Tuesday Newsletter
October 31, 2006
Tuesday Newsletter October 31, 2006
Volume 26: Issue 44
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This issue of Tuesday is sponsored by VisitBritain. For everything you need to know about developing tours to Britain, and to find out about all the British partners who will be joining us at the NTA Convention this year, go to www.visitbritain.com/operators. See you there!. |
| Interested in becoming a sponsor for Tuesday? Contact Karla DiNardo at karla.dinardo@NTA.travel. | |
On the Convention Trail: It’s Time
This is the sixth installment of On the Convention Trail, a series of Tuesday articles by 2006 Convention Chair Barb Bowman of the Grand Junction (Colo.) Visitor and Convention Bureau. The stories are aimed at getting you ready for Annual Convention, which beings this Friday "on location" in Salt Lake City.
With the NTA Convention just around the corner, I don’t know about you, but I’m beginning to madly dash about making my final preparations for Salt Lake City!
We are tweaking our profile form to make sure that all the most updated information and pricing is included. We are checking to make sure we have plenty of business cards, because I will never forget one year when one of my peers had to design and print business cards at the Convention. Yikes!
Even though I would love to wear my beautiful new high heels, I had a reality talk with myself about the year I carried a pedometer and clicked off seven miles in one day on the floor. I’m saving those heels for final night!
So, when you are packing, here’s my personal check list that might help you:
I can’t wait to talk to you at Convention!
NTA Convention: See You in Salt Lake City
The 2006 NTA Annual Convention gets underway in just three days. Are you ready for Salt Lake?
- Thursday, Nov. 2 – 9 a.m.-11 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 3 – 9 a.m.-11 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 4 – 9 a.m.-11 p.m.
We look forward to a great week of business and camaraderie. Rest up, travel safely and we’ll see you soon in Salt Lake City!
Better Business. Better Be There.
NTA Convention: Tour & Travel Exchange FAQs
Want to know more about consecutive appointments at the Saturday Tour & Travel Exchange for this year’s Convention? Wondering how many open appointment times may still be available with tour operators? Curious about how your appointment schedule is created?
To answer these and other questions, NTA has created a facts and FAQs document that contains an extensive amount of information on the 2006 Tour & Travel Exchange. In addition, you can learn more about the hows and whys of the Exchange and the Direct Request scheduling system.
If you have further questions on the Tour & Travel Exchange, contact your Member Services team via e-mail at questions@NTA.travel or by calling 800.682.8886 (U.S. and Canada) or 859.226.4444.
Daylight Saving Time Changes for Some in 2007
Many people had the chance to get an extra hour of sleep this weekend, as the clocks fell back to standard time. But, it’s the last time this will happen in October for many North Americans.
Legislation passed in both the United States and Canada will change daylight saving time so it starts earlier and ends later beginning next year. It will last from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November (March 11 to Nov. 4, 2007). One thing of note, Mexico will maintain the original daylight saving time schedule of starting the first Sunday in April and ending the last Sunday in October (April 1 to Oct. 28).
From a travel and tourism standpoint, this has the possibility to cause confusion from March 11 to April 1 and Oct. 28 to Nov. 4, because Mexico won’t be in step with the United States and Canada.
Handy Fact Sheet Outlines Updates to U.S. Passport Regulations
The United States Congress recently approved a bill that includes provisions to delay the implementation of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. These new provisions include important deadlines for passport requirements. The Travel Industry Association has created a fact sheet for quick reference on the new requirements, which you can access by clicking here.
The Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative includes several provisions that will take effect at differing times based on the mode of travel.
- Air Travel – U.S. citizens will be required to have a valid passport for exiting and reentering the United States starting Jan. 8, 2007, for all air travel.
- Sea and Land Travel – U.S. citizens traveling by sea and land within the Western Hemisphere will be required to have a valid U.S. passport by June 1, 2009. This deadline was originally Jan. 1, 2008.
Despite these changes, NTA is encouraging anyone planning to travel outside of the United States to go ahead and obtain a passport. Students under the age of 18 do not have to have a passport or other citizenship documents as long as they have parental consent and adult supervision.
Registration Nearing an End for the Georgia Coast Trip
Time is running out for tour operators to register for the final Product Development Trip of the year to the Georgia Coast. Operators can enjoy the splendor of the holiday season in Savannah and the Georgia Low Country that surrounds this beautiful, historic city.
The cost of the Product Development Trip is $100 and the registration deadline is Nov. 14. Interested tour operators can see the full itinerary and register for the trip by clicking here. Questions about this trip can be directed to NTA Vice President of Marketing Lisa Thompson at lisa.thompson@NTA.travel.
View Tourism Cares Auction Items Through Online Catalog
The Tourism Cares online auction catalog is now available for viewing. Go to www.tourismcares.cmarket.com/nta to get a preview of the Live and Silent Auction items donated by NTA members.
You may want to share the link with your friends, relatives and colleagues so that you can bid on their behalf in Salt Lake City. The Silent Auction opens at 8:30 a.m. Friday and closes with a basket sweep of bid slips on Monday evening at 6 p.m. The Live Auction is being held in conjunction with Monday’s Tour Supplier and DMO Appreciation Reception and it kicks off at 4:45 p.m. following the Super Session.
Catch the auction fever and support Tourism Cares, NTA’s official philanthropy.
NTA Family News: Remembering Deborah Natansohn
Deborah Natansohn, president and chief operating officer of Seabourn Cruise Line, died last Tuesday at age 53. She had been hospitalized after suffering a heart attack two days earlier.
Natansohn was appointed president of Seabourn in July 2004 and guided the luxury line to the most successful period in its history. Natansohn came to Seabourn from Cunard Line, which she had joined in November 2000 as senior vice president of sales and marketing. During her time at Cunard, she was responsible for marketing and sales programs throughout the Americas and for the success of the launch of the Queen Mary 2. A well-known travel industry veteran, Natansohn became the first female cruise line president in the United States when she was named president of Orient Lines in 1998.
Donations in her memory can be made to the Deborah L. Natansohn Foundation, care of Saul Natansohn, 44 Russell Road, Wellesley, MA 02482. Condolences should be sent to Seabourn’s headquarters and will be forwarded to the family. Seabourn’s address is 6100 Blue Lagoon Drive, Suite 400, Miami, FL 33126.
Do you wish you were able to take part in NTA’s recent Product Development Trip to New Zealand? Pick up Courier’s November issue to read NTA staffer Lisa Thompson’s detailed account of the trip. An article on what makes a tour operator gay friendly gives you a sneak peak of what you’ll hear in David Paisley’s interactive Convention workshop on how to gain gay market share, and another story in the issue offers secrets to successful interviewing.
Judee Kaplan of Select Travel in Fair Lawn, New Jersey, provides details and delights from her visit to Kent, England, in her endpage essay, and Brian Mullis of Sustainable Travel International addresses tourism’s impact on global warming. Our feature on culinary tourism explores how culinary experiences are working their ways into many member itineraries and the shopping feature spells out what retail marketers are providing for tour operators. This month’s trip planners cover Chicago and America’s Historic East and the Travel Guides offer updates on what’s new in Delaware, Atlantic Canada, New Jersey, New York and Quebec.
UPCOMING DEADLINES:
February Issue – Ad Space: Nov. 20; Editorial: Past
Casinos/Gaming; Ecotourism; Atlantic Coast (Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina & Virginia); Continental Europe; Alberta; Manitoba & Saskatchewan; Idaho; Montana; North Dakota; South Dakota; Wyoming.
March Issue: Annual Tour Operator Spring Meet Issue – Ad space: Jan. 3; Editorial: Nov. 1
2007 Tour Operator Spring Meet; Hotels, Resorts & Spas; Toronto & Niagara Region (New York & Canada); Mississippi River Valley (Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi & Tennessee); Arizona; Colorado; New Mexico; Utah.
April Issue – Ad space: Jan. 25; Editorial: Dec. 1
Historic Homes & Gardens; Wine Tours; New York City; Great Lakes Loop (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Ontario & Wisconsin); Arkansas; Mexico; Oklahoma; Texas.
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
Autry National Center – Beverly Garland’s Holiday Inn/Universal City – Boyds Bear Country – Chelsea Premium Outlets – Circle Line Sightseeing Yachts Inc. – Colorado Springs CVB – Foxwoods Resort Casino – John G. Shedd Aquarium – Greater Louisville CVB – Maid of the Mist – Mesa CVB – Norfolk CVB – Ocean City CVB – Philadelphia Museum of Art – Pigeon Forge Department of Tourism – Sears Tower Skydeck – Top of the Rock – Tourism Kelowna – Tourisme Quebec – Walt Disney Theatrical Productions – Yankee Candle Company Inc.
To view the 2007 Editorial Calendar, click here.
There will be no issue of Tuesday next week due to the NTA Annual Convention. The next edition will come out Nov. 14.