Canada, Mexico, and More Countries in America Enter a Fierce New Corporate Travel Era as Talma Expands Its Reach

Canada, Mexico, and more countries in America are entering a fierce new corporate travel era as Talma Travel Solutions expands its reach across the Americas. The company has entered Canada through its acquisition of Plus Travel Group, marking an important step in its international growth strategy. Meanwhile, the United States, Brazil, and Colombia are also emerging as important markets as corporate travel demand strengthens across the region. Canada brings an established business travel market, while Mexico continues to attract international visitors and business activity. In addition, Brazil is recording strong corporate travel momentum, and Colombia is strengthening its tourism and business ecosystem. Together, these developments point to a rapidly changing Americas travel landscape. Yet what does Talma gain from its Canadian move, and why does this acquisition matter now? Travel And Tour World examines the deal, the market opportunities, and the competitive forces shaping corporate travel. Read the full story to discover what could come next.

2026 Corporate Travel and Tourism Market Signals Across the Americas

Talma Travel Solutions Enters Canada as Plus Travel Group Acquisition Expands Corporate Travel Reach Across the Americas

Talma Travel Solutions has entered the Canadian market through the acquisition of Plus Travel Group, giving the global travel management company a new foothold in Canada at a time when corporate travel is becoming increasingly important across the Americas.

The acquisition brings together Talma’s international scale, technology and travel management capabilities with Plus Travel Group’s established Canadian relationships and local market knowledge. Terms of the transaction have not been disclosed. Jeffrey Verman, chief executive officer of Plus Travel Group, will continue to lead the company following the acquisition.

The deal is significant beyond the Canadian market. It strengthens Talma’s existing position in North America and fits a broader acquisition strategy that has already taken the company into the United States and other international markets.

For the corporate travel industry, the timing is notable. Business travel is recovering and expanding in several major markets, although growth is not uniform. Companies are demanding stronger cost control, better reporting, reliable traveller support and technology that can handle increasingly complex journeys. That combination of local expertise and global infrastructure is becoming one of the most important competitive factors for travel management companies.

Comment from Anup Kumar Keshan, Founder and Editor-in-Chief, Travel And Tour World

“Talma’s entry into Canada comes at a significant moment for corporate travel across the Americas. The Plus Travel Group acquisition combines local expertise with international scale, while growing business travel demand across Canada, the US and Latin America creates opportunities for stronger connectivity, technology, and more efficient corporate travel management solutions.”

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Canada becomes the latest piece of Talma’s global expansion strategy

The acquisition of Plus Travel Group represents Talma’s first entry into Canada.

Plus Travel Group is based in the Greater Toronto area and has built its business around corporate travel management and personalised service. Its offering includes dedicated account management and technology-supported solutions for booking, travel policy compliance, reporting and cost optimisation. The company also provides round-the-clock traveller support for changes, disruptions and complex itineraries.

For Talma, acquiring an established Canadian business avoids the challenge of building a market presence from scratch.

That matters in corporate travel because relationships are often as important as technology. Corporate clients expect their travel manager to understand their policies, preferred suppliers, travellers, spending patterns, and operational requirements. A company entering a new market must therefore develop local credibility as well as infrastructure.

Plus Travel Group already provides that local foundation.

In return, the Canadian business gains access to Talma’s international resources, technology, supplier relationships and broader portfolio of travel solutions. The two companies have described the combination as an opportunity to expand the services available to clients in Canada, North America and other international markets.

The arrangement also allows Plus Travel Group to maintain leadership continuity. Verman will remain CEO, providing an element of stability for employees and existing clients while the company becomes part of a larger international organisation.

Talma has been building its North American presence for several years

The Canadian acquisition does not represent Talma’s first step into the Americas.

The company entered the North American market in 2023 through the acquisition of Brickell Travel Management in Miami. That transaction created the foundation for Talma Americas and gave the company an established US operating platform. Talma subsequently expanded its US presence through the acquisition of Solutions Travel in 2025.

The company has continued to position technology as an important part of that expansion.

Talma describes its corporate travel proposition as a combination of personalised account management, traveller support, reporting and analytics, supplier management, expense services and technology-enabled booking. Its technology strategy includes a partnership with Spotnana, giving travellers access to self-service tools, broader travel content, policy controls and real-time analytics.

This is important because corporate travel has changed substantially.

The traditional travel management model was heavily focused on booking flights, hotels and other travel services. Today, companies increasingly expect travel managers to help control spending, monitor traveller behaviour, support duty of care, improve compliance and provide data that can influence business decisions.

Technology is therefore no longer simply a booking tool. It has become part of the management infrastructure behind corporate travel.

Talma’s acquisition strategy reflects that shift.

The company says it now serves more than 25 countries and reports annual sales of about $1.6 billion. It ranked No. 20 on Travel Weekly’s 2026 Power List, underscoring the scale it has reached through organic growth and acquisitions.

2026 Cross-Border Travel Demand Creates a Wider Americas Opportunity

Canada offers a sizeable corporate travel opportunity

Canada is not a small addition to the corporate travel map.

According to the Global Business Travel Association, Canada ranked as the world’s 12th-largest business travel market in 2025, moving up from 13th place in 2024. Business travel spending was estimated to have grown 9.6% in 2025. For 2026, total business travel and meetings spending is projected to reach C$40.1 billion, representing a 4.3% year-on-year increase.

The numbers show why Canada can be strategically valuable to an international travel management company.

Toronto is particularly important. GBTA analysis based on 2024 data found that business travel to and within Toronto generated US$4.3 billion in industry-driven revenue and contributed US$586 million in taxes. The sector also supported more than 21,000 jobs in the city.

Canadian corporate travellers are also showing a strong preference for face-to-face business engagement.

GBTA research found that Canadian business travellers average 3.2 nights per trip. Conventions, conferences, seminars and training are among the major drivers of travel. Eighty-three per cent of surveyed Canadian business travellers said business travel is worthwhile in achieving their business objectives.

That creates a market in which travel management companies can play a role well beyond ticketing.

Companies need support in planning travel programmes, controlling expenditure, arranging meetings and events, managing disruption and keeping travellers connected to their employers.

The acquisition therefore gives Talma access to a market where corporate travel remains commercially important even as businesses continue to scrutinise travel budgets.

The United States remains the biggest opportunity in the region

The Canadian acquisition also has to be viewed alongside Talma’s existing US business.

The United States has one of the world’s largest corporate travel markets. GBTA estimates that business travel within and to the US generated US$538.5 billion in related travel spending, based on 2024 data. The activity generated US$623.8 billion in GDP impact, supported 6.7 million jobs and represented 2.1% of the US economy.

The outlook for 2026 is more measured.

The US Travel Association forecasts business travel spending to increase by 0.7% in real terms to US$319 billion in 2026. The organisation says companies continue to prioritise in-person meetings and events, even while inflation, energy prices, geopolitical uncertainty and other pressures affect travel decisions.

This creates an interesting environment for travel management companies.

The opportunity is not necessarily about selling more trips at any cost. It is increasingly about helping companies make existing travel budgets work harder.

That means identifying savings, improving policy compliance, negotiating supplier rates, providing accurate reporting, and ensuring employees can travel efficiently when face-to-face engagement matters.

Talma’s technology-led model is designed around many of those requirements.

The company offers real-time reporting and analytics, travel policy controls, traveller support and expense management, while its Spotnana-powered offering provides self-service functions and access to travel content from multiple sources.

The Plus Travel Group acquisition therefore adds another local market to an already developing American network.

Mexico is becoming increasingly relevant to business travel

Mexico provides a different but complementary opportunity.

The country is experiencing strong tourism momentum in 2026. Mexico’s government reported 59.7 million international visitors between January and July, 7% more than during the same period of 2025. International tourist arrivals reached 28.9 million, up 4.5%, while traveller spending reached US$21.743 billion.

The growth is not limited to leisure travel.

Mexico is also strengthening its position as a meetings and events destination. Government data from the 2026 edition of IBTM Americas showed more than 555 specialised buyers, over 420 exhibitors and 4,400 visitors, with more than 9,000 business appointments expected. The event itself represented an estimated US$14 billion in business opportunities for the meetings industry.

Government investment data also points to the importance of business tourism. Mexico’s 2026 tourism investment portfolio identified tourism for business as 17% of the projects recorded in the second four-month period of the year. The overall portfolio reached 925 projects worth more than US$47.53 billion.

For travel management companies, this matters because business travel and meeting travel frequently overlap.

A corporate programme may involve flights and hotels for individual employees one week, followed by a conference, incentive trip, training programme or executive meeting the next.

A broader service portfolio can therefore become a competitive advantage.

Mexico’s strong international connectivity and expanding meetings infrastructure make it an important market to watch as companies continue to organise regional operations and cross-border meetings.

Brazil stands out for the speed of corporate travel growth

Brazil presents an especially interesting case.

According to Brazil’s government news agency, citing the 2026 GBTA Business Travel Index, corporate travel spending in Brazil is expected to reach US$35.8 billion in 2026. The market is projected to grow by 13.8%, the highest growth rate among the 15 leading global business travel markets identified in the report.

Separate research from FecomercioSP and the Latin American Association of Corporate Travel and Events Management projects Brazilian corporate travel revenue at approximately R$205.6 billion in 2026, around 5% higher than the previous year.

These figures illustrate the scale of the opportunity.

Brazil is a huge geography with major commercial centres separated by considerable distances. Companies operating across the country can therefore face complicated travel requirements involving air connections, accommodation, meetings, events and traveller support.

Efficiency becomes crucial.

A corporate travel manager must balance traveller needs against company policy and budget. In a market growing at a strong pace, the ability to combine technology with human support can become particularly valuable.

Brazil also demonstrates why an international travel management strategy cannot rely solely on the traditional North American markets.

The Americas are becoming a connected corporate travel ecosystem rather than a collection of isolated national markets.

Colombia adds another layer to the Latin American opportunity

Colombia’s corporate travel potential is linked to the country’s wider tourism and business development.

The Colombian Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism launched the Turismo + PRO programme in 2026 with an investment of approximately COP3.2 billion to support around 500 tourism businesses. The programme focuses on productivity, sustainability, formalisation and business strengthening.

The government has also committed COP125 billion to a sustainability programme for 1,300 micro, small and medium-sized tourism businesses and productive units across Colombia’s 32 departments. The objective includes improving productivity and competitiveness and strengthening the tourism value chain.

These measures do not represent corporate travel spending figures on their own, but they indicate a wider effort to professionalise and strengthen Colombia’s tourism economy.

For corporate travel providers, that creates a more mature environment for business travel, meetings, events and related services.

Colombia can also act as a bridge between North and South American business networks, particularly for companies operating across multiple Latin American markets.

That regional connectivity is increasingly important as corporations look beyond single-country travel programmes.

The bigger trend is the convergence of technology and human service

The Plus Travel Group deal highlights a broader change taking place across corporate travel.

Technology is becoming more powerful, but companies are not necessarily looking for technology alone.

They want technology that works alongside experienced people.

Talma’s own corporate travel offering reflects this model. The company combines account management and traveller support with reporting, analytics, policy controls, supplier management and technology-enabled booking. Its Spotnana partnership also includes self-service changes, AI-supported traveller assistance and real-time insights into travel spending, booking behaviour, traveller safety and other programme data.

That balance is particularly important when travel goes wrong.

A traveller may be able to change a simple booking through a digital platform. But a major disruption involving several employees, cancelled flights, tight meeting schedules, or complex international connections can require experienced human intervention.

This is where established corporate travel companies can differentiate themselves.

The objective is not to replace people with technology. It is to use technology to allow people to solve more complicated problems faster.

What the acquisition means for corporate clients

For Plus Travel Group clients, the immediate attraction is likely to be access to a wider international network and greater resources without losing the company’s existing leadership.

The acquisition also potentially gives Canadian customers more options when arranging international travel programmes.

For Talma, meanwhile, the benefit is equally straightforward: an established Canadian platform, local relationships and an additional market from which to develop its North American business.

The two companies already share a similar philosophy around personalised account management and technology-supported corporate travel. That should make integration easier than a deal involving companies with fundamentally different service models.

However, acquisitions in travel management are not automatically successful.

The real test will be whether the enlarged organisation can combine scale with the personal service that made Plus Travel Group attractive in the first place.

Corporate clients do not simply buy access to flights and hotel rooms. They buy reliability, responsiveness, expertise and confidence that someone will take ownership when plans change.

Maintaining that relationship will be essential.

A regional corporate travel network is taking shape

The Canadian acquisition arrives as global business travel spending is forecast to reach a record US$1.71 trillion in 2026, according to GBTA. The organisation expects around 1.84 billion business trips worldwide this year, with spending growth of 7.2%. At the same time, it warns that higher transportation and travel costs are contributing significantly to spending growth.

That distinction matters.

Higher spending does not automatically mean businesses are sending more employees dramatically on trips. Prices, airfares, accommodation costs and other travel expenses can push the value of the market higher.

Travel management companies therefore face a dual challenge: capturing growth while helping clients control costs.

Talma’s expansion suggests that it sees scale as part of the answer.

Canada strengthens the northern part of its Americas network. The US provides a large established corporate travel market. Mexico offers strong tourism and meetings growth. Brazil is recording particularly rapid corporate travel expansion. Colombia is strengthening its wider tourism business ecosystem.

These markets are different, but they share one important characteristic: companies increasingly need travel programmes that can operate across borders.

That is the strategic logic behind Talma’s Canadian move.

The acquisition of Plus Travel Group gives the company more than a new national market. It adds another local operating base to a wider international network at a moment when corporate travel is becoming more data-driven, technology-enabled and geographically connected.

For Canada, the arrival of a global travel management group brings another major player into an already competitive business travel market.

For Plus Travel Group, it offers international scale without abandoning local leadership.

And for Talma, it represents another step in a long-running acquisition strategy that is steadily turning a collection of regional travel businesses into a broader global platform.

The next stage will be watching how that platform develops across the Americas. Talma has already signalled that further strategic acquisitions are expected, meaning the Plus Travel Group transaction may be less an endpoint than another marker in the company’s continuing expansion.