News from the National Tour Association: January 2009 Update
If you have any questions about any of the programs detailed in this newsletter or about becoming part of the National Tour Association community, contact NTA Director of Membership Development Chris Horsley at 800.682.8886, ext. 4354 (U.S. and Canada) or 859.226.4354.
ARTICLE HEADLINES
NTA Lowers Dues: Now an Even More Affordable Resource
Economic Summit Recommendations Sent to President Obama
NTA Convention, Pittsburgh Receive Kudos from Travel Pulse Daily
NTA Releases White Papers on Dealing with Economy and Future of Travel
United States Ramps Up Efforts to Welcome International Travelers
NTA Board of Directors Endorses STI's Eco-certification Program
Save the Date for Tourism Cares for Gettysburg
NTA and the World Religious Travel Association will Co-Locate 2009 Events
Partnership Formed Between NTA and DMAI
NTA Lowers Dues: Now an Even More Affordable Resource
The NTA Board recently decided to lower dues as part of the association's efforts to help members get through the troublesome economic times. Tour operators, tour suppliers and DMOs who join NTA this year will benefit from a reduction of nearly 15 percent in the price of NTA dues.
Upon making the announcement, then NTA Chairman and CEO Bob Hoelscher, CTP, said, "We know that times are tough in today's economy. NTA wants to continue to be an affordable resource for our members and an available option to new travel companies looking for assistance in dealing with the challenges of running a business in today's marketplace."
This reduction also is a reflection of the tremendous growth NTA has experienced in 2008. NTA has welcomed more than 150 tour operators this year, as well as more than 200 tour suppliers and DMOs. And NTA continues to get more calls from travel professionals like you who say they are looking to join an association that can offer support during these tough economic times. Contact NTA Director of Membership Development Chris Horsley at 800.682.8886, ext. 4354 (U.S. and Canada) or 859.226.4354 for more information on joining NTA.
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Economic Summit Recommendations Sent to President Obama
As President Barack Obama and his team continue to work on an economic stimulus package, leaders of travel and tourism organizations have reached out to the new administration with recommendations on how travel can contribute by quickly providing new jobs, new income and new tax revenues.
The proposals were sent to Obama's Transition Team last week as a follow up to the December Economic Summit of the Travel and Tourism Sector Leaders, which brought together organizational leaders from 37 entities that represent more than 82,000 businesses and members. NTA leaders participated in the Summit and submitted the recommendations to Obama's team on behalf of the endorsing organizations.
The solutions established by these leaders pertain to the next 6-12 months and focus on seven areas. Summit participants felt that the following three items should be part of the new administration's current stimulus plan:
- Federal grants for travel and tourism development at the regional, state and local levels
- The Travel Promotion Act of 2008 (H.R. 3232, S. 1661)
- Funding for federal lands
The other four items, which also can stimulate the economy, are additional recommendations for short-term administration action:
- Establishing an Executive Office of Travel and Tourism
- Creating more user-friendly visa regulations and procedures for U.S. entry/exit systems
- Passing highway reauthorization, including tourism development projects
- Re-examining travel bans
The results of the meeting demonstrated that leaders of many different parts of the travel community are committed to developing solutions to help stimulate growth for the U.S. economy, as well as for their members and travel and tourism overall. To view the full document that was passed along to President Obama, click here.
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NTA Convention, Pittsburgh Receive Kudos from Travel Pulse Daily
From the appointments and partnering sessions to the educational seminars and entertainment, the 2008 NTA Annual Convention brought many things to delegates over the five days. David Cogswell, a travel trade journalist for Performance Media Group's Travel Pulse Daily, was among the journalists in Pittsburgh for the NTA Convention and posted an article recapping his experience.
The story praises the city of Pittsburgh, highlights the many exciting things that are happening with NTA and gives a tip of the cap to Tourism Cares. Here are a few segments from Cogswell's article:
- "I have heard raves about Pittsburgh from almost everyone I talk to this week. The Iron City clearly has won the heart of NTA delegates."
- "The NTA Convention is a model of efficiency and effectiveness, and the organization is constantly trying out new ideas and closely monitoring its membership for feedback to help it improve."
- "Despite the gloom and doom of the economy, [NTA] is riding a wave of success and prosperity beyond anything in its history. It had a surge of 154 new members this year, bringing the number of tour operators to 700 for the first time ever."
- "NTA also has proved itself to be an industry leader with its government relations team ... [which] knows Washington and how to find its way through the legislative maze and get results."
You can read Cogswell's full article on the NTA Convention by clicking here.
NTA also would like to thank the following travel trade media for attending the 2008 Convention: Group Tour Media's Carol Smith; Matt Poe and Kasie Smith from Packaged Travel Insider; Travel Weekly's Michelle Baran; Jeff Gayduk of Premier Tourism Marketing; Brian Jewel of Group Travel Leader; and Cogswell.
NTA Releases White Papers on Dealing with Economy and Future of Travel
The NTA "No Holds Barred" Think Tank released two new white papers to help members in light of the economic conditions. "Recession-Proof Your Company: Financial Best Practices," was drafted to help travel companies through the recent economic downturn. The paper not only gives 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's other white paper, "The Future of Tourism," looks at the worldwide demographic shifts that have the potential to create new and emerging markets that NTA members aren't currently serving. It then looks at what these shifts and increase in new travelers projected over the next 20 years will do the overall infrastructure of individual companies and travel as a whole.
The Think Tank is a volunteer work group within NTA that is charged with looking at current events and what effect it will have on NTA members. The group also looks into the future by looking 10, 15 and 20 years ahead to see what changes can be made now to better position NTA members for future success. It is that kind of futuristic thinking that has produced some of the most thought-provoking research papers, such as the two it just released, to help NTA members better manage their businesses.
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United States Ramps Up Efforts to Welcome International Travelers
The launch of DiscoverAmerica.com last summer marked the creation of the first official travel portal to promote inbound tourism to the United States. This series of language-specific Web sites include interactive content for all 50 states, the five U.S. territories, dozens of cities and attractions and official entry information from U.S. government sources.
The Web sites are targeted at the five countries that account for 75 percent of all inbound travel to the United States: Canada (English- and French-speaking), Mexico, the United Kingdom, Japan and Germany. It is anticipated that sites for additional markets, such as China, France and South Korea, will be developed.
The U.S. also began welcoming Chinese leisure travelers earlier this year for the first time, and NTA has played a vital role in this process. Through the NTA China Inbound Program, U.S, tour operators can get on the list to work with Chinese travel agents who are allowed to bring groups of Chinese leisure travelers to the United States. NTA's role is to review applications from companies wishing to partner with the agents, then to submit the names of tour operators to the China National Tourism Administration, a body that must approve any company before it is added to the list.
The United States is welcoming travelers from the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia and South Korea, since those countries became part of the U.S. Visa Waiver Program in mid-November. Through the program, citizens from approved countries can to travel to the United States for stays up to 90 days without first obtaining a visa. The addition of these nations to the program should bring thousands of more visitors to the United States annually and further add to the positive impact tourism has on the U.S. economy and job market.
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NTA Board of Directors Endorses STI's Eco-certification Program
The NTA Board of Directors has officially endorsed Sustainable Travel International's Sustainable Tourism Eco-certification Program. Through this strategic agreement, NTA is furthering its core values and goals to embrace sustainable travel and educate its members on best practices.
"NTA's endorsement of STI and our Sustainable Tourism Eco-certification Program is noteworthy as it speaks to the organization's commitment to sustainable tourism and the future of the travel industry," said Brian T. Mullis, president of Sustainable Travel International, who will lead two educational seminars on green travel and sustainable practices at the 2008 NTA Convention.
STEP is the first comprehensive, global sustainable tourism eco-certification program offered by a non-profit organization. STI solicited feedback from more than 500 organizations around the world before designing the program, which helps tourism businesses of all sizes ensure the preservation of destinations and cultures.
You can learn more about the partnership on NTA's Keep It Green Web page.
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Save the Date for Tourism Cares for Gettysburg
Tourism Cares will embark on its 7th Annual Tourism Cares for America project at Spangler Farm in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, from April 16 to 18. 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. Click here to register for the Gettysburg event.
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NTA and the World Religious Travel Association will Co-Locate 2009 Events
NTA and the World Religious Travel Association announced that the organizations will co-locate their annual conventions. While there are still many details to be worked out, it is known that both shows will take place in Reno, Nevada, near NTA's original dates of Nov. 14-18, 2009.
"This was the icing on the cake for us," wrote Michael Neustadt, president of Coach Tours in an e-mail to NTA Headquarters following the announcement. "The WRTA news, along with the NTA China initiative and the 15 percent dues reduction, has hit right where it helps, in the pocketbook. In these uncertain times, Coach Tours has decided to react by looking for new markets [and] two of the most promising for us are inbound tourism from Asia and faith-based tourism. We'd just talked around the office about our disappointment of not being able to send someone to both WRTA and NTA and then this news comes along."
This new aspect of the NTA-WRTA partnership follows the cooperative agreement the two associations signed earlier in the fall. As part of that collaboration, NTA was responsible for managing the logistics of the inaugural World Religious Travel Expo, and the associations agreed to work together to educate both memberships on the value of the $18 billion faith-based market and look at ways to bring all members new business opportunities.
More details on the co-location of the shows will be available in the coming months at NTAonline.com.
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Partnership Formed Between NTA and DMAI
NTA and the Destination Marketing Association International announced a new industry partnership recently during the DMAI Annual Convention in Las Vegas. Under the collaborative agreement, the two associations will work together to create enhanced educational, marketing and business opportunities for their members and have an increased presence at each other's convention.
The agreement enables NTA and DMAI to collaborate in the areas of education and professional development and to develop programs to help DMOs reach the critical leisure travel market segment. The two organizations also will consider the development of best practices on leisure sales and marketing.
As part of the partnership, NTA and DMAI will have a presence at each other's annual conventions and representatives from the two organizations will speak at both events. Additionally, NTA will be designated by DMAI as a DMAI Industry Partner and DMAI will be designated by NTA as an NTA Industry Partner.
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