
Tuesday Newsletter – Oct. 28, 2008
October 28, 2008
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Interested in advertising in Tuesday? E-mail Kelley Burchell at kelley.burchell@NTAstaff.com. |
Volume 28, Issue 43
Tuesday Archives
TODAY’S ARTICLES
White Paper on Recession-Proofing Your Company is Available
Appointment Schedules are Out, Time to Volunteer
Transportation Reminders for Pittsburgh
Planning for 2009? Keep Sustainability Top of Mind
Submit Questions for "Ask the Operator" Seminars at Convention
Don’t Forget to Return Your NTA Election Ballots
Germany, UK Bookings to U.S. on the Rise in 2008
British Columbia Product Development Trip a Success
Reach 24,500 Student Travel Planners through Next Trip Planner
Big Tourism Cares Announcement Coming at NTA Convention
Sponsorship Helps Your Message Reach Convention Delegates
November Courier Preview
White Paper on Recession-Proofing Your Company is Available
NTA’s "No Holds Barred" Think Tank has finalized a new white paper, "Recession-Proof Your Company: Financial Best Practices," to help you through the recent economic downturn. The paper will not only give you tips on ways to help ensure your company can weather an economic storm, but also details programs that NTA has in place to help you be better prepared.
The Think Tank also is finalizing another white paper, "The Future of Tourism," which should be ready soon. Details regarding its release will appear in an upcoming issue of Tuesday.
top of pageAppointment Schedules are Out, Time to Volunteer
You have your appointment schedules, so now is the time to volunteer to help at the upcoming NTA Convention, Nov. 15-19. There are a number of areas where you can lend your time and expertise to help make the Convention experience memorable, ranging from serving as a Tour & Travel Exchange Concierge to being a registration assistant, a first-timer buddy or a seminar monitor.
Volunteers who arrive in Pittsburgh by Friday, Nov. 14, can take part in a special behind-the-scenes tour that day starting at 3:45 p.m. You’ll get to see how all of this Convention magic happens, get to pick-up your registration materials early and even enjoy a few snacks with your fellow volunteers and the NTA staff.
Click here to see your volunteering options for the 2008 NTA Annual Convention.
top of pageTransportation Reminders for Pittsburgh
NTA wants to make sure you have the best experience possible getting to and from Pittsburgh for this year’s Convention. Since the event kicks off in 17 days, here are a few transportation reminders to help you as you are making your final plans.
- Don’t forget about the discounts being offered by Amtrak, American Airlines and ParkRideFlyUSA.
- If you’re looking for NTA friends to carpool to Pittsburgh with, you can use the NTA Ride Share system to make that happen.
- Finally, if you’re flying to Pittsburgh, please log your arrival and departure information by clicking here. This will help NTA plan shuttle schedules and making your trip as easy as possible.
Detailed information on transportation discounts, the ride share program and the staggered shuttle schedules to/from the airport and between hotels and the Convention Center are available at the Convention Web site.
top of pagePlanning for 2009? Keep Sustainability Top of Mind
(NOTE — This is the first in a series of columns written by Brian Mullis, president of Sustainable Travel International, that will appear in Tuesday. In August, NTA announced its strategic alliance with STI that allows members to get discounts on certain STI services.)
As a former tour operator for more than a decade, I know that fall is a really busy time of year in the travel industry. From finalizing your marketing materials and sending out promotional mailings to closing out the season and planning for the coming year, it seems like there’s little down time even after the peak operating season has passed.
Although you’re busy planning for 2009 and beyond, don’t forget to keep sustainability top of mind. Corporate responsibility can offer you a competitive advantage, so putting more effort into and applying more resources toward sustainability initiatives will enable you to reap enhanced rewards in terms of cost efficiencies, market differentiation and increased employee and customer loyalty.
NTA and Sustainable Travel International want to make sustainability as accessible as possible, so we encourage you to take advantage of the exclusive discounts being offered to NTA members:
We hope to hear from you soon regarding these programs. Or, if you are going to be in Pittsburgh for the NTA Convention, please stop by the STI booth to learn more.
— Brian Mullis, president of Sustainable Travel International
top of pageSubmit Questions for "Ask the Operator" Seminars at Convention
During this year’s Convention, there will be two "Ask the Operator" panel discussion sessions. The seminar for tour suppliers will be held Sunday, Nov. 16, at 9:15 a.m. and the version for DMOs takes place Monday, Nov. 17, at 3:30 p.m.
To help you get more out of those sessions, suppliers and DMOs are encouraged to submit questions in advance. So, if there are questions you’ve always wanted to get an operator’s perspective on, please send them to NTA Vice President of Communications Catherine Prather by Nov. 5.
Also, NTA is seeking advance questions for Animal Planet’s Jeff Corwin, who will be speaking at the Sunday Business Meeting luncheon, which is sponsored by Travel Oregon and Travel Portland. If you have questions for Corwin, please e-mail them to Prather by Nov. 7.
top of pageDon’t Forget to Return Your NTA Election Ballots
The NTA election for board of directors and officer positions is going on now, as ballots were mailed or e-mailed earlier this month. You have two choices regarding voting — you can return that ballot before Convention or wait and cast your vote following your category-specific Talk Times in Pittsburgh during Convention.
To learn more about the nominees for officer positions and the tour operator director, the DMO director and the tour supplier director spots on the 2009 NTA Board, go to the Election Page at NTA Online or check out the September issue of Courier magazine. Also, you can post questions for the candidates on the member forums.
For more information on the election, contact NTA Director of Industry and Government Relations Matt Grayson.
top of pageGermany, UK Bookings to U.S. on the Rise in 2008
According to the latest data from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Travel Trade Barometer, inbound travel from Germany and the UK to the United States in 2008 is expected to exceed 2007 numbers. Although the more recent reports only include final figures for the first two quarters of 2008, the projections from those companies surveyed indicate that bookings will continue to be strong through the end of the year.
For the second quarter, German bookings to the United States increased from 16 to 20 percent and bookings from the UK were up five percent over the same period in 2007. By comparison, German travel to locations other than the United States has increased at a much slower rate this year. The positive exchange rate is consistently cited as being the major driving force in the increase from these European countries.
The projected fourth quarter growth is an encouraging sign, especially with regards to the UK market. Last year, nearly 1.3 million travelers visited the United States, which was a 14 percent increase over 2006 from the UK. The German numbers aren’t quite as high, but should mark a fourth straight year of higher visitation numbers during the timeframe.
For more information on the Department of Commerce’s Travel Barometer Program, click here.
top of pageBritish Columbia Product Development Trip a Success
NTA would like to thank its partners in British Columbia who helped make the recent Product Development Trip to the southwestern section of the province a success. Tourism Vancouver Island and Vancouver Coast & Mountains Tourism Region put together the trip, which took place Oct. 6 to 11.
Participating tour operators headed north of Vancouver to British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast and visited coastal cities along the Strait of Georgia in southeastern Vancouver Island. In addition to learning about the province’s extensive First Nations heritage, the group went boating and kayaking in Desolation Sound, visited some of the area’s arts and crafts attractions and took walking tours around some of the quaint towns and at Milner Gardens and Woodland.
If you are interested in offering a Product Development Trip in 2009, contact NTA Vice President of Marketing Lisa Thompson for more information.
top of pageReach 24,500 Student Travel Planners through Next Trip Planner
NTA has begun work on the second edition of the student travel Trip Planner. You can reach 24,500 student travel planners through the publication, which is NTA’s only officially endorsed magazine for the student market. The NTA Trip Planner will be mailed in February 2009 to a large group of student travel planners, as well as distributed with the February issue of Courier magazine to 1,500 NTA tour operators.
Listings in the publication are available to tour operators for only $250, and suppliers and DMOs can take advantage of display advertising opportunities by booking before Nov. 14. For more information or to receive a copy of last year’s publication, call 800.682.8886, ext, 4241 (U.S. and Canada) or 859.226.4241.
top of pageBig Tourism Cares Announcement Coming at NTA Convention
Tourism Cares and NTA have something exciting brewing for Convention 2008. NTA and its official philanthropy will be making an exciting announcement to tour operators during Saturday’s Tour Operator Dinner in Pittsburgh. At the dinner, you’ll learn more about another way that NTA is showing its support for Tourism Cares’ mission to preserve the travel experience for future generations.
top of pageSponsorship Helps Your Message Reach Convention Delegates
One of the many great components of NTA Convention is the strong lineup of relevant educational seminars that are sure to attract Convention attendees. If you sponsor a seminar, you gain great exposure by not only receiving stage time before the seminar but also the ability to display signage and distribute literature to seminar attendees.
You don’t want to miss out on this great opportunity. Contact NTA Vice President of Sales and Sponsorship Karla DiNardo, at 800.682.8886, ext. 4232 (U.S. and Canada) or 859.226.4232 for more information. Also, don’t forget to check out the 2008 Sponsorship Guide for additional opportunities.
top of pageNovember Courier Preview
The November issue of Courier takes a look at dining, shopping, Chicago and North America’s East Coast. The business section includes a story from Dr. Peter Tarlow on how travel companies can respond to a challenging economy, a piece on NTA’s Tracking/ROI E-mail System, an article from incoming NTA Chairman and CEO Michele Michalewicz, CTP, and a story detailing the launch of NTA’s redesigned Web site.
And speaking of the NTA Web site, did you know that Courier magazine is now available online? To see a digital version of this month’s issue, which is identical to the printed piece, go to the NTA Online homepage and click on the magazine’s cover in the Courier box in the lower right-hand corner.
UPCOMING DEADLINES:
February Issue — Ad Space: Nov. 26; Editorial: Past
Casinos and Gaming; Atlantic Coast (Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia); Africa; Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan; British Columbia; Idaho; Montana; North Dakota; South Dakota; Wyoming.
March Issue — Ad Space: Jan. 5; Editorial: Nov. 5
2009 Tour Operator Spring Meet Preview; Golf Resorts and Destinations; Toronto and Niagara Region (New York and Canada); Lexington and Louisville, Kentucky; Scandinavia; Arizona; Colorado; New Mexico; Utah.
April Issue — Ad Space: Jan. 28; Editorial: Dec. 3
2009 Preview to Convention; Historic Homes and Gardens; New York City; Antebellum South (Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee); France; Arkansas; Mexico; Oklahoma; Texas.
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
Anderson Vacations — The Berkely Group (TPP) — Beverly Garland’s Holiday Inn/Universal City — Blue Man Group — Boyds Bear Country — Chase Paymentech — Colonial Williamsburg Foundation — Empire State Building Observatory — Foxwoods Resort Casino — Holiday Inn PCMR — Intrepid Sea Air Space Museum — John G. Shedd Aquarium — Metropolis at Metrotown — Philadelphia CVB — Philadelphia Museum of Art — Pottruff & Smith Insurance Brokers Inc. — Walt Disney Theatrical Productions — Yankee Candle Company Inc.
Click here for more information on the 2009 Editorial Calendar.
Don’t forget to register for the 2008 NTA Annual Convetion, to be held Nov. 15-19 in Pittsburgh. |