US travel industry awaits Bush’s exit: report
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The U.S. travel industry is looking forward to the end of George W. Bush’s stay in the White House, according to a Reuters report.
It said while the weak U.S. dollar made the country cheaper as a destination, the tough border controls and an unfriendly image of the United States abroad may have kept some travellers away. A new administration could help change that, it added.
“We’re looked at as being extremely arrogant throughout the world, and Bush certainly contributes to that,” Michael Depatie, chief executive of boutique hotel operator Kimpton was quoted saying at the Reuters Travel and Leisure Summit this week.
The U.S. has lost 17% market share of international arrivals since the last quarter of 2001, according to Marriott International Inc.
“I think you probably need not just a new occupant in the White House, but you probably need some meaningful change in visa policy to get some of that lost share back,” Arne Sorenson, Marriott’s chief financial officer, told the Summit.
Dara Khosrowshahi, chief executive of leading online travel agency Expedia Inc. was quoted saying: “I think that the U.S. being seen as a more inviting entity in general, more friendly toward other entities, would be a good thing for travel on a worldwide basis.”
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