TORONTO — Intrepid Travel has just recorded a record-breaking sales month with January 2015 resulting in the company’s biggest booking month ever.

Sales in Canada in January increased by 34% year on year, with the majority of travellers booking trips in Central and South America and Europe.

“Central America has been a growing hotspot over the last couple of years and this is the best result we have seen so far – the region has experienced a 51% increase in sales year on year. We expect this growth to continue, particularly in Cuba – where we’ve had a 30% increase in bookings since the thaw in U.S.-Cuba relations,” says James Thornton, Managing Director.

Intrepid themed trips are also performing well, with Food Adventures achieving a 47% growth and Marine trips, including Galapagos and Sailing Adventures – with two new trips hitting the waters in Cuba and Cote d’Azur – seeing a 28% growth.

Africa is one region that has seen a downturn in numbers, as a result of concerns around Ebola in some West African countries.

“We are approaching the peak Africa booking season and we’d ask agents to encourage their customers to make 2015 the year of the safari,” says James.

“Africa is a continent, not a country, and the whole region has suffered as a result of misinformation about the threat of Ebola. Tourism is vital to local economies, and when travellers stay away this has a real impact on local communities, as well as on wildlife and conservation.”

A strong factor that has contributed to achieving these results is Intrepid’s $1 deposit campaign. “The $1 deposit has given travellers the chance to lock in their travel plans while New Year resolutions are still fresh. We wanted to make it easy for travellers to commit to their travel dreams in 2015, before life gets in the way,” says James. “Agents have embraced this idea and we have received very positive feedback from the industry with lots of clients taking up the offer.”