Employee profiles

Snorkelling, cruising the Atlantic on a catamaran and visiting the remnants of an ancient civilization are dream activities for many vacationers, but for Marc Lemay, they’re all in a day’s work.

General Manager of Trafic Tours, which offers excursions and other destination services to vacationers in the greater region of Puerto Vallarta, as well as in Cancun and in the Maya Riviera in Mexico. He oversees an organization responsible for providing ground transportation and transfers to travellers with Transat and other companies. Trafic also provides a variety of guided excursions to help visitors discover the wonders the region has to offer.

Cancun is a long way from the Eastern Townships of Quebec, where Marc started his tourism industry career in 1989 as a hotel employee in the scenic region of Orford. After working his way up from busboy to hotel manager, he accepted a general manager position at the prestigious Château les Beaulne spa in the province’s Outaouais region.

Marc’s move to Transat came in 1997 after a visit with friends employed by the company. “I was in the right place at the right time,” he says. “My friends were working as destination representatives for Transat, and told me that the company was busy and looking for new people. After so many years in the hotel business, it felt like the right time to make a move.”

Since starting as a destination representative with Transat Holidays, Marc has had held several different positions with the company. He has been posted in Cancun, Puerto Vallarta, Cuba, and Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic. Now back in Cancun, Marc enjoys living and working in such an exciting part of the country. He also enjoys the variety of his work. “Every day is different,” he says. “One day can be relatively slow, with everything going smoothly, and the next – especially if it’s high season – you’ll have to deal with various issues. That being said, there is a wonderful atmosphere at our office, and we are motivated and happy to be there every day.”

Although living in Mexico can have its challenges, Marc makes the most of it. His hobbies include playing on to Cancun’s growing number of golf courses and enjoying Mexico’s up-and-coming film industry.

When it’s time to travel, Marc often returns to Canada to visit family and friends. He also has been known to cross the Atlantic to visit the countryside of France, England, Spain and Morocco.