Germans still traveling to U.S.

by Tom Johansmeyer on

You’ll find plenty of German tourists at just about any major destination in the world, and this is unlikely to change. As of October/November 2008, German tour operators are reporting a 4 percent to 9 percent increase in tour bookings.

Trips to the United States were up 5 percent for the first 11 months of 2008 compared to the same period in 2007. Seventy-nine percent of the tour operators surveyed believe that bookings to the United States will be up for the last quarter of last year. Major cities are on the agenda, so look out, New York! The Germans are coming!

At the time of the survey, German bookings to the United States were up 10 percent to 15 percent average for the fourth quarter – and that’s over 2007’s 15 percent gains from the fourth quarter of 2006.

And, the trend is expected to continue this year. Sixty-four percent of German tour operators project a 4 percent to 9 percent increase in the first quarter of 2009 (relative to the first quarter of 2009.

Postwar Iraq gets its “first” tourist

by Jeremy Kressmann on

It’s been over five years since the invasion of Iraq, and the country seems to be slowly emerging from the ruins of five years of conflict. Yet despite the progress, most would agree there’s a long way to go before the country is ready to again welcome “Western” tourism. Random violence remains a real threat and many cities do not have the infrastructure of guest hotels, restaurants and transportation upon which any visitor would depend.

None of this seems to have dissuaded Luca Marchio, an Italian tourist whose random visit to the Iraqi city of Falluja was recently chronicled in the New York Times. The Iraqi police discovered Marchio on a public minibus, without a translator or guide, heading for the notoriously dangerous city of Falluja. The police, fearing for the man’s safety, offered Luca a short tour and then shepherded him back towards the “safer” confines of Baghdad.

When asked of his motivation for visiting the country by the Times, Marchio replied, “I want to see and understand the reality because I have never been here before, and I think every country in the world must be seen.”

Although truer words have never been spoken by a traveler, you have to question Marchio’s timing for his visit. The decision to travel to a formerly war-torn nation is a delicate one, a choice dictated as much by the willingness of that country’s citizens to receive visitors as it is by our willingness travel there. Does that make Marchio an outlier? Or is he a symbolic of a coming tourism boom as Iraq returns to relative peace and prosperity? Only the citizens of Iraq can answer this second question – let’s all hope the answer is eventually “yes.”

Does tourism hurt the planet ? Economist, Thomas Friedman’s viewpoints

by Jamie Rhein on

This months issue of National Geographic Traveler has an interview with Thomas Friedman, the New York Times columnist who writes about economic issues and is the author of the book The World is Flat. Keith Bellows, the editor of the magazine asked the questions.

One question dove into the idea of how much does tourism hurt the planet and what should be done about it. In Friedman’s mind, that depends on how tourism is conducted. If people travel without a thought in their heads about the environment, then even the smallest amount of travel can do much damage. But, if people remain cognizant of taking care, then the damage is minimized and travel offers more positives than negatives.

As he points out, and what we’ve learned here at Gadling from our own travels, travel makes places seem relevant so that people are more likely to want to take care of them if they’ve experienced them and the people who live there first hand. Learning about deforestation of the rain forest, for example, has more meaning if you’ve actually been in a rain forest.

Friedman did say that some attractions need more regulations, such as the Pyramids in Egypt. If people can walk all over them willy nilly than they will be destroyed for the rest of us. In my opinion, that’s why organizations like UNESCO’s World Heritage and the National Park Service are so important.

In Friedman’s interview, he also talked about how he and his wife have helped their two daughters grow into global citizens who like to travel. To read the article yourself, click here. Thanks to Intelligent Travel for pointing me to the article.

Baltimore tourism on the upswing

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Fellow Gadlinger Grant Martin was right. Or, at least, he’s found a lot of people who agree with him. Baltimore‘s tourism business is on the rise. The city’s tourism bureau reported that it’s already passed the halfway point to its hotel booking goals for the next fiscal year.

The city has a goal of 475,000 future room nights, and the bureau’s sales team has already taken care of 301,800 of them. That’s 63.5 percent of the target amount with half a year to go. In a brutal economy, and in a city that isn’t usually seen as a top destination. The opening of the new Hilton Convention Center in August, which brings 757 rooms with it, is a big part of the city’s success. Another five hotels are expected to open as well.

So, what does this mean for the city of Baltimore? The 2008 bookings are expected to have an economic impact of $422 million.

Traveling on a budget? Add Baltimore to your agenda.

[Via USA Today]

UPDATE: Tokyo’s tuna auctions open to public again

by Mike Barish on

Back in December, I wrote about how the Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo had closed its famous tuna auctions to the public over concerns that tourists were creating hygiene issues and distracting the workers. Well, after reconsidering the month-long ban, the powers that be at the fish market have decided that tourism is important enough that visitors will be allowed to enter all areas of the fish market, including the early morning tuna auctions.

Security guards will monitor the scene at the auctions to ensure that no one hugs, licks or rides the giant fish. And visitors will receive information sheets when they arrive at Tsukiji outlining the rules of the fish market. It’s a sad commentary on the state of humanity when people need to be explicitly instructed not to lick or ride dead fish, but if that’s what needs to be done to keep this amazing place open to the public then so be it.

Tourists can view the tuna auctions from 5:00AM until 6:15AM and can then wander around the other areas freely throughout the day. And who knows, you may be able to witness the next tuna that sells for $104,000.

As for the morons who can’t help but mount dead fish: We’re on to you, Firestone, and we think you have a problem.