're here.”

David Suzuki & ketchup chips

Inside Scotiabank Arena, the night unfolded with NBA-level spectacle: hip-hop dancers and a live DJ pumped up the crowd, the jumbotron delivered fun fan moments, and crowd activations kept the energy high.

At one point, Sam Youssef, senior vice president of marketing and partnerships at TravelBrands, leapt from his seat, dancing enthusiastically in hopes of winning a free Raptors jersey.

Canadian environmental icon David Suzuki was even spotted courtside, adding some exciting CanCon to the game. 

Air Canada’s Viktor Spysak was also in the house—just in another section—which made for fun catch-ups in between quarters.

And Attia? He went full Canadiana, proudly posing with a bag of ketchup chips, a quintessentially Canadian snack.

Canada remains a key market

While Canadian visits to San Antonio, located in south-central Texas, are down between 15 and 20 per cent — mirroring broader U.S. trends — Attia remained optimistic.

“My 15 per cent is not going to look like New York's 15 per cent or California's 15 per cent,” he told PAX. “It's down 15 per cent, but it's holding strong at that position. If I stay there, for now, with all what's happening, I’m happy.”

He emphasized Canada’s long-standing importance to the destination.

“If you take [Mexico] out the equation, the number one market for us is Canada. This is not a market to sleep on." 

Culture, cuisine, convenience

Attia describes San Antonio as Texas’ ultimate leisure city — a place where history, culture and cuisine converge.

“San Antonio is the most leisure city in Texas when it comes to the culture, family, history, culinary experience,” he said.

The city’s affordability and walkability are key selling points, he said, along with attractions like The Alamo, an historic Spanish mission and fortress compound, and the San Antonio River Walk, a city park and pedestrian street.

Even more is on the way: The Alamo is undergoing a major transformation, thanks in part to an unexpected benefactor.

“The largest collector of Alamo memorabilia in the world said, ‘If you want my collection, you have to renovate the area, bring it back to what it used to be, and build a museum,’” Attia explained. “That collector was Phil Collins, the singer. By 2028, everything will be ready.”

San Antonio’s culinary credibility is also rising, anchored by institutions like the Culinary Institute of America, Attia said.

It’s why he thinks Air Canada is betting on San Antonio. “They saw how convenient, walkable, and how safe, diverse and authentic our city is,” Attia said.

San Antonio’s role as host of IPW 2023 may have also influenced new connectivity.

“The city showcased itself very well to the international market,” Attia said.

Is Air Canada’s new San Antonio service a sign of hope in today's elbows-up market?

“100 per cent,” Attia said. “We hope it's giving a good sign that says that it’s OK to visit. This is the main thing.”

The long game

Attia knows tourism recovery between Canada and the U.S. will take time, but he’s playing the long game.

“We know it will take time and there's no problem with that,” he said. “No matter what, Canada is a very important market. We want to maintain it.”

The basketball game ended with a storybook finish, you could say.

Despite trailing by 12 points at the end of the third quarter, the San Antonio Spurs stormed back with red-hot three-point shooting in the fourth, silencing the home crowd and sealing a 110–107 comeback victory over the Toronto Raptors.

It couldn’t have been scripted better for San Antonio’s visiting delegation. When it comes to U.S.-Canada relations, from a tourism perspective, the Texan city isn’t sitting on the bench.

“We know some people may not want to visit us now,” Attia said, “but when they’re ready, we’ll be ready.”  

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