September 1, 2007
8 Of 10 Americans Know About Blogs; Half Visit Them Regularly
It's getting to the point where everybody knows what a blog is. According to an exclusive Marketing Daily study, eight out of 10 Americans know what "blog" means, and almost half have visited the blogosphere -- some as often as daily.
"The high awareness is surprising given that blogging is an emerging media outlet," says Tom Mularz, senior vice president at Synovate eNation, which conducted the online survey of 1,000 U.S. adults. "The segmentation on awareness and usage, and on people having their own blogs, is driven by age, with obviously younger people more active in blogging." Nearly 90% of 25- to-34-year-olds know what a blog is, compared to 64.5% of those age 65-plus. Similarly, 78.4% of 18- to-24-year-olds report they have visited a blog, compared to just 44.7% of older Americans.
Technorati reports there are 99.9 million blogs out there. With so many to choose from, it's no wonder that 54.4% of blog-readers surf a variety of blogs rather than remain loyal to the same sites, according to the eNation study. And an indication that the blogosphere is not too different from the real atmosphere: Men are more commitment-phobic than women. Nearly 60% of guys surf a variety of blogs, compared to 50% of women.
Almost half of the respondents said they visit blogs to be entertained. What types of entertainment have they given up now that they are reading and writing blogs? Any emerging media poses a threat to traditional media, but at present, 87% of the people who read blogs said they don't spend less time with other media now that they're reading blogs. Of the 13.3% who do say they have ditched old media habits, newspapers, television and magazines have taken the biggest hits.
"Blogging is incremental to other media that people use. This is a good omen," says Mularz. "That newspapers are being somewhat replaced is not surprising. Newspapers are under attack on a variety of fronts as new media outlets open up."
Surge In International Travel Spurs Online Battle
Reuters reports that surging growth in international travel is driving revenue increases at the foreign units of U.S. online travel agencies and has spurred heated competition for a bigger slice of the lucrative and expanding market.
Companies like Orbitz Worldwide and Priceline.com have ramped up efforts to attract customers to their sites overseas, and at least one U.S. travel site, Vayama, has devoted itself entirely to international bookings for travel to and from the United States.
Growth in bookings made outside the United States far outpaces the growth in U.S. domestic bookings. That is partly because more people are traveling and partly because travelers are increasingly comfortable trusting their reservations to websites, said Orbitz Chief Executive Steve Barnhart. "It's a competitive market place in the United States, and it's going to be a very competitive marketplace globally," Barnhart said in an interview on Monday.
Earlier this week Orbitz said it has relaunched ebookers, its online travel company in Europe, with more inventory and user reviews with the goal of attracting more European bookings.
Bookings on European online travel agencies or the European divisions of U.S. agencies are projected to total $62.9 billion in 2007, up from $24.5 billion in 2004, according to travel research company PhoCusWright.
Chi-Chi Meets Quirky
Le Méridien opened a 294-room luxury hotel in Vienna four years ago at a cost of $160 million. But when Le Méridien Senior Vice-President Eva Ziegler strides through the lobby on a recent visit, she is not impressed. "There is no emotional connection in this room," she says with a wave at the high-gloss white walls and sleek modern furniture. "We need an anchor point – a pool or something with water."
Ziegler joined Méridien last year, says BusinessWeek,,following its acquisition by Starwood Hotels & Resorts (HOT ), to spearhead a makeover of Méridien's 120 hotels. With touches such as art exhibits, a custom-blended cedar scent, and original music compositions piped into lobbies and hallways, "we aim to inspire our guests at every turn," she says.
These days, a successful luxury hotel needs a lot more than designer bed linens and a white-gloved doorman to stand out from the crowd. Boutique hotels, featuring imaginative designs and quirky extras such as a goldfish companion for solo travelers, are stealing a march on big innkeepers, whose more traditional properties can look bland by comparison. Over the past three years, boutique hotels' per-room revenue growth in the U.S. has averaged about 11% annually, about one-third above the industry average, says Smith Travel Research of Hendersonville, Tenn.
That helps explain why Méridien and other big chains are scrambling to develop their own distinctive styles. Marriott International (MAR ) recently inked a deal with boutique hotel pioneer Ian Schrager to develop 100 hip new properties. Hyatt and Intercontinental are rolling out boutique-style chains, too. Starwood, which already runs the successful boutique-inspired W chain, is launching others.
"Anybody that has a four-star brand is looking in this direction," says Tom McConnell, senior managing director at Cushman & Wakefield Inc.'s hospitality group.
Travel Guidebook Publishers Add Audio Tours
Now you can get information from Frommer's, the travel guidebook company, in a digital audio format says a recent article in USA Today.
Frommer's has teamed up with Audible.com at www.audible.com/frommers to offer Frommer's Audio Tours – which include neighborhood walking tours ($6.99) and "best of" tours ($9.99) – along with maps, language lessons for MP3 players and other devices.
Destinations covered by the first batch of audio releases include Rome, Paris, London, New York, and San Francisco.
Another travel guidebook company, Rough Guides, offers free, themed city podcasts in association with iToors, such as Literary London, Hemingway in Paris, Mozart in Prague and a Santa Monica design tour.
Wyndham Hotel Group In 2nd Asian Expansion Initiative
The Wyndham Hotel Group said Indian construction firm Gammon India Ltd. signed an agreement to develop 38 Super 8 and Days Inn hotels throughout India by 2011.
According to MarketWatch Gammon will own and manage the hotels, while Wyndham will provide operational, sales, training, quality assurance and architecture and design support.
Boeing Sees A Future With Biofuel
Within five to 10 years, Boeing and Airbus jetliners could be flying the friendly green skies with a blend of fuel made from plants rather than petroleum. "That's a realistic target, barring some obstacle that we don't know about today," said Billy Glover of The Boeing Co.
Glover is managing director of environmental strategy for Boeing Commercial Airplanes, which, like rival Airbus and the entire aviation industry, is feeling the heat these days from the global-warming debate over the carbon footprint created by jetliners says the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
Sometime next year, a Virgin Atlantic 747-400 will be taken out of passenger service and one of its tanks filled with biofuel as part of a series of demonstration test flights by Boeing, the airline and engine maker General Electric to prove the technology.
If you had asked Glover two years ago about using biofuel for passenger jets, he would have shaken his head. "We were pretty skeptical," he said. "This looked like a long shot."
But an industry meeting in Seattle about a year ago helped change Boeing's thinking. The conversion turned out to be timely.
Even though the world's jetliner fleet contributes no more than 2% to 4% of the daily carbon emissions, according to most scientific estimates, the industry has become a huge and inviting target for the green movement, especially in Europe.
Hertz Rolls Out Budget Self-Service Rentals
Hertz has introduced a new budget car rental program, "Simply Wheelz," with online booking, self-service rental machines and rates starting as low as $15 per weekend day (two-day minimum) and $94 a week.
Online reservations are already being accepted at http://www.simplywheelz.com with the first rentals available in Orlando at the airport Sept. 14. says USA Today.
Customers pick up their cars using one-stop self-service rental machines, which scan a bar code from the printed Web reservation and also scans the renter's driver's license. The customer selects a few additional options, such as additional drivers and insurance/waiver options, and then the machine assigns a vehicle and prints the rental agreement. The key is in the waiting car.
Eight types of vehicles, a portable GPS system, child seats, and emergency roadside assistance are also all available.
The transaction is designed to be completed without help from an attendant, but personnel will be on hand to assist.
Sidestep Adds Faretracker Tool For Monitoring Fares
SideStep.com said Tuesday that it launched FareTracker, a systems tool that monitors price changes on fares on particular airline routes and offers fare alerts.
According to Travel Weekly the California-based company, in a statement, said the new technology leverages millions of searches on SideStep to find the lowest fares for flight plans with any combination of flexible flying times within seven days of a specific date.
"Although travel booking has been made easier than ever before via the Internet, consumers on average still spend a great deal of time searching for the best deals," said Brian Stolte, product management director for SideStep.
SideStep, a travel search company, said FareTracker also enables users to access information on historical price fluctuations of specific routes, allowing for strategic purchases at the optimum prices.
The privately held search firm said it now attracts some 6 million consumers per month and provides information on product from 600 airlines, 30,000 car rental locations and 170,000 hotel operations worldwide.
Southwest Using Widgets To Drive Sales
In its signature folksy manner, Southwest Airlines over the last two years has used techie social marketing tools, including a widget and a blog, to inject itself into customers' everyday lives.
As other mainstream marketers are now discovering these marketing tools, says AdWeek, Southwest shares the insider knowledge it has gained from its long-term efforts. Its experience offers first-hand evidence of what works and what doesn't for a discount-oriented target market.
The company introduced its online "Ding" service in February 2005, before most marketers or airline customers ever heard of marketing widgets.
The Ding is a computer application – or widget – which consumers can download on their personal computers. Whenever exclusive discount fares are offered, the program emits the familiar ringing sound of the in-flight seatbelt bell. The discounts last only 6-12 hours and can only be accessed online by clicking on the Ding application. The audio cue is the same sound used with the slogan, "You are free to move about the country," in the company's TV campaign, which ties the service to the airline's brand advertising.
In its first two years, the Ding application was downloaded by about 2 million consumers and generated more than $150 million in ticket sales, said Kevin Krone, vice president of marketing. While Southwest has been steadily increasing its Ding promotions with e-mail, direct mail and TV advertising, the most effective marketing method has been word-of-mouth referrals, said Krone. "The ratio of referred [Ding] installers to total installers is very high, which tells us that people who download the program often convince their friends to do it as well," he said.
He added that the pace of both monthly Ding downloads and ticket sales has steadily increased each quarter. However, the Ding application's effectiveness as a launch pad for the company's Rapid Rewards loyalty program and other services has remained fixed, he said. The company declines to give conversion rates, but industry sources say 45% of Ding users come back to book again, compared to the industry rate of 27% repeat ticket sales.
Hotel Rate Growth Booms Outside North America
Year-over-year hotel rates have increased by double-digit percentages worldwide with the exception of North America, according to the latest data available from Smith Travel Research and The Bench.
The sharpest rate increase has been in the Middle East/Africa region, says BusinessTravel News, which saw the average daily rate increase by 13.6% to $142.67 in July, compared with the same period in 2006. Revenue per available room was up 20.7% for the region. The Middle East and Africa also was the only region with a significant increase in occupancy, which was up 6.2%. That was boosted largely by a 13% increase in occupancy in Northern
Africa.
Europe remains the most expensive region for hotels, with average daily rates for July up 12.5% to $154.52. Year-over-year occupancy was nearly flat, and the region's RevPAR increased by 12.8%.
As a whole, the average daily rate in the Asia/Pacific region increased by 13% to $128.60. Within that region, however, Southeastern Asia and Central and South Asia had the most dramatic rate increases worldwide, up by 30.3% and 35.4%, respectively. Occupancy was nearly flat for the region, and RevPAR was up by 12.8%.
In the Americas, the average daily rate increased by only 5.5% to $104.93. Rates in Central and South America, however, increased by 17.6% and 23.8% respectively. Occupancy was down by 0.4% for the region overall, and RevPAR increased by 5.1%.
In Miami, Mini-Golf Gets Artistic Interpretation
A new attraction in Miami combines mini-golf, a garden and contemporary art.
Back 9 is a new mini-golf course located in the city's Upper East Side Garden. The park is filled with exotic tropical plants and each hole features a work of art. Many of them colorful and whimsical creations that appeal to kids by artists such as Bhakti Baxter, Tao Rey, Daniel Arsham, Hernan Bas, Roberto Behar and Rosario Marquardt, Natalia Benedetti, Jiae Hwang, Martin Oppel, Ali Prosch, Bert Rodriguez, and Cristina Lei Rodriguez.
USA Today says the course is the brainchild of Peter Rozek, an art enthusiast who says his goal was "to create an outdoor venue in the city that was both inexpensive and fun." Families might enjoy taking the kids through the course in the afternoon or early evening after dinner, while young professionals and hipsters may want to wait until after dark for a fun evening out with friends.
Princess Cruises Offering “Sampler Sailings”
Princess Cruises has introduced a series of west coast "sampler" sailings. "Ranging from overnight to as long as a week, these coastal sailings offer travelers a chance to sample Princess' amenity-filled vessels and renowned service while exploring the Pacific coastline of North America," says the company.
For the 2008-09 season, reports TravelMole, passengers can choose from one-, two-, three- and four-night escapes in the spring and fall.
Two special week-long coastal sailings on Sapphire Princess include a Coastal Wine Region cruise with special wine-related tours, programs and special guests, and a British Columbia and West Coast cruise.
Early booking fares for Princess Coastal sailings start at US$99 for an overnight sailing, based on double occupancy.
Embedded Real-Time Info Could Target Travelers
Imagine being able to electronically transmit real-time travel information, maps, directions, coupons and marketing messages from posters hanging on walls in malls, airports, subways, or bus stations to mobile phones. Not a futuristic fantasy, reports Marketing Daily, but a live project recently launched in London.
The Transport of London, Imperial College London, and public transport data company Kizoom are collaborating on the three-month project dubbed Visualization of Real-Time Transport Interchange, or VORTIX. The companies are working with technology known as Near Field Communication developed jointly by NXP Semiconductor and Sony Electronics.
NFC, a short-range wireless standard, enables two devices to communicate within a few centimeters apart. Embedding NFC into 19 posters around Blackfriars Underground station in London lets travelers transmit maps, directions, real-time travel advice and marketing messages from the posters to their mobile phone.
Today, a handful of people will trial the service, but Steffen Steinmeier*, NXP's head of global business development for NFC, says as the project progresses the number will expand to 500 by the end of this year.
Travelers input a destination into their 6131 NFC-enabled Nokia phones being used in the trial, and, when changing modes of transportation at the Blackfriars station, will touch a poster to get updated information sent to their phone. Other phones are compatible with NFC technology, too.
Harry Potter Works Magic On Tourism
Films and TV programmes like Harry Potter, The Da Vinci Code and Pride and Prejudice are boosting tourism in Britain by showing some of the country's great locations Sky News has reported.
A report commissioned by film and tourism organisations revealed that Monarch of the Glen and Balamory - both filmed in Scotland - have also helped increase visitor numbers. And the most popular locations for fans to target are stately homes, historic and religious buildings and rural or village landscapes, the report said.
Films enjoying a cult following, such as Trainspotting and Monty Python and the Holy Grail, even have the power to ensure buoyant tourist figures for years. John Woodward, chief executive of the UK Film Council, cited "countless examples of visitors flocking to locations they've seen in films or on TV and the effect can last for years".
Alnwick Castle in Northumberland, better known as Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry, saw a 120% rise in visitors following the release of Harry Potter on the big screen. The Potter series alone is estimated to have brought in £9m in tourist revenue to the area.
Lincoln Cathedral saw 26% more visitors, Rosslyn Chapel in Midlothian a 33% increase and Temple Church, London, a five-fold rise following the release of The Da Vinci Code.
Margaret Hodge, minister for film and tourism, said: "It is a terrific benefit that not only are our films successful, but their locations are becoming destinations in their own right as people seek to relive their favourite movie moments."
Jets Become Flying Billboards
“Please return your seat backs and tray tables to their upright and locked position - and start reading the advertisement that is staring you in the face."
O.K., you won't actually hear that last part as the flight attendants prepare an aircraft for landing. But as airlines look for new sources of revenue to offset rising fuel costs, more carriers are turning planes into marketing vehicles, installing advertising in hard-to-miss places.
According to the International Herald Tribune everal American carriers, including US Airways and AirTran, recently started selling ads on napkins or stickers that appear on open tray tables. Over the summer, Ryanair, the European low-fare carrier, has gone further, installing advertising panels on the covers of the overhead luggage compartments and in the backs of closed tray tables.
Ryanair, and the companies behind these advertising systems, say the new spots offer marketers an effective way to reach consumers who have cash to spend and who are increasingly difficult to influence via traditional media like television and newspapers.
InviseoMedia, which has sold the seat-back ads to Ryanair and another European low-fare carrier, Germanwings, says the system provides an average of 40 minutes of "dwell time" during a typical flight. In other words, the only ways for passengers to avoid the ads, which are placed behind tamper-proof plastic shields, is to open the tray or get up and stretch their legs.
When they do that, they are confronted with the ads on the overhead bins, which are being sold by a separate company, Fourth Edition.
Bigger Than Las Vegas? That’s Macao’s Bet
A typically plush hallway in the Venetian Macao. Last year Macao surged ahead of Las Vegas in total money gambled.
The $2.4 billion Venetian Macao Resort, scheduled to open here Tuesday, will give Sin City more than a run for its money. The Venetian has more floor space than four Empire State Buildings. The hotel’s slot machines, baccarat tables and other games of chance sprawl across a casino more than three times the size of the largest casino in Las Vegas. The 15,000-seat sports arena nearly rivals Madison Square Garden, the convention center has a 6,000-seat banquet hall and the luxury shopping mall has three indoor canals with singing gondoliers; the Venetian in Las Vegas has just one.
But what is most surprising about the 3,000-suite project is that it is merely the first of 14 interconnected hotels being built here by the Las Vegas Sands Corporation. When completed, the complex will include a St. Regis, a Shangri-la, a Raffles, a Conrad, an Intercontinental and a Sheraton, with their own casinos, bars and restaurants. And the project, which will cost $10 billion to $12 billion, is just the largest of a series of giant gambling complexes being constructed here in Macao, on the southwestern lip of the mouth of the Pearl River.
China has already surpassed the United States in the manufacture of everything from steel and cement to DVD players and microwave ovens. Now, China is on its way to establishing itself as the global leader in a service industry: gambling.
San Fran Seeing Biggest Convention Boom Since Dotcoms
First, there were record-breaking tourism numbers. Now, says TravelMole, San Francisco is looking to have its biggest convention season in at least five years.
"Next year promises to be by far the most robust for business and leisure travel in San Francisco since the dot.com boom," says the San Francisco Business Journal.
Convention business will reach more than 900,000 hotel room nights in 2008, well above the 740,000 room nights booked by conventions this year, according to end-of-fiscal-year projections released by the San Francisco Convention and Visitors Bureau.
At the same time, overall tourism should total about 16 million visitors, 2 million more than the last time convention business reached such heights in 2003.
Survey: More Biz Travelers Staying In Economy Hotels
Many corporations are staying in economy hotels these days, more often to control lodging costs, according to a recent survey of travel managers completed by Runzheimer International says Travel Weekly.
Although high-end hotels continue to be used most often by business travelers, economy hotel use is up 31% from the previous four years, said Runzheimer.
"Since nearly all hotel types offer free, high-speed Internet connection and continental breakfasts as the norm, companies are saving money by putting travelers in lower-cost hotels, without sacrificing service and traveler satisfaction," said Phyllis Schumann, Runzheimer's product manager of travel management services.
High-Flying Women Of The World
It's no longer a niche market says CNN. Nearly half of business travelers are women, and the early lip service of an odd nail file in vanity bags and hotel doors with security peepholes, are no longer enough to give businesses an edge.
Hotels are thinking up innovations that go beyond the standard fare. Reception staff are better trained to be discreet when checking in women guests and avoid saying their room numbers out loud. Spas and fitness centers offer in-room exercise programs and treatments. Business centers provide webcams, which helps working mothers keep in touch with children. In-room facilities are improving, too, to include full-view mirrors and powerful hair-dryers (positioned close together), as well as skirt hangers.
But global market research firm Mintel says that the business environment and its facilities still require a touch of 'feminizing', with accommodation requiring better pampering products, as well as childcare facilities for working mothers on the road.
Their research found that hotels are, on the whole, less inviting to women, who may prefer to return home rather than stay away overnight. It can be more difficult for women to dine and drink alone in a hotel as they can be the target of unwanted attention. While room service is an option, it can be a lonely one. Hotel maitre d's can play a vital role in welcoming single female diners and, for example, placing them together at a table.
Businesswomen may still be underserved by the travel industry but hotel booking agency Expotel says life for the lone female is improving. They launched a Woman Aware campaign a decade ago, flagging up "female friendly" hotels, which fulfill ten key criteria and have been nominated by three independent female travelers. Currently, seven of the ten criteria relate to security, including a well lit, secure car park or valet parking, and permanently lit corridors.
Hotel Rate Study Shows European Rates Rising
Several key European cities are raising hotel prices, including Barcelona, which recorded an 18% increase, and Berlin, which recorded a 17% increase, according to HRG UK's hotel survey for the first half of 2007, released today. In fact, average rates were up in every major European market except for Geneva, where rates dropped 3%.
BusinessTravelNews reports that average daily rates in New York were up 4% to about $361.29, with only Moscow showing a higher average rate of about $473.05, according to the survey. Only one U.S. city, Houston, was among the top 10 cities for rate increases, with an increase of 8%.
Boosted by increased traffic through Mumbai's international airport, the city's average daily rates rose by 30% in the first six months of 2007, compared with the same period last year. For the full year of 2006, Mumbai rates increased by 49% compared with the previous year. That trend will continue in Asia as well as the Middle East, according to HRG.
Travelers Using Facebook
Hatched in a Harvard University dorm room three years ago as a way to keep tabs on fellow students, the social networking site Facebook is becoming a go-to destination for travelers – and not just the type who frequent youth hostels or friends' couches.
Since opening its virtual doors last fall to anyone with an e-mail address, says USA Today, Facebook has graduated to more than 37 million users, and the 25-and-over crowd is its fastest-growing demographic.
A key factor in the site's rapid ascent: development of more than 3,000 free, third-party software applications that let Facebook "friends" trade everything from travel tips, Scrabble scores and books they're reading to hedge fund advice via a fantasy stock exchange.
The most popular of Facebook's 100-odd travel applications, downloaded by more than 2.6 million members since its launch by a freelance Web developer in June, is Where I've Been – a map that highlights places users have been to, lived in and hope to visit. The interactive map includes a smattering of facts for each destination.
This month, rumors swirled – and were swatted down – that Expedia-owned TripAdvisor had paid $3 million for Where I've Been. The buzz surrounding the phantom sale to TripAdvisor, which offers a similar Cities I've Visited map on Facebook, shows the site "is certainly making on impact on travel," says Lorraine Sileo of PhoCusWright, a travel research firm.
Luxury Resort Developments Underway In Mazatlan, Mexico
A half-dozen new developments, including three mega-resorts, are on tap for sites in and around Mazatlan, Mexico. According to Travel Weekly Antonio Ibarra, secretary of tourism for the state of Sinaloa, described the projects as "our biggest buildup [in tourism capacity] in 30 years."
The projects include Diamond Beach, a $1.2 billion development being built along two miles of beach in the Nuevo Mazatlan area north of the city.
On the drawing board south of Mazatlan is Costa Palma, a project "the size of a whole city" being negotiated with investors from New Zealand, Ibarra said.
Also south of Mazatlan, further down the coast near Las Cabras, will be a 6,200-acre resort. The project will be the first development in Sinaloa to be backed by Fonatur, the government bureau responsible for tourism promotion.
Ibarra said these and other projects are expected to spark a doubling of hotel inventory in the Mazatlan area over the next five years. Mazatlan currently has 9,000 rooms.
In addition to the projects outside town, Ibarra said construction was scheduled to start in 2008 on a 1,200-room Riu resort in Mazatlan's El Cerritos area.
Also, he said talks were in progress for a Quinta Real development expected to offer 80 to 100 units in a complex of several buildings in the city's downtown Historic District.
Vermont Trails Become Wheelchair Accessible
Like many Vermonters, Deborah Lisi-Baker enjoys the outdoors. "I've always loved the wilderness and the woods. It's very serene. It clears your head just to get to appreciate all the sounds and colors and shapes." Lisi-Baker, 55, uses a wheelchair, meaning that the trails that lace up and down Vermont's Green Mountains are largely inaccessible to her.
But that may be changing, reports Associated Press, at least in a small way. A new trail that opened earlier this summer here is the state's third wheelchair-accessible trail, and similar efforts are underway elsewhere – including a new online resource that's being created by the National Park Service to list trails, activities and other experiences that are accessible.
The National Park Service program will be launched in September, according to Gerry Gaumer, spokesman for the agency. The objective, he said, "is to put all the information on one website, where people can access not only trails but also other programs that are accessible," such as museum exhibits, camp sites and visitors centers. Gaumer said most national parks have some accessible facilities, but the information has never been compiled in one place before. (The Web link for the program will be made public in September.)
In Vermont, the Baldwin Trail on Mount Independence was dedicated July 1, opening for the public parts of an important Revolutionary War historic site, including archaeological sites and vistas of the Lake Champlain Valley, for the first time. The 1.6-mile trail has gentle grades and packed surfaces, making it accessible for wheelchairs.
Double-Digit Growth Continues For Middle East Hotel Industry
Half year results from the HotelBenchmark™ Survey by Deloitte show the Middle East hotel market continuing to enjoy double-digit growth for the fourth consecutive year – with revPAR increasing 13.7%.
During the first six months of 2007 revPAR increased US$17 fuelled by improvements in average room rates. At US$108 the Middle East continues to boast the highest revPAR of any region - above Asia Pacific and Europe at US$97 and US$100 respectively.
Behind the figures, markets across the region have their own stories to tell and perform in very unique ways. There is a huge disparity in revPAR; with Dubai topping the scales at US$255 compared to Luxor at US$24 – a staggering US$231 difference.
Muscat has seen the strongest growth of any market in the Middle East so far this year with revPAR up 54.8% to US$164. This has been driven predominately by an impressive 44.2% increase in average room rates. Hoteliers continue to benefit from the closure of four key hotels for extensive refurbishment due to scheduled upgrades. Also the cyclone which hit the city in June caused significant infrastructure damage and forced many residents into temporary hotel accommodation.
Riyadh took second place with revPAR increases of 40.3% over the period to reach US$170. Again performance was largely due to growth in average room rates which topped US$200 – among the highest in the region.
New Orleans Launches Web Push For The “Off-The-Beaten Path Leisure Visitor”
The new orleans metropolitan convention and Visitors Bureau will launch an eight-month Internet push to boost tourism to the Crescent City two years after Hurricane Katrina ravaged it.
The effort aims to bring intrepid travelers to the city, says an article in Marketing Daily, while countering perceptions among tourists that it still hasn't rebuilt its infrastructure and is only a place to visit to see the aftermath of the storm rather than the Cajun cultural and gastronomic wonders that made it famous.
The effort, which involves the Lonely Planet travel site, is being handled by the Travel Ad Network, LonelyPlanet.com's sales team, with creative by Trumpet, New Orleans.
Tiffany Starnes, brand strategist on the New Orleans CVB account at Trumpet, says the effort is intended to identify the best potential visitors by targeting the "seeker" profile, with efforts designed to generate buzz, drive traffic to 24Nola.com, and ultimately get offbeat travelers to New Orleans.
"It's the 'off-the-beaten path leisure visitor'," she says, adding that the CVB wanted to expand its purview partly to boost summer travel to the city, when business travel all but disappears and the heat is ... a challenge. "We figured we could reach them online. Convention travelers--the business trade--they get it, and are recommending it to meeting planners and professionals, so we have moved the needle with that audience."
Kingfisher Airlines Plans To Start Flights To U.S.
Bloomberg reports Kingfisher Airlines Ltd., owned by India's biggest brewer, plans to start flights to the U.S. by April, becoming the first private Indian airline after Jet Airways (India) Ltd. to tap the lucrative North American market.
Kingfisher Airlines applied to the U.S. transport department two weeks ago, Chairman Vijay Mallya told reporters in New Delhi today. The airline plans to fly to New York and San Francisco, he said.
Billionaire Mallya, 51, is betting India's government will ease rules for private airlines flying overseas, allowing Kingfisher Airlines to start flights outside India before completing the mandatory five years of flying within the country. Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel proposes to change the rules for airlines flying overseas.
Kingfisher Airlines, named after the UB Group's best- selling beer brand, began flights in May 2005 and operates about 187 flights everyday. Deccan Aviation Ltd., which started operations in August 2003 and is 26% owned by Mallya's UB Group, can start overseas flights earlier.
N.Y. Aims To Improve First Impressions
Concerned with a decline in the number of international travelers visiting the United States, New York City is launching a welcome program meant to polish the city's image and greet tourists before they leave the airport, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced Wednesday.
International visitors have complained about long lines at airports and at times unpleasant interactions with U.S. Customs officials. Under the new program, says MSNBC, travelers will see large welcome signs as they disembark and workers will offer greetings, maps and information after passengers pass through customs.
A larger marketing campaign urges visitors to "Just Ask The Locals," with advice from celebrity residents including Robert DeNiro, Julianne Moore and former professional football player Tiki Barber.
With many prospective visitors having the idea that New Yorkers are rude, the city's tourism office, NYC & Company, is sending teams of "ambassadors" into the streets to pass out cards with tips on how best to navigate the crowded city.
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