US arrivals decline further - economy suffers
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The US Travel Association has expresseddeep concern about newly released Department of Commerce data showing thatoverseas arrivals to the United States plummeted nearly 8% in January. Theassociation called upon Congress to create a nationally coordinated travelpromotion programme to compete for overseas visitors, who spend an average of US$4,400per person per trip and are critical to America’s economic recovery.
“As any business will tell you, tough economic times demand increased investmentin attracting customers,” said Roger Dow, President and CEO of the US TravelAssociation. “Congress and the Administration must act now to compete forglobal travel dollars and reverse the accelerating decline in US visitation. Increasing travel tothe United Statesis the most efficient form of economic stimulus.”
This latest news from the US Department of Commerce comes only two weeks afterthe announcement that 633,000 fewer overseas travellers visited the United Statesin 2008 than in 2000, despite the fact that 48 million more internationaltravellers took long-haul trips in 2008 than in 2000. If US overseas arrivalshad kept pace with international long-haul travel trends from 2001-2008, Americawould have welcomed a cumulative total of 58 million more visitors, generatingUS$182 billion in new spending.
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