Earlier this year, business travel became the subject of political criticism in the U.S. While the focus of this criticism was travel by companies that had received emergency federal assistance, the effect was to raise questions about business travel overall - at a time when companies were already cutting back on travel in the face of a global economic recession.
The travel industry argued at the time that business travel is an important stimulus of economic activity that should be encouraged, not discouraged. (See my earlier blog on the subject here.) Now, a new report sponsored by the U.S. Travel Association (USTA) and the Destination & Travel Foundation shows just how important business travel is to growth and productivity.
The study, conducted by the global research firm Oxford Economics, determined that every dollar invested in business travel results, on average, in $12.50 of increased revenue and $3.80 of new profits. This is in addition to the $246 billion in spending and 2.3 million jobs generated annually by business travel in the U.S., according to the USTA. Read more »
Jeff Clarke
Jeff Clarke is Chief Executive Officer and President of Travelport and serves as a Director on the Travelport Board of Directors, appointed in May 2006. He also serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Orbitz Worldwide.
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If you’re a regular traveler, you’ve probably returned to a treasured destination only to find that it’s not the same experience you remembered. Maybe it’s more developed, more crowded or has been left to run down. Whatever the reason, it has changed.
The fact is that more people are traveling to more destinations around the world than ever before. While the global economic recession has taken a toll on travel and tourism, the long term growth trends haven’t changed. Tens of millions of new tourists (think China, India, Brazil and Russia) will mean even more pressure on travel destinations - particularly historic sites and those with sensitive ecologies.
Growth is good for the travel and tourism industry, but it comes with a responsibility not only to provide the best travel experiences today but to preserve those experiences for future generations of travelers. That’s why GTA North America/Travel Bound has formed a strategic global partnership with Tourism Cares, a US-based, non-profit organization dedicated to responsible and sustainable tourism.
Tourism Cares is helping preserve the travel experience by “awarding grants to natural, cultural and historic sites around the world; presenting academic and service-focused scholarships to hospitality and tourism students; and organizing volunteer efforts to restore tourism-related sites in need of care and rejuvenation.” It does this by mobilizing the travel and tourism industry and travelers. (You can find out more at www.tourismcares.org.) Read more »
Ken Esterow
President and CEO, GTA
Ken Esterow is President and CEO, Gullivers Travel Associates and has global responsibility for GTA, including Octopus Travel.
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