Tuesday Newsletter – July 29, 2008
July 29, 2008
Tuesday Newsletter July 29, 2008
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Register today to attend the 2008 NTA Annual Convention in Pittsburgh, Nov. 15-19. Whether your business needs are domestic, inbound, outbound or all of the above, you’ll find the partners you need and the business you want at NTA. Click here to learn more and to register. |
| Interested in becoming a Tuesday sponsor? E-mail Karla DiNardo at karla.dinardo@NTAstaff.com. | |
Volume 28, Issue 30
NTA EVENTS
Experience a Taste of Pittsburgh at the Convention Icebreaker
Convention Daily Helps You Reach Delegates
Destination Pavilion Webinar Information Online
Sponsorship Available for the Issues Luncheon
MEMBER BENEFITS
Reach the Inbound China Market with NTA’s U.S. Travel Directory
Save the Date for Tourism Cares for Gettysburg
August Courier Preview
ASSOCIATION NEWS
NTA is a Resource during Hurricane Season
Pass Along Your Best Online Survey Ideas
GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
Yes, We GAN!
INDUSTRY NEWS
AAA Surveys Reveal Impact of Fuel Prices, Summer Hot Spots
NTA EVENTS
Experience a Taste of Pittsburgh at the Convention Icebreaker
The 2008 Convention Icebreaker, sponsored by Visit Pittsburgh, will provide a great way for you to immerse your senses in the flavors of Pittsburgh. The event, which will take place Sunday, Nov. 16, at the Senator John Heinz History Center, features foods from five of Pittsburgh’s most taste-tempting neighborhoods.
Each floor of the Heinz Center will house the pierogies and kielbasa of the city’s Polish Hill area; the breads, cheeses and ethnic delights of the Strip District; or Pittsburgh’s one-of-a-kind Primanti’s sandwiches. In addition to the local food, the Icebreaker also provides a great place for networking.
Register now so you can experience the excitement of the Steel City and the quality business of the NTA Convention from Nov. 15 to 19. Questions about the event should be directed to your Member Services Team at 800.682.8886, ext. 4444 (U.S. and Canada) or 859.226.4444.
Convention Daily Helps You Reach Delegates
The NTA Annual Convention is just months away and that means it’s time to think about how you can promote your company to the thousands of delegates who will be attending NTA’s marquee event.
One way you can maximize your presence at the Convention is by placing an advertisement in the Convention Daily newsletter. This four-color publication, printed each day during Convention, will be available at the Convention Mall and will be hand-delivered to delegates as they arrive at the convention center.
Three- and five-day advertising packages allow you to display up to five different ads throughout the event, and you can use this valuable space to promote your special, a giveaway or to draw attention to your booth. To reach your account executive, call 800.682.8886, ext. 4232 (U.S. and Canada) or 859.226.4232.
Destination Pavilion Webinar Information Online
DMOs and suppliers, if you missed last week’s Destination Pavilion Webinar, you can catch up by downloading the presentation from the session that is posted on the Convention Web site. Greg Eckhart of Travel Portland and Scott Hartcorn with the Shilo Inns Suites Hotels offered some helpful information to destinations and suppliers about how to get the most out of this tool that NTA provides.
If you have any questions about the presentation or want more information about the Destination Pavilion, please e-mail Eckhart or Hartcorn.
Sponsorship Available for the Issues Luncheon
The opportunity to co-sponsor this year’s Issues Luncheon, which will feature entertainment by The Capitol Steps, is now available. For $20,000 you can co-sponsor this extremely popular luncheon and receive gold level sponsor benefits, including:
- Stage time during the luncheon
- Attendance for one at the Tour Operator Dinner, sponsored by Best Western International Inc.
- Free in-room gift delivery
- An insert in the tour operator registration bags
- Guaranteed acceptance in the prescheduled appointment process
- Sponsor listing in the October issue of Courier, the Profile Form Notebook, the Convention Daily newsletter and on NTAonline.com
- Participation in the sponsorship conference call after Convention
- Database of delegate mailing addresses
- Sponsor ribbon with badge
To co-sponsor this year’s Issues Luncheon, contact NTA Vice President of Sales and Sponsorship Karla DiNardo at 800.682.8886, ext. 4232 (U.S. and Canada) or 859.226.4232.
MEMBER BENEFITS
Reach the Inbound China Market with NTA’s U.S. Travel Directory
Want to reach the more than 450 Chinese travel agents approved to do business with the tour operators participating in the NTA China Inbound Program? Would you like to have the more than 90,000 Chinese travelers who are expected to attend the China International Travel Mart in Shanghai this November reading about your destination or attraction?
You can do all of this by placing your display ad or full-page advertorial in NTA’s U.S. Travel Directory. NTA will distribute the publication to the Chinese travel agents who are authorized to bring leisure groups to the United States, promote it to the Chinese travelers attending the trade/consumer show this November and send a copy to the 160 approved NTA tour operators. By 2011, it’s projected that nearly 600,000 Chinese travelers will visit the United States annually. NTA’s U.S. Travel Directory is a cost-effective way to get your product in front of this audience.
Existing advertisers receive discounted rates for the following directory options:
Also, all tour operators who are on the approved operator list will receive a free listing containing contact information only. Listings can be upgraded to include a color logo and 75-word description for USD$750 ($1,000 for new advertisers). The space deadline is Sept. 2 and all prices include translation into Mandarin. Additionally, no price advertising is permitted when marketing to Chinese travelers.
To learn more about NTA’s U.S. Travel Directory click here, or contact your NTA sales representative at 800.682.8886.
Save the Date for Tourism Cares for Gettysburg
In April 2009 Tourism Cares will embark on its 7th Annual Tourism Cares for America project at Spangler Farm in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. This Civil War battleground is one of the most significant sites in U.S. military history.
In addition to producing the largest number of casualties in the Civil War, the Battle of Gettysburg is widely considered the war’s turning point. It also prompted President Abraham Lincoln to deliver his most famous speech, the Gettysburg Address, in an attempt to mend the war-torn nation.
Sitting on 80 acres in rural Pennsylvania, Spangler Farm was used as a field hospital for thousands of wounded soldiers during the battle. The farm also was the sight of the death of Confederate General Lewis Armistead, who led the climactic event of the three-day battle – Pickett’s Charge. Today, the property is one of the last field hospitals kept intact as it was in 1863.
Volunteers will be involved in painting, replacing fencing, demolishing modern structures, clearing brush and much more. Please save the date for Tourism Cares for Gettysburg event, which will take place April 16-18, 2009.
The August issue of Courier provides another good mix of business and destination articles. The business section includes a recap of the Greece Product Development Trip, information on green lodging practices and five steps you can take to enhance your multicultural strategy. Theater product and student and youth packages are the feature story topics, while the destination pieces provide updates on Orlando, the Pacific Northwest, Ontario and America’s upper Midwestern states. Former NTA President Pete Anderson closes the issue with a heartfelt reflection on frontier Kansas forts.
UPCOMING DEADLINES:
November Issue – Ad Space: Aug. 25; Editorial: Past
Dining; Shopping; Green Attractions; Chicago; America’s Historic East (Colonial Virginia, Washington, D.C., Maryland and Pennsylvania); Delaware; New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island; Québec; New Jersey; New York.
December Issue – Ad Space: Sept. 29; Editorial: Aug. 4
2008 Convention Coverage; Artisan and Factory Tours; The Rockies (Alberta, British Columbia, Colorado, Idaho, Montana and Utah); Smoky Mountains (Asheville, Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge); Alabama; Florida; Louisiana; Mississippi.
January Issue – Ad Space: Oct. 29; Editorial: Sept. 4
Sightseeing Cruises; Cruise Ships; Great Lakes Loop (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Ontario and Wisconsin); British Isles and Ireland; Alaska; California; Nevada; Oregon; Washington.
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
Amish Country of Northern Indiana/Elkhart County CVB – Anderson Vacations – Autry National Center – The Berkely Group (TPP) – Beverly Garland’s Holiday Inn/Universal City – Blue Man Group – Boyds Bear Country – Empire State Building Observatory – GE Money – John G. Shedd Aquarium – Maid of the Mist Corporation – Metropolis at Metrotown – MotorCity Casino Hotel – NY SKYRIDE – Salt Lake CVB – Spokane Regional CVB – Walt Disney Theatrical Productions
More information on the 2008 NTA Editorial Calendar and the 2009 Editorial Calendar also is available.
ASSOCIATION NEWS
NTA is a Resource during Hurricane Season
With Hurricane Dolly having forced evacuations along southern Texas last week, it is important for tour operators to have accurate information on how storms are affecting travel. All association members should remember that they can utilize NTA as a resource during hurricane season to help distribute news to their industry colleagues.
Any information from members in the affected areas or from those who are offering relief services should be routed to NTA Public Relations Manager Sara Morton by calling 800.682.8886, ext. 4418 (U.S and Canada) or 859.226.4418. Also, if you are affected by wildfires or floods and have news you want NTA to pass along to the full membership through "This Just In" and Tuesday, please send that information, too.
Pass Along Your Best Online Survey Ideas
The NTA "No Holds Barred" Think Tank discussions this year have focused on helping NTA members, primarily tour operators, with conducting client surveys. Since there are many online survey providers, one of the things members of the Think Tank suggested is for the association to collect ideas and samples of client surveys that tour operator members have done, along with tips for writing a better online survey.
So, if you have a survey instrument that you really like or one that’s been successful in gathering good client feedback for your company, please share it with your NTA friends. Sample surveys should be e-mailed to NTA Vice President of Marketing Lisa Thompson, who will gather the submissions and create a "Best Ideas" collection for members.
GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
Have you signed up to be a part of the Grassroots Action Network? NTA is creating the industry’s premier grassroots network, with a goal of having a chairperson in each state and a chair in each Congressional district in the United States. The network is tasked with ensuring that packaged travel issues are at the forefront of national, state and local debate.
Contact NTA Industry and Government Relations Director Matt Grayson at 800.682.8886, ext. 4250 (U.S. and Canada) or 859.226.4250 for more information, or if your want to sign up.
INDUSTRY NEWS
AAA Surveys Reveal Impact of Fuel Prices, Summer Hot Spots
Two new surveys from the American Automobile Association indicate that increasing fuel prices are having an impact on the way Americans are traveling this summer. Ninety-five percent of AAA’s auto travel managers said gas costs are causing travelers to take steps such as vacationing closer to home, taking fewer trips and reducing the number of vacation days used for travel.
The managers indicated that the top domestic vacation spots were Orlando, Florida; Las Vegas; New York City; Los Angeles; and Washington, D.C., with Albuquerque, New Mexico; San Antonio, Texas; Miami, Florida; the state of New Mexico; and the state of Oregon also being popular options. The top international destinations for U.S. travelers were Rome; London; Cancun, Mexico; Dublin; and Vancouver, British Columbia, with other hot spots including the countries of Croatia, Montenegro, Vietnam and Portugal.
The survey named Las Vegas; Orlando, Florida; Branson, Missouri; Anaheim, California; and San Francisco as summer destinations that provide value for the money. Topping the list of best international bargains were the Caribbean; Punta Cana, Dominican Republic; Costa Rica; South America and European river cruise packages.
| To ensure that you’re doing business with an NTA member, go to the NTA Web site home page and click on either "Tour Operator Search" or "DMO/Tour Supplier Search" at the top of the page. |