Cuba Travel Restrictions Eased | What Will Montage Be Like? David O’Gorman Gives You a Glimpse
January 18, 2011
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TODAY’S ARTICLES
Cuba Travel Restrictions Eased
What Will Montage Be Like? David O’Gorman’s Video Gives You a Glimpse.
Strrrrretchhhh Your Marketing Dollars
NTA Taking to the Road with Education
Reach the 57 Million Chinese Tourists Expected to Travel Abroad in 2011
Member Survey: Don’t Miss It!
Federal Tourism Program Launches Web Site
Make 2011 the Year You Earn Your CTP!
Tourism Cares Announces Worldwide Grant Recipients
Sponsor at NTA Business Builders: Montage, Contact and Convention
Cruise Industry Riding High
Industry News and Updates
NTA Job Center
Cuba Travel Restrictions Eased
President Obama has opened the door to increased travel from the United States to Cuba. His executive order that broadens travel to Cuba includes religious, academic, cultural and "people-to-people" activities. NTA President Lisa Simon believes it’s an important step toward the association’s end goal: easing all travel restrictions.
"Freedom to travel anywhere is a basic element in our rights as United States citizens," said Simon. "We’re thrilled about President Obama’s latest move, and we anticipate this will spark even greater interest in what is already a huge desire for Americans to go to Cuba."
Until last Friday, travel to Cuba was restricted to U.S. citizens with close relatives in Cuba and to those holding very restricted licenses. "President Obama’s executive order has broadened the scope of these licenses, and our tour operator members are perfectly prepared to work with qualified organizations to run these kinds of tours and satisfy the travelers’ demand that we’ll most certainly see," Simon said.
For years NTA has supported legislation to open Cuba as a means to build business and open a broader cultural exchange. The association has worked with a broad coalition including agricultural, religious, human rights, economic and travel organizations. By hosting events such as the U.S.-Cuba Travel Summit (last March), NTA has worked to educate and prepare the industry for the eventual end of all travel restrictions.
See the NTA news release here.
What Will Montage Be Like? David O’Gorman’s Video Gives You a Glimpse.
Want a little more information on Montage in Aberdeen? Check out this video of Montage Chair David O’Gorman (complete with background music provided by bagpiper). In it, he gives an overview of the meeting, the market potential and a little of what you can expect. It’s fun to watch; here are some highlights:
- At the :33 second mark, David describes the Montage hotel, the quaint city of Aberdeen and the royal wedding.
- At 1:10, he explains why he travels from Ireland each year to attend NTA events.
- At 2:30 mark, he relays some pretty interesting tourism stats about the U.K.
Will you be at the right place, right time this spring? Join David in Aberdeen, Scotland, this April.
Strrrrretchhhh Your Marketing Dollars
Don’t have an unlimited budget set aside for marketing? Try these four quick tips from BusinessInsider.com for maximizing exposure while minimizing costs:
- Be the expert: Gain recognition by writing articles for newspapers, trade publications, blogs and company newsletters.
- Swap names: Share mailing lists with Web sites that attract customers similar to yours.
- Network it: You keep hearing it, but it’s still true: Gaining Facebook and Twitter friends and followers can increase sales.
- Recycle/reuse: Don’t be too quick to replace marketing materials, images and campaigns. Maybe the old ones still work!
For the entire story, click here.
NTA Taking to the Road with Education
NTA is hitting the road in the coming weeks with some great educational sessions:
On Friday, Jan. 21, NTA President Lisa Simon, CTP, will moderate a panel of industry experts at the UMA Expo in Tampa, Florida. Michael Neustadt of Coach Tours, J.P. Dansereau with Gaylord, Bethe Pope with the Mansion at Fontanel, and Audrey Bialas with the Pennsylvania Dutch CVB will join Lisa to discuss trends, predictions and insights on today’s group travel market.
Following that, NTA will be at the Go West Summit in Boise, Idaho, on Monday, Feb. 7, to present Marketing to the Inbound Chinese Traveler. This session will share demographics and psychographics of the Chinese leisure traveler with an audience specializing in inbound travel. In addition, we’ll share details on how companies can utilize our newly opened NTA Visit USA Center in Shanghai as a marketing resource to increase their inbound Chinese market.
If you’re out and about at either of these industry events, please join us for these sessions.
Reach the 57 Million Chinese Tourists Expected to Travel Abroad in 2011
How? Exhibit in the U.S. Pavilion at the China Outbound Travel Tourism Market.
COTTM, held April 13–15 in Beijing, is the only business-to-business show in China dedicated to the China outbound travel and tourism industry. In 2010, COTTM welcomed 230 exhibitors from 55 different countries, as well as several new destinations to the exhibition. It’s a great opportunity to meet more than 3,000 selected Chinese outbound travel buyers in just three days.
There’s a limited number of spaces available, but NTA can get you in the U.S. Pavilion. The deadline to express interest is Friday, March 4. For additional details and pricing, please contact Ken Goode, NTA’s marketing and communications coordinator.
Watch your inbox for a survey on NTA’s Convention from Chairman Cathy Greteman. Your feedback is critical, so thanks for your time in completing the survey by Friday, Jan. 28.
If you have questions about the survey, feel free to e-mail Lisa Thompson, NTA’s director of research and education.
Federal Tourism Program Launches Web Site
The Corporation for Travel Promotion now has a Web site. Established in 2010 as a partnership between the travel industry and the federal government, the organization’s mission is to create a marketing and promotion program that helps the United States compete for more visitors.
Functional but not fully developed, the organization’s Web site is a welcome sight to Steve Richer, NTA’s public affairs advocate.
"NTA was part of a tourism sector team that helped achieve passage of the Travel Promotion Act, which created the Corporation for Travel Promotion," Richer said. "We’re glad to see that the organization is moving forward with its new Web site."
Make 2011 the Year You Earn Your CTP!
Start the new year off right by getting your Certified Tour Professional designation. Not only is the CTP the only certification program in the industry that was developed by tour and travel professionals—and meets the specific needs of those in the packaged travel industry—it’s also by far the most affordable program you’ll find.
NTA’s new CTP pricing is simple: Pay only $150 upon registration. If you graduate within two years of your sign-up date, that’s all you pay. The program was designed to be completed in one year, and it is a study-at-your-own-pace program with all the course materials available online.
Visit NTA online for more details and to sign up. Demonstrate to your industry peers that you’re an experienced, motivated tour and travel professional: Start down the path of earning your CTP today!
Tourism Cares Announces Worldwide Grant Recipients
Tourism Cares is pleased to announce the following group of 2010 Worldwide Grant recipients:
- Conservation Volunteers International Program; Santa Barbara, California (for Chile)
- Falmouth Heritage Renewal Inc.; The Plains, Virginia (for Jamaica)
- Slovak Ornithological Society (SOS) BirdLife Slovakia; Bratislava, Slovakia
- The Gloucester Adventure Inc.; Gloucester, Massachusetts
- Hancock Shaker Village; Pittsfield, Massachusetts
- Norman Rockwell Museum; Stockbridge, Massachusetts
With three of the six grantees representing international projects, Tourism Cares can expand the worldwide reach of its projects, said Bruce Beckham, executive director of Tourism Cares.
"The worthy recipients of the Tourism Cares Worldwide Grants have demonstrated goals that are in line with our organization, and we’re excited that our mission continues to be reached overseas," Beckham said. "Tourism Cares has long been an advocate of conservation and preservation as a means to engage in responsible tourism."
Supporting nonprofits around the world with grant funding is vital to the mission of Tourism Cares. To date, Tourism Cares has awarded funding to 149 organizations (including a dozen national parks) in 42 states and 29 countries. These grants, when combined with matching funds, total more than $2 million.
Sponsor at NTA Business Builders: Montage, Contact and Convention
NTA has an impressive lineup of Business Builders in 2011. Are you making the most of them?
It’s great to attend Montage, Contact and Convention, and sponsoring at any combination of NTA’s Business Builders will present you with even more revenue-enhancing opportunities. According to a recent NTA survey, 77 percent of attending operators in Montréal said sponsors introduced them to potential products/destinations. Plus, sponsorships provide you year-long exposure to the people you want to reach-not to mention great benefits (sponsor booth, promotions, complimentary registrations and more!), making your sponsorship even more worthwhile.
Sponsorships are available for each individual Business Builder as well as comprehensive packages for premium visibility. Don’t miss out. Sponsor at Montage, Contact and/or Convention. For additional details, contact Karla DiNardo at 800.682.8886, ext. 4232, or +1.859.226.4232.
Cruise Line International Association reports its 25 lines and member travel agents are confident that 2011 will be full speed ahead for the industry. Driving enthusiasm is the expected impact of 14 new ships in the CLIA member line fleet, continued diversification of global itineraries, new shipboard experiences and consumers’ perceived value of cruising.
A December survey of CLIA member travel agents found the following:
- 2010 was stronger than 2009.
- 93.6 percent are optimistic about travel sales in 2011 and beyond.
- 86 percent of agents anticipate cruise booking increases in 2011.
- 85 percent expect the 2011 Wave Season (January to March) to surpass 2010.
CLIA expects to report that member lines carried 15 million people in 2010, including 11.1 million North Americans. The forecast for 2011 is 16 million passengers, an increase of 6.6 percent, with 73 percent of guests coming from North America and 27 percent sourced internationally.
- A call for more U.S. airports to switch from TSA to private security firms comes from a member of Congress-the new chair of the House Transportation Committee.
- As mentioned in a story above and expanded here, more than 57 million Chinese are expected to travel abroad in 2011, up 3 million from last year.
- Mark your calendars for fee-free days at 100 national parks that normally charge admission. (And 394 national parks never charge an entrance fee!
Tourism Cares seeks a talented Director of Development to lead the planning and implementation of a development plan that will carry the organization through a period of growth and expansion by rapidly increasing revenue and solidifying sustainability. Reporting to the Executive Director and working closely with the Board of Directors and the Development Committee, the Development Director will build a comprehensive development program encompassing major gifts, special fundraising events, annual fund and corporate/foundation support and will manage a portfolio of key prospects and donors. Qualified candidates will be seasoned fundraising leaders with a minimum of 10 years of progressive experience, a proven track record of raising significant gifts, an ability to motivate by example, experience working with boards and a commitment to Tourism Cares’ mission. Experienced, mission-driven development professionals are encouraged to apply.
Tourism Cares seeks a talented Marketing Director to lead the planning and implementation of a marketing plan that will carry the organization through a period of growth and expansion by enhancing our brand and increasing our base of support. We have a simple and powerful story to tell. Our Board of Directors is committed to expanding our programs, and we need an exceptional Marketing Director to help us achieve our goals, which include increasing international recognition of the brand. As a key member of the Management Team, this position is responsible for developing and implementing a marketing and communications strategy. This position reports to the Executive Director.
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