By the Numbers
More than 50,000 Americans 50+ Choose Soft Adventure Travel
May 10, 2012
Boston, MA - As the U.S. celebrates Older Americans Month, beginning today, with the theme, “Never Too Old To Play,” Alan E. Lewis, Chairman and CEO of Overseas Adventure Travel, offers the following insights into the soft adventure travel preferences of the 50+ market, including top 10 travel destinations for 2012. “How older Americans travel today is far different from just a generation ago, when coaches would shuttle older travelers through five countries in 10 days to see the sights,” said Lewis. “At OAT, today’s traveler is healthy, physically fit, and off the bus — eager to explore remote destinations, interact with local people, and engage in cultural activities. And close to 3 in 4 of OAT’s 50,000 travelers are female (70%) — up from 2 in 3 (60%) just 10 years ago, with one-third of them traveling solo.” According to the 2010 U.S. Census, there are more than 94 million Americans older than 50. Travel is the number... Read More →
By the Numbers
Boomers Surpass Gen-Y Smartphone Users, Driving Leisure Travel Market
May 1, 2012
While smartphone ownership amongst business users remains static, the rise in use amongst leisure travellers will be sure to make hoteliers sit up and take note. New figures from leading research consultants BDRC Continental reveal that 61% of leisure travellers own smartphones in 2012, up from 36% and 47% in 2010 and 2011 respectively. And it is the Baby Boomers who are leading the pack, with the growth of ownership in that segment now being double that of Generation Y. That is according to the latest findings from the British Hotel Guest Survey, the key source of information for brand performance and customer insight in the hotels sector, which reveals just a 2 point increase in smartphone ownership among business users in 2012, following a surge from 58% to 73% in 2010-11. Delving deeper into travellers’ engagement with hotels via smartphones, BDRC Continental’s dedicated Hotels, Meetings and Hospitality division discovered that searching for hotel contact details and locations via... Read More →
By the Numbers
U.S. Commerce Department Forecasts Growth in International Travel to the United States Through 2016
April 23, 2012
Commerce Also Launches Online Resource for International Visitors and Industry, Following President Obama’s January 2012 Executive Order to Increase Travel to U.S. Los Angeles, CA – U.S. Commerce Secretary John Bryson today announced that the United States can expect 4-5 percent average annual growth in tourism over the next five years, and that 65.4 million foreign travelers are projected to visit the United States in 2012 alone. The Spring 2012 Travel and Tourism Forecast, released semi-annually by the U.S. Commerce Department’s International Trade Administration (ITA), predicts continued strong growth through 2016 following two consecutive visitor volume records set in 2010 and 2011. Bryson announced the Forecast at the U.S. Travel Association’s International Pow Wow annual event in Los Angeles, which draws more than 5,000 people from 70 countries from the travel and tourism industry. “Growth in travel and tourism – which impacts nearly every state and community across America... Read More →
By the Numbers
Travel & Tourism to Account for 100 Million Jobs and US$2 trillion GDP in 2012
March 11, 2012
The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) believes that Travel & Tourism is set for a milestone year in 2012. According to its latest research, the industry’s direct contribution to the global economy should exceed US$2 trillion in GDP and 100 million jobs this year. This contribution to GDP would represent a growth of 2.8%, marginally faster than the global rate of economic growth, predicted to be 2.5%. When the wider economic impacts of the industry are taken into account, Travel & Tourism is forecast by WTTC and its research partner Oxford Economics to contribute some US$6.5 trillion to the global economy and generate 260 million jobs – or 1 in 12 of all jobs in the world. At yesterday morning’s press conference, David Scowsill, President & CEO of WTTC, said that Travel & Tourism’s total economic contribution in 2011, taking account of its direct, indirect and induced impacts, was US$6.3 trillion in GDP, 255 million jobs, US$743 billion in investment and... Read More →
By the Numbers
TripAdvisor Personalized for 100 Million Travelers
March 10, 2012
TripAdvisor is the World’s Largest Social Travel Website Newton, MASS- TripAdvisor®, the world’s largest travel site*, today announced that it is also the world’s largest social travel site. To date, more than 100 million travelers have received a personalized experience, allowing them to engage first with their own Facebook friends’ reviews and opinions when planning a trip on TripAdvisor.(1) With more than 60 million reviews and opinions on the site, TripAdvisor has a wealth of travel planning insights from its community. With the additional insights from friends, impacting over 100 million travelers to date, TripAdvisor has made travel planning easier, more social, and more trusted. A Nielsen study(2) stated that 76% of respondents trust recommendations from people they know the most. “We are excited that 100 million travelers have had a personalized experienced on TripAdvisor, making TripAdvisor the world’s best site to plan a trip using the... Read More →
By the Numbers
Travel & Tourism Forecast to Pass 100m Jobs and $2 trillion GDP in 2012
March 10, 2012
Travel & Tourism is set for a milestone year as the industry’s direct contribution to the global economy is expected to pass $2 trillion in GDP and 100 million jobs. According to research by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), the global Travel & Tourism industry will grow by 2.8% in 2012, marginally faster than the global rate of economic growth, predicted to be 2.5%. This rate of growth means that Travel & Tourism industry is expected to directly contribute $2 trillion to the global economy and sustain some 100.3 million jobs. When the wider economic impacts of the industry are taken into account, Travel & Tourism is forecast to contribute some $6.5 trillion to the global economy and generate 260 million jobs – or 1 in 12 of all jobs on the planet. In 2011, Travel & Tourism’s total economic contribution, taking account of its direct, indirect and induced impacts, was US$6.3 trillion in GDP, 255 million jobs, US$743 billion in investment and US$1.2... Read More →
By the Numbers
Second Only to Google Earth, TripAdvisor is World’s Most Downloaded Travel App
February 27, 2012
TripAdvisor App Downloaded 25 Times a Minute BARCELONA, Spain – TripAdvisor®, the world’s largest travel site*, today announced at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona that it is, after Google Earth, the world’s most downloaded travel app, according to download data for 2011 provided by app research company Distimo. The TripAdvisor app was downloaded an average of 25 times per minute in January 2012 and has now surpassed 15 million total downloads[2] of the TripAdvisor app across all platforms and devices in 20 languages, making TripAdvisor the global go-to resource for mobile travel planning. TripAdvisor has also announced its new HTML5 cross-platform tablet app, now available in the Android marketplace. This free app features a clean and simple interface, making it an easy way for travelers to access the millions of reviews and opinions on TripAdvisor. Travelers can see a list of top ranked hotels, restaurants, attractions and more in a destination and use filters... Read More →
By the Numbers
Sport Tourism Spending Soars to $3.6 Billion Annually in Canada
February 22, 2012
Ottawa, Canada– Spending associated with the Canadian sport tourism industry reached $3.6 billion in 2010, an increase of 8.8% from 2008, based on Statistics Canada (2010) data commissioned by the Canadian Sport Tourism Alliance (CSTA). This compares to a 0.7% decrease in tourism demand for the Canadian tourism industry as a whole over the same period, thus continuing sport tourism’s trend of being one of the fastest growing industry segments within Canada’s tourism industry. The increase in sport tourism spending was driven by domestic sport travelers, while U.S. sport tourism demand remained relatively steady and overseas expenditures declined. The change in both domestic and U.S. sport tourism expenditures exceeded the growth rates of domestic and U.S. tourism in general, while overseas sport tourism spending reflects similar declines in the overseas Canadian tourism industry. Data from the 2010 Statistics Canada’s Travel Survey of Residents of Canada (TSRC) and International... Read More →
By the NumbersMexico Poised to Break Tourism Records in 2012
February 13, 2012
Coming off a Strong 2011, Mexico Sets Ambitious Tourism Targets for the “Year of the Maya” Mexico City – Building on solid tourism numbers in 2011, the Mexico Tourism Board predicts 52 million tourists will visit Mexico in 2012. This follows a strong winter break season with hotels in many of the top tourist destinations – from Cancun to Los Cabos — seeing a significant increase in occupancy compared to last year’s winter break. SECTUR, The Mexican Ministry of Tourism reported that the number of air arrivals in December 2011 was up 13 percent compared to the same period in 2010. More than 1.07 million international travelers visited Mexico in the last month of 2011, a record for December. In addition to an increase of visitors from the US (10.6 percent) and Canada (9.1 percent), Mexico received significant year on year increases from Spain (6 percent), Italy (10.5 percent), Argentina (21.4 percent), and France (12.4 percent). “We envisage that 2012... Read More →
By the Numbers
$1.3 Trillion Hispanic Market Is Focus of Industry Task Force
January 18, 2012
Assistant Editor’s Note: This article, by Nick Verrastro, was originally published on TravelMarketReport, and is re-published here with full permission. Las Vegas, NV – Tapping the $1.3 trillion travel market of U.S. Hispanics is the focus of a joint ASTA-NTA task force announced at NTA’s annual convention here. The task force will research the needs of Hispanic travelers and educate members of both associations about how to serve the growing market effectively. Miami travel agent Olga Ramudo, president of Express Travel, is heading the task force. A member of both ASTA and NTA, Ramudo noted that this is the first time the two industry associations are “jointly getting behind this market.” Photo courtesy of TravelMarketReport.com ‘Enormous potential’ “I’m passionate about serving the Hispanic travel market, which holds enormous potential for the travel industry,” she said. “The numbers are powerful.” Hispanics have higher discretionary spending than... Read More →
