‘State of the industry’ gives a look into future of tourism

At a recent Western Association of Convention and Visitors Bureau conference, Nan Marchand Beauvois of the U.S. Travel Association gave a snapshot of the national tourism industry. And while there are reasons to be optimistic for growth, there are still some challenges — and opportunities — to the industry, which generated $2 trillion in economic output last year alone.

One of the biggest opportunities for growth involves nothing more than people taking advantage of their vacation time. In the United States, 75 percent of workers don’t use all the vacation time they earn, leaving an average of two days per person on the table. That accounts for more than 300 million unused vacation days nationally. According to one national study, if everyone used their vacation days earned, it would create $100 billion in additional spending and increase demand for hotels by 30 percent. That’s a huge economic impact for local communities.

Another area poised for continued growth is international visitation. Virtually all travel-related research indicates international visitors stay longer in their destination, and spend more money than their U.S. counterparts. But in the past, several big hurdles remained in place for this sector of visitors. Slowly, the U.S. is taking a proactive approach at the national level, and the impact is felt at the local level with increased visitation.

In 2006, the U.S. fell to fourth in international visitation, behind Italy, Spain and China. That’s when the Discover America partnership was formed and the Travel Promotion Act helped establish Brand USA, essentially a national destination marketing organization much like local and state convention and visitors bureaus such as the Mat-Su CVB. The strides taken since then have been immense.

For starters, the visa application process has become much more efficient. One of the biggest problems facing international visitors was the visa application wait times — up to 140 days just to get a response, making travel planning unreliable at best. Since 2006, those wait times are down to less than 10 days.

“We have to evolve and stay current to keep, and grow, the international market share, while still keeping our borders safe,” Beauvois told the conference attendees. “We have to focus on making our international guests feel welcomed and enjoy their visits.”

While Beauvois gave an overview of the national industry, it has local effects. Just as Tip O’Neill famously said that all politics are local, the same thing rings true for the travel industry. A healthy industry at the national level relies on the successes of local destinations, including Alaska.

Travel dollars that pour into a community from a visitor from Florida, Australia or any other place around the world churn in local communities, creating jobs, contributing to local taxes and having an overall positive effect on the destination.

Do your part this year and use the vacation time you earned, and experience a new destination — it can be a few miles down the road or thousands of miles away. The impact will be just as strong.

Casey Ressler (casey@alaskavisit.com) is the marketing and communications manager at the Mat-Su Convention and Visitors Bureau.