Study Reveals Countries with Highest Adventure Tourism Potential

A study published by George Washington University, the Adventure Travel Trade Association ATTA and Vital Wave Consulting revealed that Israel, the Slovak Republic and Chile were among the top adventure tourism destinations for 2010.

The Adventure Tourism Development Index ATDI, now in its third year, offers a ranking of countries around the world based on principles of sustainable adventure tourism and is calculated through a combination of expert survey data and quantitative data gathered from international indices.

“When we first developed the technical method for scoring countries in 2008, we didn’t know how it would be received,” said Kristin Lamoureux, visiting assistant professor of tourism and hospitality management. “Three years later, countries are using the Index to argue for sustainable tourism over less favorable types of tourism development.”

The top 10 developed and developing countries are as follows:Developed Countries: Switzerland, Iceland, New Zealand, Canada, Germany, Sweden, Ireland, Norway, Finland and Austria.

Developing Countries: Israel, Slovak Republic, Chile, Estonia, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Jordan, Romania and Latvia.

via Study Reveals that Israel, Slovak Republic, and Chile Are Among Countries with Highest Adventure Tourism Potential | Adventure Travel News.

OMCA/ABA Tour Operator Summit

ABA and the Ontario Motor Coach Association will hold the first ever OMCA/ABA Tour Operator Summit, a two-day event that brings together bus and tour operator members from both associations with suppliers from around the continent, March 30-31 at the Turning Stone Resort & Casino in Verona, NY, near Syracuse.

Participants can attend educational seminars taught by professional speakers who cover a wide range of topics including: border crossing issues, social networking, U.S. and Canadian liability issues, GroupConnect, changing demographics and operator safety.  There will also be an operator-to-operator networking session and a mini-trade show.

 

Travelocity Launches Its New Service, Farewatcher Plus

Expanding on its ongoing promise of being the customer’s champion, Travelocity has launched FareWatcher Plus, a free, personalized service that automatically tracks the best round-trip airfares to selected destinations and sends e-mail alerts to subscribers when prices change. rnrn“Airline prices change by the second, and we understand how difficult it can be to find the trip you want at the price you want,” said Jeffrey Glueck, chief marketing officer Travelocity. “It’s impossible for travelers to dedicate time every day to search for the right price on airfare. With FareWatcher Plus we are making it easier for them to find the trip they want at the price they want. For example, in the Dallas to Boston market this year, we have tracked fare drops of more than $40 on 28 different days – the most we’ve seen in 2007.”rnrnFareWatcher Plus is the next-generation service that features an easy-to-use control panel for setting up fare tracking, email alerts and It also expands the capabilities of Travelocity’s original FareWatcher®. It does this by not only giving travelers the flexibility to simultaneously monitor roundtrip airfares from ten city pairs, but it allows them to search links to low price package deals to their chosen destinations.rnrnThese enhancements add relevance to the traveler’s shopping experience now more than ever as pricing data from Travelocity’s parent company Sabre Holdings shows that in 2007 on average 369,492 domestic fares change daily, an increase of approximately 15 percent year-over-year. A recent example of FareWatcher’s value occurred when fares from Phoenix to San Jose dropped from $255 to $103 in one day. Travelocity customers subscribing to the service jumped on the deal, producing the most bookings from a FareWatcher email alert in 2007. rnrnrnFor travelers who want inspiration and ideas for specific types of vacations, FareWatcher Plus provides an unparalleled search capability that allows subscribers to find low price travel packages by interest. Users can select up to ten themes – family, romance, sun and beach, luxury, adventure, casino, ski, arts and culture, all-inclusive and urban – and FareWatcher Plus recommends the top travel packages for each. As customers explore by theme, they will be given a wide range of editor’s picks in destinations ranging from Orlando, Las Vegas and Hawaii to Costa Rica, Chicago and Williamsburg, Va.rnrnAfter a short sign-up process, subscribers decide which cities to track, for how long and whether they want to be notified of changes to those airfares via e-mail. Some of the more random city pairs FareWatcher Plus currently tracks include Dubuque, Iowa to Louisville, Ky. and Baltimore to Walla Walla, Wash. rnrnFareWatcher Plus is integrated into the subscriber’s Travelocity account so destination information is displayed on their personalized Travelocity homepage. And, unlike similar services offered by competitors, the service does not require any downloads as alerts are sent via e-mail.

Chicago Arts in the Spotlight

Yesterday, Leisure Group Travel attended the annual Spotlight on Chicago, which brings media and tourism professionals together with 91 members of the Chicago arts community at the beautiful Chicago Cultural Center. For those who been in the Chicago Cultural Center, you know how stunning the building is – quotes from classic literature line the marble walls and even the stained glass dome ceilings. All manors of arts projects are held here throughout the year, whether for education or public enjoyment. rnrnEvery year in the fall, this show brings together a broad representation of the city’s best cultural venues, highlighted by a presentation by one of the exhibitors. This year, it was Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre, which performed two Latin group routines. One very refreshing detail – the dancers did not look like they had just jumped off the gymnastics mat to come to the performance. The women had real hips and weren’t four and a half feet tall, and it looked like they were having fun rather than taking themselves too seriously.rnrnThe trade show side of it spanned a wide spectrum, with tiny art galleries in the same rows as gargantuan museums. One annual favorite was the Chicago Tap Theater, whose booth included a floor where the Artistic Director of the company could perform a number for anyone who asked. rnrnFor those who make Chicago an annual trip and for anyone thinking about putting on a cultural tour or series, this show is a veritable one-stop shop for all your theater needs. Contact for more information.

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