New Commerce Dept. Data Shows Persistent Decline in Overseas Travel to Top U.S. Cities
Problem: Despite the drop in the value of the dollar that puts America "on sale," overseas travel to top U.S. cities remains depressed.
Opportunity: The U.S. Conference of Mayors has called for the creation of a nationally coordinated promotion campaign to welcome more overseas visitors. A study by Oxford Economics shows that promotion, combined with visa and entry reforms already passed by Congress, would yield:
Reform: The Travel Promotion Act of 2007 (S.1661 / H.R. 3232) would establish the nationally coordinated travel promotion campaign U.S. mayors have called for, at no cost to the American taxpayer. The Act requires matching funds from the industry, which would finance more promotion, yielding even higher returns than those cited by Oxford Economics.
For more information on the importance of overseas travel to the United States, visit www.poweroftravel.org/pdf/DAP_blueprint.pdf
Your 50+ Clientele
- 1. Americans who are 50 and older are more likely to have a passport now than 20 years ago, according to AARP magazine, which recently reported on the habits of its readership.
- 2. Moreover, 55 percent of this group consider themselves to be adventurous travelers and 77 percent of these older travelers consider themselves more adventurous than their parents. AARP says these numbers reflect the desire of this age group—which they say tends to be a travel agent's target audience—to have deeper travel experiences, as evidenced by the recent rise in "voluntourism" trips.
- 3. In fact, AARP believes that over the next three to four years, baby boomers will be voluntourism's most lucrative market.
