“We like to tell people where to go… in the very nicest way possible,” says manager Carina Bennett. She and her staff do more than that. “We like to continue to get better. We travel, we snoop, we keep up to date,” she says, so they have the most recent information on the destinations choosen by clients. “We like to get reports when people come back, too.” Right now the five-person location of Maritime Travel is busy planning winter getaways for its customers, to Cuba, Dominican Republic, the Mayan coast, to name but three popular southern destinations, and economic worries don’t seem to be hampering their business. “People will give up a lot of things before they give up their vacation.” Halifax Shopping Centre, 7001 Mumford Road, 455-7856

1st Runner-up: Flight Centre, Scotia Square, 5201 Duke Street, 866-788-5077

2nd Runner-up: Travel Cuts, 1589 Barrington, 489-8000, travelcuts.com