U.S. Travel Predicts Modest 2010 Increases in Travel
from Travel Agent Central
 Modest 2010 increases in leisure, business and international inbound travel will enable the travel industry to add nearly 90,000 jobs in the United States, the U.S. Travel Association predicts. Leisure travel is expected to rise 2 percent, business travel is projected to increase by 2.5 percent and international inbound travel will increase by 3 percent.
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NEW Study on International Travelers!
Join a comprehensive study that will help your organization learn more about international travelers. The International Traveler Study will take a comprehensive look at needs, behaviors, and experiences of international travelers in the United States, with focus on the top 5 inbound markets: Canada, Germany, Japan, Mexico, and the UK. Sponsors can submit proprietary questions. The study is being conducted by the U.S. Cultural & Heritage Tourism Marketing Council and Shop America Alliance in conjunction with Mandala Research. For more information contact Laura@MandalaResearch.com.
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Study: For First Time, U.S. Ranked World's Top Country Brand
from Successful Meetings
For the first time in its five-year history, the United States has been ranked No. 1 in FutureBrand's Country Brand Index (CBI) study, which also named the country the world's fourth best conference destination, the global brand consultancy announced Friday. Ranked No. 3 in 2008, the United States beat out second-place Canada and third-place Australia, as well as New Zealand, France, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, Germany and Spain—all of which placed in the top 10 of the annual study, which examines how countries are branded and ranked by international travelers.
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Government Guidelines vs. Meetings Industry Model
from MeetingsNet
As the U.S. Treasury worked on its guidelines for corporate policies on “luxury expenditures,” the meetings industry, under the auspices of the U.S. Travel Association, scrambled to create an actual board policy that it hoped the U.S. Treasury would adopt instead. The industry's model policy is specific, including guidelines for spending on meetings as well as actual sample business purposes for meetings (though the numbers it uses are meant to be examples that will not necessarily work for every company).
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More Companies Want Employees to Stay in 'Green' Hotels
from USA Today
Many big companies and states are increasingly steering their travel business to hotels that meet "green" environmental standards. The results are twofold: Companies can tout environmentally conscious business practices, and hotel owners are spurred to adopt energy-saving standards to attract guests.
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Hotels Find Keeping Travelers at Home
Can Be Good Business
from The New York Times
"If you can't beat 'em, join 'em," may be the best maxim to explain why travel companies are getting into the virtual meeting business, actually helping clients avoid flying halfway around the globe. Two of the world’s biggest hotel companies, Starwood Hotels and Resorts and Marriott International, are outfitting some of their meeting rooms with telepresence suites, a high-end system that leapfrogs typical videoconferencing technology. Their goal is to rent the rooms to customers who are already embracing virtual alternatives to travel, but do not have telepresence suites everywhere they would like to use them. More
U.S. Plan: Track Foreigners' Departures
from the Charlotte Observer
The Department of Homeland Security is finalizing a proposal to collect fingerprints or eye scans from all foreign travelers at U.S. airports as they leave the country, officials said, a costly screening program that airlines have opposed. The plan, which would take effect within two years, would collect fingerprints at airport security checkpoints, departure gates or terminal kiosks, allowing the government to track when roughly 35million foreign visitors a year leave the country and who might be overstaying their visas, DHS officials said.
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Shop America Tourism Conference
Join us at the Four Seasons Las Vegas, January 11-13, 2010, for the 13th Annual Shop America Tourism Conference, "Delivering ROI." Discover new ways to partner with Shopping, Dining and Cultural partners to promote the top tourism activities for all US Travelers. Program and Registration at www.ShopAmericaConference.com
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International Pow Wow
Early Registration Ends Nov. 16
from the U.S. Travel Association
All forecasters are pointing to the international market as the one place that you can count on growth next year. More than 1,200 buyers from 70 countries will be booking business for the year at International Pow Wow in Orlando from May 15-19, 2010. Make sure you’re there to book your fair share. To get a jump start, register and pay by November 16. You’ll save up to $270 per delegate and gain priority in scheduling appointments with the buyers. Suppliers receive up to 44 appointments per booth. Learn more at www.powwowonline.com.
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