Tuesday Newsletter – Feb. 9, 2010
February 9, 2010
Volume 30, Issue 6
Interested in advertising in Tuesday? E-mail Kelley Burchell at kelley.burchell@NTAstaff.com.
TODAY’S ARTICLES
MONTAGE Memo #8: New Business/ Nuevo Negocio
Join Cuban Officials, Colleagues at U.S.-Cuba Travel Summit (March 24-26)
Mark Your Calendar for Convention 2010 (Nov. 13-17)
New Social Media Podcast From MONTAGE Speaker
Hear From a Tourism Cares for America Student Volunteer
Sunny San Diego Welcomes NTA Operators
NTA and CBS Promote Members, Travel and Tourism
NTA’s CTP Program Offers Convenient Professional Development
Reserve Your Space in the Only NTA-endorsed Group Leader Publication
International Visitors Spent More Than 10 Billion in the U.S. in ’09
What’s New in Travel News
MONTAGE Memo #8: New Business/ Nuevo Negocio 
If you are a supplier, destination or tour operator who is looking for a new source of business, MONTAGE is an event you can’t miss.
MONTAGE was created as an international marketplace to introduce NTA’s members to new business, both inbound and outbound. Suppliers and destinations have the opportunity to meet the buyers (international and domestic) who want to develop new business with you and bring you a new source of revenue. Operators, you’re looking for partners you can trust, which is exactly what you will find in Seville. Also, as an expert in product development, you can meet with local buyers in Seville and show them how you can help them while you grow your business. Click here to register now.
To get the most exposure at MONTAGE, take advantage of sponsorship opportunities to receive a variety of benefits including complimentary registration fees and promotions before, during and after the event. Contact NTA Sponsorship Manager Melisa-Beth Rooke at 800.662.8886 (U.S. and Canada) or +1.859.219.3549 to reserve your sponsorship today!
Don’t forget to read what MONTAGE Chair Larry Friedman has to say in tomorrow’s blog. Also, listen to a Travel Talk Radio interview about MONTAGE from your NTA President Lisa Simon, CTP.
No restrictions on attendance. No Boundaries to Selling. That’s MONTAGE. Register today.
Join Cuban Officials, Colleagues at U.S.-Cuba Travel Summit (March 24-26) 
If you want to be first in line to develop business for the Cuban travel market when travel to Cuba is open to U.S. residents, make sure you are in Cancun, Mexico, March 24-26, for the U.S.-Cuba Travel Summit. Because of current U.S. travel restrictions preventing you from going to Cuba yourself, this will be your only chance for private one on one discussions with Cuban officials and travel experts. You will leave with the contacts and information you need to meet consumer desire to travel to Cuba when the travel ban is lifted. For more information or to register, click here.
Sponsor at the U.S.-Cuba Travel Summit and you can have direct access to Cuban travel officials, including a private dinner for sponsors and Cuban officials on the opening night of the Summit. Click here to see what sponsorships are available.
Mark Your Calendar for Convention 2010 (Nov. 13-17) 
Convention ’10 is designed to create new buying and selling opportunities for NTA members. New product ideas bring new tour operators and 100 buyers told us that NTA is the only trade show they attend each year.
Mark your calendar for Convention ’10 in Montréal, Québec, Nov. 13-17 to find:
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diverse suppliers and destinations
- a global network of partners
- qualified buyers
- enhanced ROI
Registration opens on April 6. Click here to see what is already planned for Convention ’10 or to relive the successes of Convention ’09. To sponsor at Convention, call 800.682.8886 ext. 4232 (U.S. and Canada) or +1.859.226.4232.
See you in Montréal!
New Social Media Podcast From MONTAGE Speaker 
In a new podcast, Catherine Heeg continues the conversation on social media from her Convention ’09 seminar. The questions you’ll find answered in her short, informative podcast are:
- Do I need separate Facebook and Twitter accounts for each of the several properties I represent?
- What’s the difference between Friends and Fans on Facebook?
- What can I do next to increase my social media footprint?
- How can I track what others are saying about my company?
You can listen to this podcast from your computer, download it to your laptop or mp3 player to listen at your leisure, listen while commuting or even use it in a staff training session.
Want to learn even more about social media? Catherine is presenting a three-part series on the topic at MONTAGE. Click here to register.
For more information on Catherine Heeg, international speaker and trainer, please go to cmsspeaking.com. Pre-convention podcasts are still available for download.
Hear From a Tourism Cares for America Student Volunteer
An impressive 310 industry professionals and students studying travel, tourism or hospitality, gathered in Gettysburg to restore the historic George Spangler Farm for the 2009 Tourism Cares for America event. Mary Gibson from Niagara University was one of those volunteers. Her experience in Gettysburg was a memorable one, as detailed below.
"When my tourism professor, Dr. Jan van Harssel, mentioned an opportunity to help restore a historic farm in Gettysburg, I jumped at the chance. I was already familiar with the Gettysburg area as my family had vacationed there several times in the past and I enjoy learning about the history of our nation, especially during the Civil War era. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to have fun with colleagues in the travel and tourism industry while helping to preserve one of the most revered pieces of land in the country. That assumption couldn’t have been more correct! Early on April 16, five of my classmates and I packed up and started the eight hour trip to Gettysburg.
When we arrived to the Spangler Farm early on the beautiful morning of April 17, the atmosphere was buzzing with excitement. We met many different tourism professionals from diverse segments of the industry, all of whom truly personified the meaning of "hospitality…" The level of teamwork and camaraderie among all the volunteers was incredible-everyone worked together with smiles on their faces as if we were old friends. Cheers rang out when a large vine was yanked down or when a tree would fall. We were almost sad when it came time to leave the site! It seemed like we had done so much, but we just wanted to keep working on it with such wonderful people…
This was my first experience with Tourism Cares, and it will surely not be my last! The Tourism Cares for America volunteer project in Gettysburg was a truly amazing and gratifying experience as my fellow Niagarans and I helped to preserve a hallowed site for future generations."
Join Tourism Cares and other students like Mary for the 2010 Tourism Cares for America, San Francisco Bay volunteer event on June 4 for an experience you will never forget.
Sunny San Diego Welcomes NTA Operators
The NTA product development season kicks off with a five-day tour of sunny San Diego. Tour operators, join the San Diego CVB for the Experience San Diego Product Development Trip, April 29 – May 3.
The cost, which does not include airfare to San Diego, is US$100 per participant and the trip is limited to one representative per company. The deadline for registration is April 20. Visit NTAonline.com for the itinerary and registration form. Questions can be directed to NTA Director of Membership and Marketing Lisa Thompson.
NTA and CBS Promote Members, Travel and Tourism
Want to add a fun, free activity to your New York City Tours? Clients of NTA members are invited to be on U.S. national television during "The Early Show" on CBS.
Through this exclusive invitation, your groups that travel to New York City can be part of the audience for "The Early Show." As a bonus, the group receives an invitation to see the behind-the-scenes of the studio.
If you are interested in taking advantage of this offer, please complete the audience participation/backstage tour form and then you will be contacted by the CBS audience coordinator. If you are unable to submit the form via e-mail, you may fax it to NTA Vice President of Communications Catherine Prather at +1.859.226.4404. Please send any questions to questions@NTAstaff.com.
NTA’s CTP Program Offers Convenient Professional Development 
As a busy professional, you need a certification program that provides quality and convenience at a cost that won’t break the bank. NTA’s Certified Tour Professional program does all of that by bringing the classroom to you.
With all the content you need posted online, the CTP program allows you to work through the different sections at your own pace and around your busy schedule. The three courses in the tour and packaged travel-focused certification cover management and leadership, sales and marketing as well as financial management.
NTA’s CTP program, designed by a collection of your peers with the help of Temple University’s School of Tourism and Hospitality Management, can make a difference in your career and credibility in the industry. To learn more about obtaining your CTP designation, contact NTA Communications and Marketing Administrative Assistant Andrea Richardson.
Reserve Your Space in the Only NTA-endorsed Group Leader Publication
NTA’s 2010 Edition of the Trip Planner for group leaders (publishing in August 2010) offers a great opportunity to have your product/destination/service in front of 20,000 actively planning group leaders and NTA tour operators.
Suppliers and DMOs are encouraged to promote themselves in the Trip Planner through display advertising. NTA operators rank group leaders as the #1 distribution channel that they would like to continue to grow in the future. Tour operator members have the opportunity to purchase a listing in the Tour Operator Directory portion of the publication, which includes your company’s contact information, 75 words of text and a 4-color logo.
Contact your advertising coordinator at 800.682.8886, ext. 4241 (U.S. and Canada) or +1.859.226.4241 advertising@NTAstaff.com for more information and to reserve your space.
International Visitors Spent More Than 10 Billion in the U.S. in ’09
The U.S. Department of Commerce recently announced that international visitors spent an estimated US$10.2 billion on travel to, and tourism-related activities within, the United States during November 2009. That amounts to only 7 percent less than November 2008. Total international visitor spending is down $19.3 billion, or 15 percent, year to date (January-November).
The spending by Americans abroad totaled US$89.9 billion, down nearly 13 percent ($13.3 billion).
Purchases of travel and tourism-related goods and services by international visitors to the United States totaled US$7.9 billion during November, a decrease of nearly 6 percent in comparison with last year. These goods and services include food, lodging, recreation, gifts, entertainment, local transportation in the United States and other items incidental to foreign travel. Fares received by U.S. carriers (and U.S. vessel operators) from international visitors declined nearly 12 percent to US$2.3 billion for the month, a decrease of US$307 million when compared to November 2008.
To read more from this Office of Travel and Tourism Industries study, click here.
Here’s a look at recent research, statistics and news that may apply to you and your business:
- Canada bookings to the United States are projected to continue to be flat through the first quarter 2010, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce sponsored Canada Travel Trade Barometer. The U.S. Department of Commerce sponsored Mexico Travel Trade Barometer projected that 2010 would start out with a positive number of visitors to the United States from Mexico. To find out about the Travel Barometer Program, click here.
- A Reuters poll of 227 travel experts showed that nearly 40 percent thought business travel booking levels should be similar to 2009, while 28 percent expected them to be better. Also, the poll showed that most tourists traveling internationally book their flights eight weeks or more before their departure. Click here for more.
- Click here for four tips on how to encourage your workplace to engage in green practices.
The links in this article are not monitored by NTA staff. Any bad links, expired pages, etc. are due to the constantly changing nature of Web sites.