10 Years After 9/11: Where the Travel Industry is Now

Here is a good article from CNN on the effects 9/11 had on travel:

http://money.cnn.com/2011/09/08/pf/911_travel/index.htm?hpt=tr_c2

For more information on Transportation Security Fees:

http://www.tsa.gov/research/fees/passenger_fee.shtm

And, for some interesting research 9/11's impact on travel to the U.S from overseas, take a look at this from the Department of Homeland Security:

http://www.dhs.gov/xlibrary/assets/statistics/publications/ois_ni_911_wp.pdf

U.S. Travel Association Leads Efforts in Push for U.S. Visa Reform

On May 12, 2011, the U.S. Travel Industry- under the leadership of the U.S. Travel Association, the leading lobby group for the travel industry- laid out a plan that consists of increasing industry staffing, reducing visa interview wait times and expanding the Visa Waiver Program to help create American jobs and increase revenue.

According to http://www.smartervisapolicy.org/, the site established by the U.S. Travel Association and dedicated to promoting the plan Ready for Takeoff, which "outlines a comprehensive plan to grow our share of the travel market by 98 million visitors, expand U.S. exports by $390 billion, create 1.3 million new jobs and increase economic output by $859 billion." According to the site, this "all begins by improving our visa process."

The four key components of Ready for Takeoff includes the following essential steps (in no particularly discernable order):

•America must align U.S. State Department resources with market demands;
•America must reduce visa interview wait times to 10 days or fewer;
•The U.S. State Department must improve planning, measurement and transparency; and
•America must expand the Visa Waiver Program.

The U.S. Travel Association's push for many of these provisions and updates to current visa regulations has been joined by efforts from the U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM), the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and even Vice President Joe Biden.

USCM released a statement that echoed support for the above sentiments and captures the essence of the argument for visa reform.

“Bring in a million more tourists and create over 1.3 million jobs by passing visa reform. A burdensome U.S. visa system drives millions of potential travelers to other countries at an enormous cost to our economy. Between 2000 and 2010, the world travel market grew by more than 60 million annual travelers. Yet, in 2010 the U.S. welcomed essentially the same number of travelers as it did in 2000. Legislation has been introduced in the House and Senate to reform the Visa Waiver Program. The Department of Homeland Security is working on a new method of collecting visa overstay data, which is necessary to advance the legislation. Increasing travel to the U.S. could inject over $859 billion into the economy, and create over 1.3 million new American jobs. To increase economic activity and create jobs, the U.S. should prioritize inbound travel through the issuance of a Presidential Directive to recapture the 17 percent of the global long-haul travel market and match Western Europe’s current market share in Brazil, China, and India by 2015. The U.S. must also reform its cumbersome visa entry process; and expand its Visa Waiver Program to potentially qualifying nations as Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Poland, and Taiwan.”

During a recent trip to China, Vice President Biden expressed his awareness of the difficulties undergone by Chinese business people when trying to arange a trip to the United States and of the urgency in resolving such issues. (As if the United States isn't already facing enough hardship in securing overseas business after S&P's gracious credit downgrade last month.)

With President Obama's much anticipated Jobs speech coming tonight, it will be interesting to see if there are any mentions of the difficulties surrounding the U.S. Visa process. Many people cringe when they think of the U.S. expanding visa possibilities to citizens of other countries, but the fact is the United States is not generally seen as a hot-spot for foreign travelers. If the United States is able to generate an increase in overseas visitors and business people, it could provide a much needed boost to the lagging U.S. economy in a too often under-utilized revenue-generating industry.

Homeland Security Secretary Napolitano Discusses Airline Security at Newseum in DC

Politico's Chief White House Correspondent, Mike Allen, sat down with Janet Napolitano, the United States Secretary of Homeland Security, yesterday at the Newseum in Washington, DC to discuss the future of airport security, among other things.

"I think one of the first things you will see over time is the ability to keep your shoes on," said Napolitano at the forum. She added, "one of the last things you will see is the reduction or limitations on liquids" being changed.

She explained that the reasoning behind the tangibility of being able to shuffle through airport security without being forced to remove your oxfords, sandals, loafers, high heels, slippers, sneakers, crocs, or other choice of designated airport footwear is due to "better and better technology." This technological improvement will [hopefully in the near future] eliminate a majority of these now mostly unavoidable inconveniences like removing your pants-securing belt and having to measure out your allocated amounts of liquid body wash, shampoo, lotion, conditioner, shaving cream, etc like a mad scientist before a flight.

Napolitano was sure not to let travelers get their hopes up for frolicking through security lines at airports just yet, as she made certain to include the clause "months and years ahead" when referencing the shoe-removal and made note that technology capable of identifying liquids and determining harmless ones from dangerous ones is still in development, as it is the most difficult obstacle to overcome due to the explosive capabilities of select liquid substances easily hidden inside of a travel size Head and Shoulders shampoo bottle.

Napolitano and Allen also discussed the status of safety for the upcoming 10 year anniversary of September 11th. Napolitano confidently said that there is no reliable intelligence about any planned attacks. She also noted that all federal agencies are being especially vigilant about preparing for any threats on the anniversary to ensure that it is a safe day of remembrance and commemoration.

For a more in-depth look at this discussion-
Link to Politico's Story and Video Clip:
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0911/62705.html

Travel Survey: Business vs. Leisure

A recent survey conducted by Travel Leaders, titled Fall Travel Trends, helps to demonstrate the nuances between the approaches, concerns, and grievances expressed by business and leisure travelers. The survey results were gathered from 443 travel experts- owners, agents, and managers from various Travel Leaders agencies, 170 of which operate primarily in the business travel market- between August 1 and 19 of 2011. While there are certainly many aspects of airport and airline methodology that is cumbersome for even the most seasoned traveler to have to consistently confront, there a few areas in which both the busy business traveler and leisurely pleasure-seeking traveler find to be particularly trying. Here are just a couple of the most intriguing questions and survey responses.

Results were varied, but overall similar among business and leisure travel experts when asked "Which TSA security measure would you most like to eliminate?"

Business Travel Expert Responses:
27.7% Shoe Removal
27.7% 3-1-1, Limiting Liquids on Carry-on Bags
24.7% Extensive Patdown
10.0% Full-body Scanner
5.9% Laptop Removal

Leisure Travel Expert Responses:
32.0% Extensive Patdown
30.4% 3-1-1, Limiting Liquids on Carry-on Bags
23.3% Shoe Removal
6.2% Full-body Scanner
3.9% None, Safety First

Observations of this question's results: the grievances of each group vary based upon the general purpose of the traveler's trip. For example, far more business travel experts expressed a disdain for security measures that impede on airport security speed. 4.4% more business travel experts ranked shoe removal as the most unwanted TSA security measure and 5.9% selected laptop removal as the most unwanted measure compared to a negligible amount of leisure travel experts. Leisure travel experts were interestingly more apt to pick extensive patdowns (a substantial 7.3% more than business) and carry-on liquids limitations as unwanted, but a small percentage, 3.9%, also remarked that there was no security measure too time-consuming or obtrusive, as safety should be the number one concern of air travelers.

Another interesting question posed was "What is the most common action taken by your clients to avoid or limit airline baggage fees?"

An overwhelming proportion of respondents seemed to have the same initial cost-saving reaction, but the make-up of the secondary responses is quite varied.

Business Travel Experts:
51.2% Traveling with Carry-on Baggage Only
26.5% Flying on an Airline where the Traveler has Elite Status
17.1% Flying on an Airline the doesn't Charge Baggage Fees for the First Bag
2.9% Checking Baggage once On-Board the Plane
2.4% Paying with Airline Branded Credit Card

Leisure Travel Experts:
60.9% Traveling with Carry-on Baggage Only
22.2% Flying on an Airline the doesn't Charge Baggage Fees for the First Bag
8.1% Flying on an Airline where the Traveler has Elite Status
6.8% Paying with Airline Branded Credit Card
1.6% Checking Baggage once On-Board the Plane

What I find most interesting about this data is that while the majority of both groups were keen to saving money by only traveling with free carry-on baggage, far more business travel experts (18.4% more) were reliant upon the traveler's elite status with an airline to avoid increasingly costly checked baggage fees. This is strong evidence that frequent business travelers are willing to maintain loyalty to an airline or allied group of carriers due to the cost-saving perks that accompany being a frequent passenger. The leisure travel group made up for this vast percentage by opting for a combination of free carry-on baggage, flying with a carrier that allows one free checked bag, and somewhat curiously, paying with an airline branded credit card (2.83 times more leisure travelers did this than business travelers).

On Today's Menu: The Ice Cream of America!

Americans collectively gorge on 1.5 BILLION gallons of ice cream a year, perhaps contributing to the tipping scale of America, but it certainly does so in a shamelessly delicious way. I am hoping to shed some light on a few particularly delectable- and some unusual, if not boldly inventive- ice creameries around the United States.

Anyone in the Bay area in search of a tasty treat, make your way to one of these locations:

Bi-Rite Creamery in San Francisco, CA- where almost everything in the shop is made from scratch- even the marsh mellows for the Rocky Road and subtle but exotic flavors such as Balsamic Strawberry are ready for ample sampling.

Humphry Slocombe in San Francsico, CA- with old standbys like Peanut Butter Curry and Salt and Pepper... wait.

Ici Ice Cream in Berkeley, CA- features the flavor creations of a former pastry chef in inspired batches of Rose and Candied Cherry creamy goodness. Plus, the waffle-cones are made in-house.

On the opposite shore:

The Bent Spoon in Princeton, NJ- features interesting cream-taste combinations like Lavender Marscapone and Tomato (nicely paired with Basil flavored ice cream!). Don't forget to give the Hot Chocolate ice cream a try, if you're not ultra adventurous.

Woodside Farm Creamery in Hockessin, DE- the farm that this creamery is located at has been in existence for over 200 years (est. 1796). The local cows pump out (not by themselves) exorbitantly cream-a-licious milk for the production of this exemplary frozen treat.

And in-between the oceans:

PumpHouse Creamery in Minneapolis, MN- this shop is ran by Barb Zapzalka and utilizes organic milk and cream from a small Wisconsin dairy farm. The ice cream is made on-site and the menu is frequently updated.

Morelli's in Atlanta, GA- come here for fanciful Italian-themed savory selections like Ricky Ricotta Cheese and Rosemary Olive Oil.

A small sampling of additional shops for your consideration:

Ben Franklin's Tomato in Rehoboth Beach, DE
Scoops in Los Angeles, CA
Ample Hills Creamery in Brooklyn, NY
Scoop DeVille (awesome name) in Philadelphia, PA
The Creole Creamery in New Orleans, LA
Sweet Action Ice Cream in Denver, CO
Bubbie's Ice Cream in Honolulu, HI

AND- for the most adventurous dessert-seeking foodies among us- me not included in this group- who are in search of an ice cream experience unlike (for a reason) any of the others above, make your way to the famous Heladeria Lares in Puerto Rico. Featuring over 1000 flavors ranging from the predictable (and dependable!) chocolate and vanilla, to the creamy concoctions of otherwise tempting tastes like garlic, rice and beans, chicken[!], and shrimp[!!!].

If you have any extraordinary ice-cream shops to add to the list, please do!

THAI Airways Expansion

Two months after being awarded 5th place in the World's Best Airline category at the World Airline Awards in June 2011 (a considerable climb compared to 2010's 9th place ranking), THAI Airways has just announced the launch of a new low-fare airline to take place in July 2012.


Thai Smile Air- a fitting name for the "Land of Smiles" country- will operate out of Suvarnabhumi Airport, Bangkok and will feature a fleet of eleven Airbus 320 aircrafts, each with a seating capacity of 174 passengers. The airline will initially serve secondary route markets within Thailand such as Ubon Ratchathani and Chiang Rai, with the goal of expanding internationally as early as 2013.

This is not the only bit of expanding THAI Airways has on its plate in the near future. A statement by THAI President, Mr. Piyasvasti, made clear that "Thai Smile will not affect THAI's plans to also launch Thai Tiger Airways, a discount carrier in partnership with Singapore's Tiger Airways, which will materialise as soon as possible."

Hotel Occupancy- and Rates!- Rising

A new projection from PricewaterhouseCoopers Hospitality and Leisure Practice predicts that the average daily hotel rate in the United States for the full-year of 2011 will increase by 3.6% as compared to 2010 rates. An additional 5.1% rate increase in 2012 is expected to follow.

Despite this, demand for hotel rooms has been abnormally high in 2011, especially in July, when, according to Smith Travel Research, 105 million room nights were booked- the highest number of room nights ever sold in one month, even with a 3.9% average daily rate increase for that particular month. The only other single month (in any year) that more than 100 million rooms were sold in the U.S. was in July 2010.

It will be interesting to keep an eye on whether the predicted price increases for the average daily hotel rate will have a substantial adverse effect on the increasing occupancy rates, or if travelers will continue to book more hotel rooms regardless of price increases. It would be unfortunate if hotels detracted potential customers with a continuation of inflated rates; however, considering the data above, this scenario does not seem to coincide with the findings of the conducted studies.