Sorry State of US Tourism Promotion Keeps Guests Away

Kent St. John writes a daily travel blog called Be Our Guest. Today the authors of the APR blog agree whole heartedly with his thoughts....

"It irks me badly after I have been to the European Travel Commission’s events and see the tremendous efforts they put into drawing visitors and the US doesn't. Why do we in the US not, it boggles my mind. We here could use some powerful Euros mixed into the economy. For that matter the Canadian Loon is looking better or equal to the US Buck! Still no US Tourism Board is ever even mentioned and you have fifty states on their own. ""

Once again I praise the efforts of the Discover America Partnership and their efforts to open up America to visitors from abroad. The one basic fact that they have concluded is that overseas visitors that have come to the US leave with a far better attitude about this country than those that haven’t visited. I salute these people and their efforts!
Here is a bit from their website:

A study conducted in 2005 by GMI showed that first-hand experience plays a positive role in forming people’s opinions about a new country. People from other countries have far more favorable views about America and its citizens if they have visited this country than those who have never visited the United States.

The reason for these findings is clear: “people-to-people” communication builds understanding in a way that no other form of communication can match. Without doubt, Americans are our country’s most powerful diplomats.

As a result, we believe that finding ways to attract more international visitors to America must be a critical element of the nation’s public diplomacy process.

Reserving Ahead is a Good Idea--Just Ask the Times

Michelle Higgins wrote in last Sunday's NY Times travel section about how to make life easier, when it comes to parking at the airport. She called Tom Lombardi, president of Airport Parking Reservations, and he gave her some tips on how to save money.

"AirportParkingReservations.com allow travelers to search for and reserve a parking spot at so-called off-airport lots by plugging in their departure airport and travel dates.
AirportParkingReservations, based in Madison, Conn., offers reservations for spots near 67 airports, which it plots on a Google map to give users a sense of how far they are from the terminals.

In addition to peace of mind, these online services can save money over airport parking lots. For example, the cheapest lots at Hartsfield in Atlanta cost $9 a day. APR has parking as low as $7 a day. The trade-off, of course, is the distance to the terminal.

Not to be outdone, airports are working on their own improvements to ease parking congestion. Kennedy is planning to build a 1,500-space garage across from the new JetBlue terminal in time for summer travel. Construction for a 5,000-vehicle parking ramp is under way at Minneapolis-St. Paul International, bringing its total to 22,000. Hartsfield regularly updates the status of its parking lots on its Web site, http://www.atlanta-airport.com/. (The day after Christmas, all three economy lots were full, but seven other lots, including daily and airport park-ride shuttle lots were open.)

They've Built Them....But Travelers Have Not Come

Airport Business magazine had a story titled "Small Airports with Big Dreams," that profiled some small airports who are giving the crowded bigger airports a run for their money.

In Philadelphia, for example, you've got options besides PHL. How about Atlantic City, Lehigh Valley, Trenton and Wilmington, all little airports with limited, yet in some cases, viable options for domestic flyers. Still, it's a tough battle to get airlines to even consider adding landing rights to the smaller guys.

"Most airlines will not offer much, or any, service at the satellites as long as US Airways Group Inc. maintains a hub with more than 400 daily flights in Philadelphia. The other big airlines need to be at Philadelphia International to draw on the region's large population and to stay competitive with US Airways.

"The airlines rule," said George Doughty, executive director of Lehigh Valley International Airport, 60 miles north of Center City on the Allentown-Bethlehem border. "They go where they want to go."

Air travelers themselves are part of the problem, reluctant to try alternatives to the wide choice of carriers and destinations available at Philadelphia, the directors added.

"Changing the habits of the consumer is probably the most difficult job we have," said Steve Williams, aviation director for the Delaware River and Bay Authority, which operates New Castle Airport.

The smaller airports regularly send delegations to see airline planning officials, pointing out the disposable income and travel patterns of area residents.

From the airlines' point of view, concentration of service at hubs is far more cost-efficient, especially at a time of record high jet-fuel costs. While the industry was profitable in 2007 for the second year in a row, most big airlines are expected to report fourth-quarter losses due to rising fuel costs."

What We Want at the Airport

Harriet Baskas writes in USA Today about the amenities that travelers wish they could have added to airports. Not surprisingly, free WiFi comes up high on the list. But so far, many of the airports that offer wireless, alas, don't give it away for free. In Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco or Washington DC, you need a credit card. But in Las Vegas, Pittsburgh, Orlando, San Diego, Fort Lauderdale, Denver, Portland and Hartford, the web is free.

The other amenity that has people talking wistfully are lockers. But after 9/11, the FAA ordered airports to shut down all of their lockers. Now, you can use lockers in Minneapolis, Las Vegas, Atlanta and Portland by only after giving a scan of your fingerprint, which seems like a reasonable trade-off to us.

Power outlets were another thing that had travelers talking. Some airports are now offering charging stations, sometimes with a small fee, so people can juice up their ipods, cellphones, cameras and computers in the terminal. Among the other ideas mentioned in Baskas'survey were observation decks, valet parking, and courtyards where travelers could grab a breath of fresh air between flights and walk their pets. Others asked for more smoking areas, lots more play areas for kids, and better seating areas at the gates.

Nashville Airport Offers Live Music While You Wait

In Nashville's airport, more than 90 professional musicians are offering travelers free concerts, in an effort to make the airport waits a little more pleasant.

The Boston Herald reported on Sunday that despite the fact that the audience may be a little antsy, and leave in the middle of a tune, and overhead announcements interrupt harmonies, "it's the best gig in town."

“It’s a lot of fun. You get a lot of different people coming through,” says Bontempi, a singer-songwriter who plays all original material at his monthly two-hour airport shows. “I’ve had people on their cell phones walk by and say ‘Hey, they even have music here - listen’ and they hold up their cell phone.”

Nashville already has one of the busiest airports in the country for live music, but this month it will liven up even more with the opening of Tootsie’s, an offshoot of the honky-tonk where Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson once swapped songs and beers.

According to the trade group Airports Council International, Nashville International and Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas probably have more live music than any other airport in the country.

It's a Tough Winter for Airlines--Hence the Merger Talk

Merger mania is the topic du jour for Airlines, with Delta making noises about a merger with either Northwest Airlines or United. Who can blame them, with terrible winter storms, the resulting flight delays, and the specter of $100 per barrel oil looming over carriers like the devil. Yesterday's Wall St. Journal reported bad news and tough times for all US carriers.

Only Continental and Southwest managed to avoid losses last quarter, the first expects to break even because it has a higher number of lucrative business travelers and more overseas business.

Personally, I think that if Delta has to merge, it would be a terrible thing for them to choose Northwest. Every time I've had to fly this miserable airline, the experience has been bad. No food, not even snacks, are offered on the flight. Movies? No way, in my flights from Bradley to Minneapolis, it was a quiet, film-free ride. United at least makes more of an effort to make passengers comfortable, offering tasty food for sale and playing movies that at least we get a chance to pay to watch.

Whatever the Delta stockholders decide to do, mergers are what we'll be seeing in 2008, as these big businesses try to cope with costs and benefit from being able to reduce their payrolls.

Dallas Valet Parking Comes with Controversy

I met a woman from Dallas who told me that in her neighborhood, every house costs at least $600K.she said hers was so big that she never even went upstairs, preferring to leave it unairconditioned since it costs so much and they never use all of the space.

I thought of this when I read that a new service is being launched at Dallas Fort worth Airport, offering valet parking branded under the airport's own name. I thought, 'who can afford that?' then I realized it is Dallas we're talking about.

The new service is not without controversy, since another company, FreedomParkLP, already offers valet parking at DFW. But the mayor of the city announced today that Parking Concepts, of Irvine CA will begin their own competing valet parking service in late February.

Ken Kundmueller told the Dallas Morning News that under the terms of the deal, Parking Concepts will have to hand over $800,000 in fees for the first year. That means they'd have to bring in 17 times as much money as his company did to break even. In addition, the airport will lose the parking tolls and the 8 percent fees paid by three existing valet companies for those customers who switch to the D/FW-branded service.

But the airport bosses are unfazed. Airport chief executive Jeff Fegan reiterated Thursday that "nothing that we're doing here will move or impact or change the process with which the current operators are performing."

If You'Don't Tell Them What's Going on, They Riot

Aerolineas Argentinas Airlines, which is 95% owned by Spain, is having a tough time down in Buenos Aires. They've got baggage handlers and ticket counter workers out on strike, which left passengers stranded and angry as nobody explained to the masses what was going on.

The headline on ETN Global Travel News said that a riot broke out after several thousand passengers trying to leave the country were unable to find out when they could leave. That's what makes people riot, not the delay, it's the uncertainty.

Nobody from the airline would show their face to tell them what would happen next. Mad passengers broke glasses of the Argentinean air carrier's office, destroyed ticket counters and threw objects at flight personnel. "There's no one from the company, no one is showing their face or telling us when we're going to fly. We're stranded with children and the elderly," a female passenger with a canceled flight to Venezuela told BBC.

Why Everybody Wants to Fix Your Airbus

I always dive into stories that have to do with planes. I like the whole arena, and the terminology that explains it. So naturally, I read the piece in the WSJ last week about new players coming in to the growing market for jet airliner repair and maintenance.

It's big. Really big. The number of parts that today's liners need and that wear out is why Luftansa, Boeing, Airbus and Dubai Aerospace are all building huge new facilities.

"If all the proposed...facilities are built, then there will be a global glut, let alone regional,' says Bharat Malkani, chairman of the Mumbai-based Max Aerospace and Aviation, a maintenance company.

Dubai is charging ahead the hardest, they are creating a 56-square-mile area that will an airport and aviation center. The repair facility will be able to service up to 400 jetliners at once! They can even change the oil on Airbus' biggest plane ever, the A380. Customers don't mind having to fly all the way to Dubai for this great service, either. The jet centers in North America are old, antiquated, and just not up to the tasks and capability of what Dubai will offer soon.

If You Want Tourists to Come, Don't Pee On Them

An incident in which a Fijian soldier urinated on a Japanese woman on a plane has ended up doing "untold damage" to Fiji, the country's main daily says in a strongly worded editorial today. Stuff.co.uk had the story.

"It was commenting after the international carrier Air Pacific published its annual report saying its Fiji-Japan route was performing poorly and was struggling.

The report made no mention of the incident in March last year when a drunk Fiji soldier on a flight from Japan exposed himself and then urinated on a Japanese woman in her seat.

The incident made major headlines in Japan.

In its editorial today the Fiji Times said it was an "appalling incident" that was an urgent reminder to every person in this country. "This unforgivable offense has caused untold damage in Japan a market which Fiji has strived for decades to cultivate," the newspaper said.

"All it takes is one moment of stupidity to paint a black picture of this nation and her people in a lucrative market. The incident has generated widespread, negative publicity at a time when we need it the least."

The newspaper said the whole country had to "share in the shame he has brought upon his uniform and to this country".

"Urinating on a tourist on an international flight is a high-profile incident which gains global notoriety."It is a brief moment which brings unwanted exposure and deprives the economy of millions of dollars in revenue."

The newspaper said every day Fiji citizens "commit dastardly acts which have a direct impact on tourism". This includes people throwing trash out of buses and cars and taxi drivers cheating visitors.

"They charge exorbitant prices, claiming that somehow visitors and locals pay different fares."

At the airport tourists are greeted by guitar strumming men in traditional Fijian garb, singing local melodies and shouting a loud "bula".

"But just a few steps down the arrivals hall are a bunch of usual grumpy immigration officers with the annoying national habit of chewing gum while at work. This is not the welcome to paradise that tourists hope to receive.

"On the list of visitor turn-offs are the shop assistants and sword sellers who rudely hassle tourists in an effort to gain quick sales."

Biometrics Is the Key to Speeding Up Boarding Time

The future vision on air travel was outlined this morning on a website called Hi-Security. The story described a seamless integrated process to get passengers in and onto planes quickly and safely. It's called Simplifying Passenger Travel.

"A passenger, upon arrival, uses a self-service check-in kiosk and presents their e-passport, credit card, or frequent flyer card for identification.

The passenger is then required to verify their identity using a biometric scanning device, face or fingerprint recognition. A boarding token is issued which is used as a boarding pass. A bag tag is also issued which the passenger attaches to their baggage before dropping it at a designated area.

The passenger then proceeds to the restricted area for immigration processing and security screening. At border control, a biometric-based passport system speeds up the process. The security screening will be conducted at the agreed minimum international standards.

The passenger then proceeds to the boarding gate and is required to verify their identity with a biometric recognition system.

Upon arrival at their destination, the passenger reaches the arrival gate and authenticates their identity again using a biometric reader. The passenger's information is sent to border control and security control to facilitate intervention if required. Otherwise, the passenger may collect their baggage and exit the airport.

The process is a vision that will significantly increase passenger convenience and comfort."

Green is Becoming the Favorite Rental Car Color

For travelers who need to rent cars, suddenly, rental companies are seeing green. You can offset your carbon footprint at Enterprise Rent-a-car by purchasing credits at the counter. Rob Lovitt writes in MSNBC this morning about the new options for car renters.

Hertz is planning to take delivery of 2400 hybrid cars this year, putting the number of rentable gas sippers in the country to more than 10,000.

Right now, Enterprise leads the way offering more than 5,000 hybrids people can rent. Avis joins the pack with 2500 of the popular cars available to rent.

"If we could get them we'd buy 10 times more hybrids," said Pat Farrell, Enterprises VP of Corporate responsibility.

It's not just feeling good that makes this a good idea for travelers. At $3.00 a gallon, you can save $30 on gas for a 500 mile trip.

But before you get primed for your next green rental, of course, this is America, so there's an extra cost: it can cost up to $24 more per day, depending on how many cars are available and where you rent.

The First Paying Customers in the A380 Bedroom

From today's Dallas Morning News:

Get a room? Isn't this a room?

The new Singapore Airlines A380 includes a suite with a double bed. But the airline doesn't want you to get the wrong idea. "If couples used our double beds to engage in inappropriate activity, we would politely ask them to desist," said spokesman Stephen Forshaw.

The first paying customers, Australians Tony and Julie Elwood, didn't like the policy. "They seem to have done everything they can to make it romantic, short of bringing round oysters," Ms. Elwood told the Times of London. "I'd say they shouldn't really complain, should they?"