TORONTO — Go Ahead Tours had a lot to celebrate last night after a hugely successful year in Canada. The brand, which is parented by EF Education First, held a Christmas party at its Toronto office for clients, media and industry partners, during which it took a look back at its many successes in 2017 and looked ahead to what’s to come in 2018.

After opening an office in downtown Toronto in 2015, the company has made major strides in the Canadian market. It relocated in 2017 to a new two-storey space at Bay and Bloor, which allowed the company to expand its team. Go Ahead also celebrated Canadian history by sending 10,000 travellers to Vimy this year, th 100th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge.

Looking ahead to 2018, Christopher Gentile, Business Development & Partnerships, announced partnerships with leading consumer magazines in Canada. The first is baby-boomer focused Zoomer Magazine, a collaboration that led to the creation of several new tours. These include: ‘Distilleries of Ireland & Scotland’; ‘Northern Italy & Italian Riviera: A Toast to Zoomer’s 10th Anniversary’; ‘Discover Ecuador & the Galapagos’; ‘Commemorating History: 75th Anniversary of D-Day’; and Grand Tour of Australia & New Zealand’. The tours will be launched with Zoomer’s January issue.

The second Canadian publication Go Ahead is partnering with is Canada’s History magazine. Together, they has launched a new tour that highlights war memorial sites in Belgium and France, and includes lectures by the magazine’s editor.

Also announced last night was a partnership with Ancestry, which will offer clients the chance to learn about their own personal history through a DNA test. The Ancestry tours, which will take place in Ireland, Italy and Germany, will enhance vacations with a pre-trip family history review and an on-tour Ancestry Genealogist.

Gentile also announced three new Food & Wine tours: ‘A Taste of Greece’, ‘A Taste of Portugal’ and ‘A Taste of Uruguay, Chile & Argentina’.

For more information, go to goaheadtours.ca.