Trudeau departs for two-week family vacation to Costa Rica

On Monday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his family left Ottawa for a two-week trip to Costa Rica.

While they are required to use a taxpayer-funded Royal Canadian Air Force plane for security reasons, the Trudeaus have claimed that they will foot the bill for their accommodation in the Central American nation.

The Prime Minister's official itinerary for August 1 states that he and his family are in Costa Rica for "personal" reasons.

Flight records show the Prime Minister's RCAF CL60 was scheduled to depart Ottawa at 7:00 am EST, arriving just over five hours later in San Jose.

As Global News reports, the last time the Trudeaus flew to Costa Rica in 2019, air transport alone cost taxpayers nearly $60,000.

Reaction to the trip from Canadians has been mixed.

"Good," one Reddit user said. "He needs a couple weeks to grow into that haircut."

"The guy sucks as a PM but everyone ought to be allowed to take their allocated vacation time," another added. "Enjoy the trip and I hope you lose your job soon."

While this two-week jaunt down south appears to be a simple family getaway, Trudeau's vacations have caused controversy in the past.

In 2016, the prime minister accepted an invitation to visit the Aga Khan's private island in the Bahamas. After flying to Nassau on an RCAF jet, he was shuttled via helicopter to the private island.

At the time, Trudeau's actions were found to be in violation of federal conflict of interest laws, however, criminal fraud charges were never sought despite an RCMP investigation in 2019.

To be considered fraud, the vacation would have to have been given to Trudeau as a gift by someone who does business with the government, and it would have to have been signed off on by a supervisor. The RCMP was able to prove all but the latter.

In April 2022, Conservatives pushed for the investigation to be reopened.