Tuesday Newsletter – Nov. 10, 2009
November 10, 2009
Volume 29, Issue 45
Tuesday’s title sponsor is Ripley’s New York
Interested in advertising in Tuesday? E-mail Kelley Burchell at kelley.burchell@NTAstaff.com.
TODAY’S ARTICLES
Last-minute NTA Convention Tips
UMA and NTA to Co-Locate in 2013
Tourism Cares Presented World Tourism Award
New Carbon Calculator on NTAonline.com
FedEx Expands Services to Include FedEx Office
Announcing Editorial Features in the Trip Planner for Student Travel
Navigating the Destination Pavilion
The Spirit of Woodstock Takes over Reno
Cocktails on Virginia Street
A Look at Convention ’09 Education
What’s New in Travel News
Gain Exposure Worldwide at NTA’s first ever MONTAGE!
Last-minute NTA Convention Tips 
Can you believe it? In just a few days we’ll all be gathered in Reno for Convention ’09. You’ve got your appointment schedule. You’ve got your business cards. What else do you need to remember? Here are a few things that might help:
- When you arrive, remember that you’ll be using the hotel shuttles for transportation to and from the airport. Click here to see shuttle schedules for each of the Convention hotels.
- We still need volunteers! When you arrive in Reno and find some extra time in your schedule, stop by NTA Central and let us pencil you in for a volunteer slot!
- Don’t forget to opt-in to Meetings2Go! Go to GoNTA.mobi on your cell phone or laptop.
- Make sure to check weather.com while you are packing so that you are dressed appropriately for the weather.
See you in Reno!
UMA and NTA to Co-Locate in 2013
NTA and UMA recently announced plans to co-locate the NTA Convention and the UMA Motorcoach Expo in the first quarter of 2013.
NTA and UMA first entered into a strategic partnership in late 2007 resulting in collaborative work at each association’s annual event. Since then, UMA has managed the motorcoach exhibits at NTA’s Convention and NTA has developed the Destinations and Attractions aisle at UMA’s Motorcoach Expo.
Fully integrating the association’s two main business events takes its collaboration to a new level and brings even more value and expanded opportunities for business to NTA and UMA members. The collaboration with UMA brings NTA’s diversity in touch with the more than 1,100 UMA members located across North America, offering more than 850 charter and tour bus operators who provide transportation services in all 50 U.S. states, Canada and Mexico.
The World Religious Travel Association also will continue this cooperative effort with NTA. This will bring three associations together for the inaugural event in 2013.
Tourism Cares Presented World Tourism Award 
Today, in London at the World Travel Market, Tourism Cares Executive Director Bruce Beckham, CTP, received the coveted World Tourism Award. The award, in its 13th year, is being presented by American Express, Corinthia Hotels, the International Herald Tribune and Reed Travel Exhibitions to Tourism Cares for its dedication to sustainable tourism, the preservation of natural and cultural heritage and, in particular, "its extraordinary work to preserve the travel experience for future generations by awarding grants to natural, cultural and historic sites worldwide; awarding scholarships to the future tourism workforce and organizing volunteer projects to help restore tourism-related sites." Tourism Cares is the official philanthropy of NTA.
New Carbon Calculator on NTAonline.com
NTA and Sustainable Travel International have teamed to bring members and their customers a tool to offset their company’s carbon emissions. Use the new Carbon Calculator on NTAonline.com to offset your company’s travels, even the emissions from going to NTA’s Convention ’09!
Mark your calendar for an interactive educational Webinar on Carbon Management and Offsetting presented by Ted Martens, director of outreach & development at STI, on Dec. 3 at 1 p.m. EDT. The Webinar will cover the basics of carbon footprinting, reduction and offsetting as it relates specifically to the travel industry. The Webinar also will teach participants how to utilize NTA’s carbon calculator. Attendees will leave this session with an understanding of the importance of carbon management and how to engage their company and customers in this sustainable business practice. An e-mail will be sent soon with information on how to join the Webinar.
FedEx Expands Services to Include FedEx Office 
Since 2008, FedEx has been a Corporate Partner of NTA, offering members valuable discounts on their shipping needs. FedEx has now added FedEx Office to the cost-saving services available through the NTA Corporate Partner program. FedEx Kinko’s is now FedEx Office. With FedEx Office, members can save on copying, printing, binding, finishing, signs/graphics, and more.
FedEx Office is a leading global provider of document solutions and business services, with more than 1,800 U.S. locations. NTA members can save up to 20 percent on services such as:
- Copying and Printing — Professional-quality design, printing, binding, and finishing
- FedEx OfficeSM Print Online — Upload, print, assemble and ship materials all from the convenience of your desktop
- Direct Mail Services — End-to-end design, printing, finishing and mailing services for almost any size marketing campaign
- Signs and Graphics — End-to-end design and production for customized signs, posters, banners and specialty graphics
To learn more about the discounts available to NTA members and how you can start taking advantage of the program, contact NTA Member Services.
Announcing Editorial Features in the Trip Planner for Student Travel
The Trip Planner for student travel is scheduled to publish in February 2010. It will offer your company a great opportunity to have your product/destination/service in front of 20,000 student travel planners as well as NTA tour operators.
New this year is a DMO-focused section highlighting a number of North American and international destinations and their offerings for the student market. Feature articles will cover student-oriented product in museums, theaters, zoos and aquariums, and destinations, attractions and services that are part of historical trails (Civil War, Civil Rights, Colonial America, Revolutionary War, music heritage, etc.). Restaurants will also be covered.
Nearly 13,000 of these travel planners are band and orchestra directors in middle schools, high schools and selected colleges. More than 5,000 are members of the National Association for Music Educators. Additionally, 5,000 history and science educators of all levels in the United States and Canada will receive this publication. NTA-member readers include more than 700 tour operators, who collectively are moving nearly 12 million people each year. Sixty-two percent of NTA members serve the student market in some capacity, representing 3 million youth travelers served annually.
The deadline has been extended until Nov. 25 to reserve space. Materials will be due by Dec. 1. Tour operators can choose to promote their company directly to this market by purchasing a listing for only US$250 (includes color logo, 75 words of text and contact information). Suppliers and DMOs can take advantage of display advertising opportunities ranging from a 6th page to a full page.
Don’t miss this last chance to reach this key audience. Contact us at 800.682.8886, ext. 4241 or +1.859.226.4241 for more information or to reserve your space.
Navigating the Destination Pavilion 
Now that Convention is a few days away, you might be trying to visualize how you are going to navigate the Destination Pavilion. If you weren’t able to participate in one of our pre-Convention Webinars, you may be wondering, what will the Pavilion look like? How were the appointments scheduled?
To help you understand how you will navigate your appointments, look at the floor layout. As you can see, the regions are designed in a way that will make them easy to shop and move from region to region.
Operator schedules were created by grouping appointments together by region. However, some schedules may have a few appointments that jump from one region to another. This happened because we chose try to schedule as many appointments as possible, even if there wasn’t a way to group them all by region, versus leaving a requested appointment unscheduled.
We can’t wait to see you in Reno. If you have any questions, please contact your Member Services team.
The Spirit of Woodstock Takes over Reno 
As you’re packing your bags for Reno, there are many reasons not to forget your hippest ’60s outfit as NTA Returns to Woodstock on Tuesday night.
One big reason is that the member with the best Woodstock outfit will receive one FREE registration to MONTAGE!
So, let your Woodstock spirit show and you might be heading to Seville, Spain, for NTA’s MONTAGE April 14-17 with zero registration fees. We’ll see you Tuesday, Nov. 17, as our sponsors, The Berkely Group, Port of San Diego’s Big Bay, San Diego’s Waterfront, Bartell Hotels and Handlery Hotels, help us Return to Woodstock.
Peace. Love. NTA!
The Reno Sparks Convention and Visitors Authority invites all NTA attendees to a unique tavern & grill tour of Reno’s downtown and midtown districts from 7-11 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 14. This no-host event is free with an NTA badge. Enjoy food specials and US$1 samples of award-winning locally brewed beer from Brew Brothers, Buckbean, Great Basin, Ruby Mountain and Silver Peak.
A map with instructions for the eight-stop tour will be provided at the two starting locations. If you are staying at the Silver Legacy Resort Casino or the Circus Circus Reno Hotel and Casino, your start location is Brew Brothers at the Eldorado (connected to both the Silver Legacy and Circus Circus). If you are staying at the Atlantis Casino Resort Spa south of downtown, your start location is Foley’s Irish Pub, located across the street from the Atlantis. Complimentary shuttles will circulate to and from the starting points and Amendment 21 Grill & Sports Bar, Chapel Tavern, Clary’s Bar & Grill, Divine, Edge Nightclub at the Peppermill and Silver Peak Grill & Taproom.
For more information, visit the Reno Tahoe host booth #117 on the Convention Mall floor.
A Look at Convention ’09 Education
Make sure you take advantage of the Convention’s great educational seminars and opportunities for peer-to-peer learning, starting with the Tour Operator Crackerbarrel on Saturday morning. Another seminar that is not to be missed is the China Market Update and Best Practices Seminar at 9:30 a.m., also on Saturday.
Other topics to be discussed in educational sessions include social media, health crises (including H1N1), thriving in the current economy and risk management. Strategic partners like TPOC, IGLTA, STI and WRTA also will be sharing about their markets and initiatives within their organizations during seminar times.
Click here for more information.
Here’s a look at recent research, statistics and news that may apply to you and your business:
- Readers of Small Business Trends magazine were asked in September to forward their green ideas. Click here to see the top 100 small business tips.
- Projected 2010 increases in leisure, business and international inbound travel will enable the industry to add nearly 90,000 American jobs. See the projected increases by clicking here.
- See these 10 tips from Small Business Trends magazine to market your business and make more sales before the end of the year.
- Veterans and members of the armed forces are admitted free into any National Park on Veteran’s Day, Wed., Nov. 11. Click here for details.
The links in this article are not continually monitored by NTA staff. Any bad links, expired pages, etc. are due to the constantly changing nature of Web sites.
Gain Exposure Worldwide at NTA’s first ever MONTAGE
Join NTA in Seville, Spain, April 14-17, 2010, for three days of quality buying, selling and partnering on a global scale. All members are invited to head to this beautiful Spanish city for MONTAGE, which will be a great outlet for reaching NTA operators as well as new buyers, both domestic and international. Offering casual business networking, valuable education sessions and a new half-day business workshop, this is one event you can’t afford to miss.
Sponsor at MONTAGE and ensure your company leaves an impression on key buyers in the industry. Click here to learn how your company can attend, exhibit and/or sponsor at NTA’s first ever international event or contact Melisa-Beth Rooke at 800.682.8886, ext. 3549 (U.S. and Canada) or +1.859.219.3549 for more details. Sponsorships are sold on a first-come, first-served basis reserve yours today!