All tourists really want is a relaxing holiday
Thrilling adventures, extreme sports, museum and culture center trip filled learning experiences, touring various countries in the search of bands, exhausting shopping sprees or wild night partying vacations, everything seems attractive enough. But the truth is what most travelers want is a relaxing vacation with tidbits of sightseeing and the occasional museum or art gallery stopover.
According to a new Ipsos/Reuters survey of 18,778 consumers in 24 countries, most tourists prefer relaxing vacations, with 35% opting for such getaways, twice as many as those preferring an outdoor trip involving hiking, fishing, boating, sailing or camping, a family vacation with children or a cultural excursion. Women are also bigger fans of such trips of relaxation than men.
“Almost in every country this type of trip was number one,” said Dave Pierzchala, vice president of travel research for Ipsos. Read more…
World Bank: Lack of toilets causes India to lose tourists
Have you ever experienced the urge of going to a toilet when none is in sight? It’s a terrible feeling, we all hate it and the thought of going through an entire trip with too much of that physical distress is a quite a lot to handle for almost anyone. No wonder the World Bank thinks India loses big in the travel field because there are no toilets and no proper sanitation!
The World Bank has actually estimated the entire loss having no toilets is causing India to USD 54 billion every year. Premature deaths, treatment for the sick, wasted time and productivity, as well as tourism revenues that fail to be generated are the main reasons for these high economic losses. Read more…
Disaster tourism blooms in Indonesia after eruption
Tropical beaches, beautiful mountains, spectacular reefs and exotic cultures are what Indonesia is usually offering to the world. However, at the moment, Indonesia is courting tourists interested in viewing its harsher face. Those with a strong interest in natural disasters such as earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions will find their cup of tea here.
Withered vegetation, buried villages, rivers flowing with volcanic ash and stone can be found near the central Javanese city of Yogyakarta, along with refugee camps that are all the tragic consequences of Mount Merapi’s recent eruptions which resulted in over 350 casualties and made nearly 400,000 refugees. Read more…
European Online Travel Market, Two Digit Growth in 2010
The European online travel market shows signs of a mild recovery after dealing with the effects of the worldwide economic downturn and is expected to report a 10% growth for 2010, according to a PhoCusWright preview of their soon-to-be-released report, “PhoCusWright’s European Online Travel Overview Sixth Edition.” After an 11% decline in 2009, the total European travel market is expected to grow 2% over the current year.
“For travelers who may have been hesitant to book online, the recession provided the extra push they needed,” says Carroll Rheem, director, research at PhoCusWright. “Deal seekers turned to the Internet, and online travel agencies in particular, to find affordable options.” Read more…
2000-year-old House of the Gladiators in Pompeii Collapsed
Today is a dark day for European historic tourism as news of the ancient House of Gladiators in the famous city of Pompeii has collapsed on Sunday reaches travelers around the world. Archaeologists, commentators and politicians took strong stands, accusing Italy’s government of neglect and mismanagement and blaming them for their failure to preserve this UNESCO World Heritage site. Some event went further, saying the site should be privatized and removed from state control as Italian authorities seem unable to protect it.
Italian newspaper had a similar message, blaming the government for this immense disaster. According to Reuters, La Stampla newspaper headlined “Pompeii – the collapse of shame.” Read more…
September Marks Increasing Tourist Arrival Trend in Hawaii
As the industrz data for September has been analysed, it seems Hawaii is on an ongoing increasing trend in tourism. The Hawaii Tourism Authority announced an 8.9 percent increase in visitor arrivals in September, compared to the same month of 2009. The good news for the Hawaii travel industry continued as the arrival increase was supported by an 11.5 percent boost in average daily visitor spending, rising total tourist expenditures of September to over 880 million USD, a boost of 22.2 percent.
2010 has been a good year for Hawaii tourism, as the firs nine months brought total visitor expenditures of 8.4 billion USD, 13.7 percent up from 2009. Read more…
Choice Hotels Attracts Travelers with First Hand Tests and Community Involvement
Choice Hotels is putting a lot of effort into reaching existing customers and attracting new ones by taking them on tours of their hotels and accommodating them for one night in one of the chain locations to have them try their services first hand. While trying to prove they are one of the best options to host both business and leisure tourists, Choice Hotel is also trying to show their human side and their involvement in giving back to the communities where they run their hotel business by highlighting their partnership with Rebuilding Together.
The first day of their Customer Education Trip organized late last month in Denver took a group of tourists to visit five Choice Hotels properties – Comfort Inn Downtown, Comfort Suites Denver Tech Center, Comfort Suites Denver South and Quality Suites at Evergreen Parkway. To test chain services and quality, the group that included corporate travel managers, business to business customers and leisure buyers from across the US was invited to spend the night at the Cambria Suites Denver Airport. Read more…
