“Irrational Exuberance”? The Current State of Affairs for Global Concessionaires

 

 

There may very well be few businesses in the travel and tourism industry that were left unscathed in the global pandemic’s path. Airport concessionaires are certainly not among them. Often taken for granted, airport concessionaires can be the highlight of extensive wait times and long-haul travel, serving everything from light refreshments and delicious dinners, to reading materials, gifts or anything else travelers’ hearts might desire. And over the past year, airport restaurants and retailers have been fighting a fierce battle for survival.

Following our industry update webinar on April 13th, David Reichbach, Destination Analysts’ Senior Director of Analytics and Data Security, led an illuminating, yet sobering panel discussion with global leaders in travel restaurants and retail stores. Carlos Bernal, Chief Executive Officer at Areas USA, John Cusagi, Vice President of Marketing at Paradies Lagardère and Pat Murray, Executive Vice President at SSP America graciously joined us to share their outlook on travel recovery, the challenges they’re currently facing and the long-term changes they anticipate for the future. You can watch the discussion in this video and find our key takeaways below.

 

 

Key Takeaways:

 

The current state of the world for global concessionaires is “irrational exuberance.” After a year of isolation, travelers are ready to leave their homes and venture out, a trend that is expected to continue throughout the summer months. It has permeated the travel industry with an air of optimism, however some anxiety remains and it is unclear whether this “exuberance” is justified. With uncertainty about sustained wanderlust and when business travel will resume to pre-pandemic levels comes challenges around long-term forecasting and operational planning. While these global concessionaire leaders expressed hope in soon rising out of the pandemic cloud, they also questioned whether their current experiences are a result of “irrational exuberance.”

Like many businesses, tourism-reliant restaurants and retailers are struggling with the inability to plan. As much as they would love to hire employees, travel trends aren’t completely steady and thus, airport restaurants and retailers aren’t able to accurately predict how much staff they will need and when. Particular to their businesses, it takes several weeks to hire and badge airport employees, which is a challenge as more restaurants and stores re-open. In addition, the panel of global concessionaires voiced concerns about being pushed to open too soon while also balancing the momentum of keeping operations running.

 

 

Health and safety protocols are here to stay. Careful measures towards health, safety and cleanliness were well in progress prior to the onset of the coronavirus, but have been significantly accelerated as a result of the pandemic. Often in the spotlight when it comes to travel, concessionaires are keen to have the best practices around health and safety. And with the pandemic “the one silver lining is it’s pushing businesses to do some very good things faster.”

Technology has been changing, and will continue to change, consumer purchasing behaviors. Frictionless transactions through one’s mobile phone potentially eliminate taking out one’s wallet or credit card and interacting with restaurant and retail staff. In general, more air travelers are ordering food through their phone, which competes with ordering at a sit-down casual restaurant or quick-service counter. Similarly, automated retail allows consumers to select and receive exactly what they want from a machine and will become much more prominent in pre and post-security areas. Nevertheless, the panel of global concessionaire executives were optimistic that personal experiences, such as ordering a drink at the bar and chatting with the bartender, will return in due time.

Destination Marketing Organizations can best support airport concessionaires by leading the conversation around travel. Reminding people why they travel and the benefits of travel can really help them feel more comfortable. Within the larger conversation of travel, DMOs should promote health, safety and cleanliness. As mentioned during the panel discussion, airlines and airports are “doing everything they possibly can to ensure that it is a safe environment, both on the plane and in the airports. Not only for our teammates and but also for the traveling public. So the more we get that messaging out there, the better.”

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A Look at Marijuana in Tourism on 4/20

 

 

Even with the theater the humans in the election created, it was marijuana who was largely seen as the prime victor in last November’s election. Marijuana was approved for recreational or medicinal use in 6 more states, so now there are only 15 states that outlaw marijuana in any form. This embracing of marijuana legalization is something policy experts attribute to a strong shift in consumer perceptions about the plant and the products people make with it.

The merits of legalized marijuana, of course, have been discussed and debated for several years in the tourism industry. Many destination marketers embrace it for the tax revenues it brings and that, by and large, the tourists who patronize legal marijuana establishments have been desirable ones. In studying marijuana in tourism over the last several years through our quarterly The State of the American Traveler study, we consistently found that it was Baby Boomers who were the likeliest to purchase or consume marijuana while traveling.

In honor of April 20th, or 4/20—the holiday celebrating marijuana culture, we asked the 1,200 American travelers we surveyed last weekend about their recent travel to states in which marijuana is legal and their purchase of marijuana while traveling. In total, almost 30% of American travelers said they have taken a leisure trip in the past two years to a state in which marijuana has been legalized. Among the travelers who have visited such states, a whopping 51.4% have purchased marijuana and/or marijuana-based products while traveling. Bring on secondary impacts of the munchies, and there may be some significant tax revenue these tourists are accountable for. 🙂

 

 

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Update on American Travel in the Period of Coronavirus—Week of April 19th

It’s another week of pandemic-era record setting for Americans’ travel readiness, confidence in travel’s safety, trips planned and even support of tourism in their own communities. In more good news, as business travel continues to recover, there is a welcome retreat in the impact of the pandemic on corporate travel policies.

IMPORTANT: These findings are brought to you from our independent research, which is not sponsored, conducted or influenced by any advertising or marketing agency. Every week since March 15, 2020, Destination Analysts has surveyed 1,200+ American travelers about their thoughts, feelings, perceptions and behaviors surrounding travel in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, and explored a variety of topics. The findings presented below represent data collected April 16-18th.

Key Findings to Know:

  • Although coronavirus cases are rising in nearly half of the U.S., Americans’ COVID anxiety grew only mildly. Even in the Midwest, which is particularly affected by the latest growth in cases, levels of COVID concern remained relatively stable; in fact, it is those in the Northeast who continue to exhibit the highest levels of COVID concerns.
  • Ongoing vaccinations combined with optimism about the future have contributed to another week of record setting in travel readiness and safety. Americans’ confidence in their ability to travel safely reached a pandemic record, as did the perception of travel activities as safe. Now 72% say they are in a ready-to-travel mindset—up nearly 20 percentage points since the start of the year.
  • Three-quarters of American travelers did some travel planning and dreaming in the past week alone, with 16.4% actually making a reservation or booking. Of these bookers, over half made a hotel reservation, nearly a fifth reserved a vacation home/Airbnb and a third bought airline tickets.
  • Over 75% of American travelers will take at least one trip in the next 3 months, and a record 88% have at least tentative travel plans for the future.
  • Americans are also showing that they are open to even more travel beyond what they may currently have planned. Nearly two-thirds have a high excitement level about the prospect of a trip they had not previously considered, and similarly 63.4% are highly open to travel inspiration right now.
  • For travel marketers to reach and capitalize on the high rates of excitement and openness to inspiration, fortunately, American travelers are showing a receptiveness to travel messaging in a variety of channels, including social, print, streaming and direct. TikTok, a rising star throughout the pandemic, is growing as a channel for travel influence, with nearly a quarter of younger travelers saying it is an ideal place to reach them.
  • Americans are demonstrating increased happiness on seeing their own communities advertised for tourism, reflecting a larger trend in support of travel.
  • Well over half of those who took a road trip in the pandemic era say their experience has made travel by car more appealing—a sentiment that is even stronger among Millennial and younger travelers. The road trip is likely to sustain its popularity as travel recovers.
  • There continues to be more good news about still-slow-but-recovering business travel. Now 56% of those employed by companies in which there is business travel say that this travel has resumed, up 8 percentage points from last month. Perhaps most importantly, the extent of the perceived lasting changes to business travel appears to be retreating.

    • Although coronavirus cases are rising in nearly half of the U.S., Americans’ COVID anxiety grew only mildly. Even in the Midwest, which is particularly affected by the latest growth in cases, levels of COVID concern remained relatively stable; in fact, it is those in the Northeast who continue to exhibit the highest levels of COVID concerns. Also, despite the pause in Johnson & Johnson vaccine administration, two-thirds of American travelers still say they have or plan to get a COVID-19 vaccine. Of those who report receiving a vaccine, over 70% say they are now fully vaccinated. This combined with optimism about the future (47.6% feel that the pandemic situation will improve in the next month) have contributed to another week of record setting in travel readiness and safety. Americans’ confidence in their ability to travel safely reached a pandemic record, as did the perception of travel activities as safe. Now 72% say they are in a ready-to-travel mindset—up nearly 20 percentage points since the start of the year.

     

     

    The growth in a readiness mindset has led to an increase in the dreaming, planning, booking—and actual doing of —travel. Three-quarters of American travelers did some travel planning and dreaming in the past week alone, with 16.4% actually making a reservation or booking. Of these bookers, over half made a hotel reservation, nearly a fifth reserved a vacation home/Airbnb and a third bought airline tickets. Over 75% of American travelers will take at least one trip in the next 3 months, and a record 88% have at least tentative travel plans for the future. Americans are also showing that they are open to even more travel beyond what they may currently have planned. Nearly two-thirds have a high excitement level about the prospect of a trip they had not previously considered, and similarly 63.4% are highly open to travel inspiration right now.

     

     

    For travel marketers to reach and capitalize on the high rates of excitement and openness to inspiration, fortunately, American travelers are showing a receptiveness to travel messaging in a variety of channels. However, save for email and online articles/blogs, desired channels for travel content and advertising are highly impacted by age. Social media is most common for younger travelers, who are open to travel messaging on a variety of these platforms, while older travelers remain largely committed to Facebook. TikTok, a rising star throughout the pandemic, is growing as a channel for travel influence, with nearly a quarter of younger travelers saying it is an ideal place to reach them, surpassing Twitter. Television remains a top source to reach travelers, with younger travelers on streaming services and older travelers on broadcast. Search engine marketing also remains key for travel marketing, particularly to reach older travelers. An important proportion of travelers—even the younger ones—are looking to print resources like travel & lifestyle magazines, as well.

     

     

    Americans are even demonstrating increased happiness on seeing their own communities advertised for tourism, reflecting a larger trend in support of travel. This week, a record 50.4% said they would feel happy if they saw an ad promoting where they live as a place for tourists to come visit. Conversely, a record-low 39.5% said they aren’t ready for tourists in their community yet.

     

     

    As we continue to study the ongoing and lingering effects of the coronavirus pandemic on travel attitudes and behaviors, this week we looked at whether and how road trips—the archetype of travel in the COVID era—would sustain its level of popularity. Two-thirds of American travelers road tripped during the pandemic, taking 2.5 of these trips on average. Over 62% of these pandemic-era road trippers agreed that this travel reminded them of how much fun road trips can be. Thus, well over half also say their pandemic road trip experiences have made travel by car more appealing. Interestingly, this sentiment was even stronger among Millennial and younger travelers, 60.5% of whom said that travel by car is now more appealing.

     

     

    Finally, there continues to be more good news about still-slow-but-recovering business travel. Now 56% of those employed by companies in which there is business travel say that this travel has resumed, up 8 percentage points from last month. Perhaps most importantly, the extent of the perceived lasting changes to business travel appears to be retreating. Somewhat fewer business travelers report that the pandemic will change the way their employer does business travel (47% down from 50% in March). The ways business travelers expect changes are also largely down from last month, with less feeling there will be fewer business trips taken and the replacing of trips with virtual meetings.

     

     

    A complimentary report of these key findings is available for you to download and share.
    …
    You can register for our online presentation of these findings Tuesday at 11:00am EST.
    …
    We appreciate your support of this research from our small but mighty team of devoted tourism researchers. If you would like further and deeper insights from the complete study, you can learn more here. Please consider donating or purchasing to support this research.
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    To make sure you receive notifications of our latest findings, you can sign up here.
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    Update on American Travel in the Period of Coronavirus—Week of April 12th

    Many Americans are still in pandemic mode when it comes to booking travel, expecting shorter booking windows, often less than 4 weeks out. This week we can celebrate that the appeal of attending in-person meetings has improved, although the majority of business travelers still needs at least a few more months before they are ready to be back.

    IMPORTANT: These findings are brought to you from our independent research, which is not sponsored, conducted or influenced by any advertising or marketing agency. Every week since March 15, 2020, Destination Analysts has surveyed 1,200+ American travelers about their thoughts, feelings, perceptions and behaviors surrounding travel in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, and explored a variety of topics. The findings presented below represent data collected April 9th-11th.

    Key Findings to Know:

  • Americans have been exhibiting a lessening optimism over the last month, after reaching a pandemic peak the week of March 14th.
  • Nevertheless, fear about travel has continued on a course of steady decline. Of the travel and leisure activities we track, only a handful remain perceived as unsafe by a majority of American travelers. In fact, the average perception of these activities as unsafe is down 20 percentage points from January 1st—a pandemic record low (37.9%).
  • More than two-thirds have a “ready-to-travel” state-of-mind and this readiness has resulted in a lot of travel plans. Over 86% of American travelers currently have at least tentative leisure travel plans and 72.8% expect to travel for leisure within the next three months alone.
  • In terms of what is motivating Americans to travel right now, while relaxing, getting away from their daily life and spending time with family remain important, about half are highly seeking escaping boredom, having new experiences and visiting new places they have never been. One-third are out to party while a quarter are even traveling specifically to meet new people.
  • As Americans look out on their travel in the months ahead, many iconic tourism spots—Florida, New York, Las Vegas, Hawaii, California—top their lists of the domestic destinations they most want to visit, including popular cities, from Chicago to New Orleans.
  • In terms of Americans’ timing on booking travel, the pandemic’s impact can still be seen. In total, 45.7% say they will make reservations closer to their travel date than they would in a normal year. Over 40% of travelers who will be making hotel, car rental, attraction and event bookings say they will be doing so less than 4 weeks out. Even 28.5% of upcoming air travelers say they will purchase their flights less than a month before travel.
  • Looking at the types of travel Americans have planned for the next quarter, leisure travel is indeed leading the recovery with 52.4% planning a vacation or getaway and 36.8% traveling to visit friends or relatives. Business travel is further back in recovery. Right now, 13.6% of American travelers say they will be taking a business trip in the next 3 months and 11.4% say they have a convention/group meeting trip.
  • This week we can celebrate that the appeal of attending in-person meetings has improved. Over 54% of business travelers say they would be happy if their employer asked them to attend an in-person conference, convention or group meeting in the next six months. This is nearly double what was recorded last August.
  • Still, a meetings industry rebound may be further into the future. Two-thirds of business travelers feel it won’t be until this summer or later that they will be comfortable attending in-person meetings. The majority (56.4%) of business travelers still would prefer a virtual meeting to an in-person one if it were happening this month. Only 20 percent say they would prefer an in-person event right now.

    • As of this week, over 27% of the U.S. adult population is vaccinated against COVID-19 and the proportion of Americans highly concerned about their family or friends contracting the virus is now at an all-time low. Yet with cases rising in some regions and the pandemic ongoing, Americans have been exhibiting a lessening optimism over the last month, after reaching a pandemic peak the week of March 14th. Compared to a month ago, those who feel the coronavirus situation in the U.S. will improve over the next four weeks has declined nearly 15 percentage points (45.5% from 60.3%), while nearly twice as many now feel things are going to get worse (21.3% from 11.1%). Nevertheless, fear about travel has continued on a course of steady decline. Of the travel and leisure activities we track, only a handful remain perceived as unsafe by a majority of American travelers. In fact, the average perception of these activities as unsafe is down 20 percentage points from January 1st—a pandemic record low (37.9%). Those who would NOT feel guilty traveling now exceeds those who would (39.1% vs 36.7%). And more than two-thirds have a “ready-to-travel” state-of-mind.

     

     

    The readiness around travel has resulted in a lot of travel plans. Over 86% of American travelers currently have at least tentative leisure travel plans and 72.8% expect to travel for leisure within the next three months alone. In terms of what is motivating Americans to travel right now, while relaxing, getting away from their daily life and spending time with family remain important, about half are highly seeking escaping boredom, having new experiences and visiting new places they have never been. One-third are out to party while a quarter are even traveling specifically to meet new people.

     

     

    As Americans look out on their travel in the months ahead, many iconic tourism spots—Florida, New York, Las Vegas, Hawaii, California—top their lists of the domestic destinations they most want to visit, including popular cities, from Chicago to New Orleans.

     

     

    In terms of Americans’ timing on booking travel, the pandemic’s impact can still be seen. In total, 45.7% say they will make reservations closer to their travel date than they would in a normal year. Over 40% of travelers who will be making hotel, car rental, attraction and event bookings say they will be doing so less than 4 weeks out. Even 28.5% of upcoming air travelers say they will purchase their flights less than a month before travel. Given the high demand for travel, this short booking window preference may have consequences. Nevertheless, booking continues at a steady pace. This week, 13.9% of American travelers said they had made a travel reservation or booking in the last seven days.

     

     

    Looking at the types of travel Americans have planned for the next quarter, leisure travel is indeed leading the recovery with 52.4% planning a vacation or getaway and 36.8% traveling to visit friends or relatives. Business travel is further back in recovery. Right now, 13.6% of American travelers say they will be taking a business trip in the next 3 months and 11.4% say they have a convention/group meeting trip (Note: if we look at the business traveler segment alone, one-third say they will be taking a business trip this quarter). In a typical year pre-pandemic, about 20% of American travelers reported having upcoming business, convention or group meeting trips.

     

     

    This week we can celebrate that the appeal of attending in-person meetings has improved. Over 54% of business travelers say they would be happy if their employer asked them to attend an in-person conference, convention or group meeting in the next six months. This is nearly double what was recorded last August. In addition, about 40% of American business travelers say they currently have plans to attend a conference/convention/group meeting this year. Still, a meetings industry rebound may be further into the future. Two-thirds of business travelers feel it won’t be until this summer or later that they will be comfortable attending in-person meetings. The majority (56.4%) of business travelers still would prefer a virtual meeting to an in-person one if it were happening this month. Only 20 percent say they would prefer an in-person event right now.

     

     

    A complimentary report of these key findings is available for you to download and share.
    …
    You can register for our online presentation of these findings Tuesday at 11:00am EST.
    …
    We appreciate your support of this research from our small but mighty team of devoted tourism researchers. If you would like further and deeper insights from the complete study, you can learn more here. Please consider donating or purchasing to support this research.
    …
    To make sure you receive notifications of our latest findings, you can sign up here.
    /by

    A Current Pulse on Black Traveler Perspectives

     

     

    As part of Destination Analysts’ series of panel discussions with traveling consumers, our latest industry update webinar on April 6th was followed by an important discussion with Black travelers. Visit Fort Worth’s Director of Research, Lauren Phillips, led an enlightening discussion exploring how Black travelers’ unique perspectives and personal experiences impact present and future travel decisions.

    You can watch the full panel discussion in this video and find our key takeaways below.

     

     

  • Black travelers still don’t often see people who look like them in travel advertising. As we have heard time and again in traveling consumer panels, the current state of travel advertising overall appears to have the opportunity for far more inclusivity.
  • Despite being underrepresented in travel marketing, Black travelers do not hold back from taking leisure trips. A common sentiment amongst the panelists was a wish for “more representation in ads” and to “see people who look like me.” However, even given the lack of Black travelers in marketing and advertising, they are keen to hit the road and have experiences in destinations ranging from nature and the outdoors, to beaches and mountains, to large, metropolitan cities. In the words of Cyrus from Brooklyn, NY, “Black people travel, we have been traveling and we will continue to travel.”
  • Social media plays a major role in Black travelers sharing personal experiences with, and promoting destinations to, their communities and networks—and thus gaining more voice in the conversation around travel. Cognizant of the fact that Black representation is “lackluster” in the marketing campaigns for many travel brands, social media is a forum through which Black travelers can control the narrative and show that they travel to a wide variety of destinations. And this narrative leads other Black travelers to consider destinations, visit them and continue the momentum of Black travelers representing themselves, each other and the destinations they visit by posting about their experiences on social media.
  • Both presently and historically, Black travelers approach travel with caution—something we are hopeful can change. Despite the protests and greater societal solidarity shown around #BlackLivesMatter, the travelers on our panel reminded us that they have always been aware and cautious around who and where they are in all areas of life, particularly when traveling. They expressed an inherent acknowledgement that “everything is a calculated risk.” Sadly, from their perspective, the events in the last year were felt unsurprising and thus haven’t dramatically changed their approach to travel. For the travel industry, the discussion served as a key reminder that cautiousness continues to be very much a part of the Black travel experience and that we must to do our part in promoting travel as a means of inclusiveness.

    • The Destination Analysts team would like to thank Lauren Phillips of Visit Fort Worth for leading this discussion, and the panelists Cyrus, Francesca and Quincy for sharing their personal opinions and perspectives.

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    Update on American Travel in the Period of Coronavirus—Week of April 5th

    As Americans feel the country is more than halfway back to normalcy, positive sentiment towards travel reached new pandemic-era peaks. And while vaccine passports are being debated in the political realm, it appears that, particularly for certain activities, an important proportion of American travelers is in favor of proof-of-vaccination policies.

    IMPORTANT: These findings are brought to you from our independent research, which is not sponsored, conducted or influenced by any advertising or marketing agency. Every week since March 15, 2020, Destination Analysts has surveyed 1,200+ American travelers about their thoughts, feelings, perceptions and behaviors surrounding travel in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, and explored a variety of topics. The findings presented below represent data collected April 2nd-4th.

    Key Findings to Know:

  • When asked the likelihood that the U.S. will experience another COVID surge in 2021, 53.8% of American travelers said that this was indeed likely—an anticipation strongest in the Midwest and among older travelers.
  • Yet while the majority expects another surge to occur, they don’t appear to believe it will necessarily impact themselves. Anxiety about contracting coronavirus—as well as the pandemic’s financial impact—is down.
  • On average, American travelers believe the United States is 52.6% back to normalcy right now. Nearly half believe their life will be back to “normal” by September.
  • Compared to last April, it is clear Americans feel very differently, particularly as it relates to travel’s safety. Average perceptions of travel and leisure activities as unsafe has declined 30 percentage points in the last year. Travel avoidance—including in general, internationally and for conventions/conferences —reached record lows this week. This week also marks another pandemic record for travel readiness, with 69.3% saying “ready” is what describes their state-of-mind.
  • About two-thirds of Americans are highly open to travel inspiration right now and the number of Americans actively dreaming about and planning travel reached a 2021 peak at 77.7%. A 2021 record 33.6% researched travel ideas online in the last week, while another record 17.8% made travel reservations or bookings.
  • In terms of when Americans will go traveling, July continues to strengthen as a peak month for travel, as now one-third of American travelers report at least tentative trip plans for that month. Travel also looks to continue this Fall—nearly a quarter of American travelers say they have trips planned for September and about 22% have at least tentative plans in October.
  • This growing positivity towards travel overall extends to how Americans feel about tourism in their own communities. This week, nearly 54% say they are comfortable going out for leisure activities where they live—a pandemic-era record-high. Meanwhile, 41.3% say they are not ready for tourists in town just yet—however, this is a far cry from the 67.6% who felt this way a year ago (and also represents a record low). Positive sentiment towards tourism in one’s own community is generally much stronger among those Millennial-age compared to those in older generations.
  • It appears that, particularly for certain activities, an important proportion of American travelers is in favor of proof-of-vaccination policies. When asked how comfortable they would be with vaccine passports being used widely in the U.S. to allow access to public activities, 52.0% said they would be comfortable or very comfortable—a feeling strongest among older travelers and those who have already been vaccinated.
  • A majority of American travelers also say they believe proof of COVID-19 vaccination should be required for entry to the United States from another country, boarding a cruise line, and boarding a commercial flight. More than 4-in-10 say they believe vaccination proof should be required to attend an indoor performance like a concert and to attend large scale outdoor sporting events.

    • In the last week, despite record vaccination rates, new coronavirus cases were on the rise again in the United States, and health and political officials implored pandemic vigilance to continue. When asked the likelihood that the U.S. will experience another COVID surge in 2021, 53.8% of American travelers said that this was indeed likely—an anticipation strongest in the Midwest and among older travelers. Yet while the majority expects another surge to occur, they don’t appear to believe it will necessarily impact themselves. Anxiety about contracting coronavirus—as well as the pandemic’s financial impact—is down. On average, American travelers believe the United States is 52.6% back to normalcy right now. Nearly half believe their life will be back to “normal” by September.

     

     

    Meanwhile, excitement about travel is firmly up. Compared to last April, it is clear Americans feel very differently, particularly as it relates to travel’s safety. Average perceptions of travel and leisure activities as unsafe has declined 30 percentage points in the last year. Travel avoidance—including in general, internationally and for conventions/conferences—reached record lows this week. The proportion of Americans confident in their ability to travel safely right now outpaces the proportion that lacks confidence. Americans who have lost their taste for traveling for the time being—something we began tracking regularly during the last coronavirus surge—has plunged to a low of 33.3%. For the first time ever recorded in our study, the proportion of Americans that would NOT feel guilty traveling (41.6%) surpassed those that would (36.2%). This week also marks another record for travel readiness, with 69.3% saying “ready” is what describes their state-of-mind.

     

     

    About two-thirds of Americans are highly open to travel inspiration right now and the number of Americans actively dreaming about and planning travel reached a 2021 peak at 77.7%. Well over one-third day-dreamt about travel and/or discussed a future trip with someone in the last week alone. A 2021 record 33.6% researched travel ideas online in the last week, while another record 17.8% made travel reservations or bookings. Among those that made a travel booking or reservation in the last week, 57.5% report they booked a hotel room and 34.6% say they bought airline tickets.

     

     

    In terms of when Americans will go traveling, nearly 60% say they will take a trip within the next three months. July continues to strengthen as a peak month for travel, as now one-third of American travelers report at least tentative trip plans for that month. Travel also looks to continue this Fall—nearly a quarter of American travelers say they have trips planned for September and about 22% have at least tentative plans in October.

     

     

    This growing positivity towards travel overall extends to how Americans feel about tourism in their own communities. This week, nearly 54% say they are comfortable going out for leisure activities where they live—a pandemic-era record-high. Meanwhile, 41.3% say they are not ready for tourists in town just yet—however, this is a far cry from the 67.6% who felt this way a year ago (and also represents a record low). Nearly 47% of American travelers say they would be happy to see an ad promoting where they live as a place for tourists to visit when safe. Positive sentiment towards tourism in one’s own community is generally much stronger among those Millennial-age compared to those in older generations.

     

     

    This week, 48.2% of American travelers report they have already been vaccinated against COVID-19. The U.S. rapidly vaccinating its population combined with desires for the final holdouts of normalcy to return has fueled much conversation about vaccine passports. While vaccine passports are being debated in the political realm, it appears that, particularly for certain activities, an important proportion of American travelers is in favor of proof-of-vaccination policies. When asked how comfortable they would be with vaccine passports being used widely in the U.S. to allow access to public activities, 52.0% said they would be comfortable or very comfortable—a feeling strongest among older travelers and those who have already been vaccinated. A majority of American travelers also say they believe proof of COVID-19 vaccination should be required for entry to the United States from another country, boarding a cruise line, and boarding a commercial flight. More than 4-in-10 say they believe vaccination proof should be required to attend an indoor performance like a concert and to attend large scale outdoor sporting events. 3-in-10 even currently say it should be required for indoor restaurant dining.

     

     

    A complimentary report of these key findings is available for you to download and share.
    …
    You can register for our online presentation of these findings Tuesday at 11:00am EST.
    …
    We appreciate your support of this research from our small but mighty team of devoted tourism researchers. If you would like further and deeper insights from the complete study, you can learn more here. Please consider donating or purchasing to support this research.
    …
    To make sure you receive notifications of our latest findings, you can sign up here.
    /by

    Update on American Travel in the Period of Coronavirus—Week of March 29th

    Amidst financial optimism and an increasingly ready-to-travel mindset, many American travelers are saying YES to summer vacation this year.

    IMPORTANT: These findings are brought to you from our independent research, which is not sponsored, conducted or influenced by any advertising or marketing agency. Every week since March 15th, Destination Analysts has surveyed 1,200+ American travelers about their thoughts, feelings, perceptions and behaviors surrounding travel in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, and explored a variety of topics. The findings presented below represent data collected March 26th-28th.

    Key Findings to Know:

  • With new coronavirus cases rising again in the U.S., Americans’ concerns about contracting COVID-19 have also increased over the last 3 weeks, after hitting record lows at the beginning of the month. However, this anxiety has greatened in Millennial and Gen X-age travelers and lessened among the Baby Boomers.
  • As has been demonstrated by their sentiments throughout the pandemic, vaccination has the greatest impact on American travelers’ anticipated behaviors. Fully 82.0% say the idea of traveling is made more comfortable by receiving a COVID-19 vaccine. Two-thirds of American travelers have or will take a COVID-19 vaccine, and the majority continue to believe they will be inoculated by summer. Half of parents with school-age children plan to vaccinate their children when able, as well.
  • In looking at feelings about pandemic-safety in the post-vaccine world, American travelers still appear to believe in vigilance to prevent spread. Right now, 73.5% believe you still need to wear a mask after you are vaccinated. In addition, over three-quarters (76.0%) believe that proof of vaccination should be required for international travel.
  • Despite rising fear about contracting the virus, American travelers appear relatively optimistic about their financial future and thus their ability to spend on travel. Fully 3-in-10 American travelers say they are financially better off now compared to a year ago; 29.8% say they expect their income to rise in the next 6 months. In terms of devoting their income to travel, 38.9% say that right now is a good time for them to spend money on their leisure travel and 41.7% expect to spend more on leisure travel in the next 12 months compared to the previous year.
  • American optimism is even more prevalent in their travel outlook. A record 66.6% report being in a ready-to-travel mindset, nearly two-thirds report being highly open to travel inspiration and 61.4% exhibit strong excitement at the prospect of traveling now.
  • This increasingly positive sentiment towards travel can be seen in Americans’ current trip plans. Over 71% did some travel dreaming or planning in the last week alone, including a 2021-record 16.2% who booked or made reservations. Two-thirds of American travelers say they have trip plans in the next 3 months—yet another pandemic record.
  • Urban destinations also continue to show recovery, with a pandemic-record 41.3% of those traveling in the next 3 months saying they will visit cities.
  • Many American travelers are saying yes to summer vacation. This week, 62.5% report they are traveling for leisure this summer; this is up 26 percentage points from 2020. Summer travelers currently have 2.2 trips planned for the season on average, with July the peak month.
  • The desire to stay close-to-home appears to have retreated, as 70.4% of summer travelers say they will be traveling out-of-state and 8.1% say they plan to go abroad this summer. California and Florida dominate the states Americans say they are heading to this summer.

    • With new coronavirus cases rising again in the U.S., Americans’ concerns about contracting COVID-19 have also increased over the last 3 weeks, after hitting record lows at the beginning of the month. With older Americans prioritized for vaccination and a far greater proportion of them fully vaccinated, this anxiety has greatened in Millennial and Gen X-age travelers and lessened among the Baby Boomers.

     

     

    Hopefully, the increased anxiety will not have to last for a sustained period as the U.S. races to rollout vaccinations. Two-thirds of American travelers have or will take a COVID-19 vaccine, and the majority continue to believe they will be inoculated by summer. Half of parents with school-age children plan to vaccinate their children when able, as well. As has been demonstrated by their sentiments throughout the pandemic, vaccination has the greatest impact on American travelers’ anticipated behaviors. Fully 82.0% say the idea of traveling is made more comfortable by receiving a COVID-19 vaccine. In looking at feelings about pandemic-safety in the post-vaccine world, American travelers still appear to believe in vigilance to prevent spread. Right now, 73.5% believe you still need to wear a mask after you are vaccinated. In addition, over three-quarters (76.0%) believe that proof of vaccination should be required for international travel.

     

     

    Despite rising fear about contracting the virus, American travelers’ concerns about the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic have remained in a record-low period. Those with high concerns about the national economy stayed below 80% for the fifth straight week (78.8%) and those with strong concerns about their personal finances dropped to 50.1%. In fact, American travelers appear relatively optimistic about their financial future and thus their ability to spend on travel. Fully 3-in-10 American travelers say they are financially better off now compared to a year ago; nearly twice the proportion who say they are worse off (16.2%). A similar number—29.8%—say they expect their income to rise in the next 6 months. In terms of devoting their income to travel, 38.9% say that right now is a good time for them to spend money on their leisure travel and 41.7% expect to spend more on leisure travel in the next 12 months compared to the previous year.

     

     

    American optimism is even more prevalent in their travel outlook. Over 53% of Americans think the pandemic situation will improve in the U.S. over the next month, and a record 66.6% report being in a ready-to-travel mindset. Nearly two-thirds report being highly open to travel inspiration and 61.4% exhibit strong excitement at the prospect of traveling now.

     

     

    This increasingly positive sentiment towards travel can be seen in Americans’ current trip plans. Over 71% did some travel dreaming or planning in the last week alone, including a 2021-record 16.2% who booked or made reservations. Two-thirds of American travelers say they have trip plans in the next 3 months—yet another pandemic record. Right now, 42.0% say they are going to travel more in the next year compared to the previous. Urban destinations also continue to show recovery, with a pandemic-record 41.3% of those traveling in the next 3 months saying they will visit cities.

     

     

    Many American travelers are saying yes to summer vacation. This week, 62.5% report they are traveling for leisure this summer; this is up 26 percentage points from 2020. Summer travelers currently have 2.2 trips planned for the season on average, with July the peak month at 50.4% of these travelers saying they will vacation then. The desire to stay close-to-home appears to have retreated, as 70.4% say they will be traveling out-of-state and 8.1% say they plan to go abroad this summer. California and Florida dominate the states Americans say they are heading to this summer, although just 36.2% say their first summer trip is already very well-developed right now—clearly an opportunity for travel marketers.

     

     

    A complimentary report of these key findings is available for you to download and share.
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    /by

    Respect & Acknowledgement: What AAPI Travelers Want from Travel Brands

    A personal reflection in response to Destination Analysts’ March 23, 2021 panel discussion with AAPI travelers, by Chingun Ganzorig, Research Manager at Destination Analysts.

    Note: Views expressed here belong to Chingun Ganzorig and do not necessarily represent those of other Destination Analysts staff or the company itself.

     

    Over the course of the past year, there has been a dramatic rise in anti-Asian attacks within the U.S. Stop AAPI Hate, the center that tracks and responds to hate incidents against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States, recently released a national report indicating that there were nearly 3,800 such discriminatory acts against Asian Americans between March 2020 and February 2021. For me personally, this figure, coupled with reading and watching news accounts of violence against Asian Americans, has incited both shock and trepidation. Sure, growing up as an Asian American has its struggles—like micro-aggressions and racist comments here and there that I swiftly brushed off, but I hadn’t experienced nor witnessed anything like these massive spikes in anti-Asian harassment and crimes.

    In the aftermath of the Black Lives Matter movement, we at Destination Analysts hosted a panel discussion with Black travelers about what the travel industry can do to market and make travel an equally inclusive leisure activity. We also spoke with an incredibly talented group of Black travel content creators to understand how DMOs and travel brands could learn from their experiences and work with them. These revelatory and very meaningful discussions were the inspiration for me to suggest that our small, mighty team of researchers organize a panel discussion with Asian American and Pacific Islander travelers. Our team decided to move forward with this panel at the beginning of this year, and the date we selected back in January just so happened to be March 23rd, exactly one week after the Atlanta shootings. While this could have been purely serendipitous, it would be an understatement to say that this panel discussion with AAPI travelers was relevant and timely. It was imperative. And not only was it imperative to hear these travelers’ perspectives and considerations, but to also convey a loud and clear message: AAPI travelers want respect and acknowledgement.

    You can listen to what these six AAPI travelers had to say and find our key takeaways from the discussion below.

     

     

    What We Learned:

  • Recent events have resulted in heightened feelings of anxiety and unease. These travelers shared mixed emotions right now, ranging from fear and rage to hopelessness and apprehension. Noelle from Denver, CO shared, “I feel pretty much on an edge. Anxious all the time. Every time I feel like there’s a little break to breathe, something else happens in the news that just strikes up my anxiety again.” There was also an expressed wariness. On top of looking out for one’s health and protecting others as it relates to the coronavirus, this extends to physical safety and being aware of “what’s around you and seeing another type of potential threat.” AAPI women and seniors are particularly vulnerable. Lucy from Irvine, CA is not alone in experiencing fear and added, “Being a woman, that makes a difference.” Steven, a Baby Boomer from Westport, CT, stated, “I also recognize I am slow. I am older, so I am not as quick to run away from these attacks,” such as the targeted attacks against Asian American seniors during Lunar New Year.
  • While these feelings clearly impact travel decisions and considerations, AAPI travelers agree that they would be most comfortable right now in destinations that both prioritize COVID safety and embrace diversity. Specific to the ongoing pandemic, much like all travelers, AAPI travelers want to see sanitizing stations, the availability and enforcement of masks, social distancing and access to testing. When asked where they would feel most safe, while there was multiplicity in destination types there was consistency in a mindset of avoiding potential race-based discrimination and attacks. Secluded areas offer the ability “to relax and have peace of mind,” resorts work due to the availability of security personnel and security cameras, cities have “a lot of crowds” and provide “safety in numbers,” while “outdoorsy people are kinder and nicer.” Regardless of the type of destination, the panelists unanimously agreed that they’re looking to visit places that are welcoming and inclusive. Places “where there is diversity and they’re embracing that diversity.”
  • There is a lack of AAPI representation in travel marketing right now. However, a sea change will communicate that AAPI travelers are welcomed and valued. As noted by Richard of San Francisco, CA, “You look at most of the travel materials and you rarely see Asians being represented in those promotional materials, except for shopping centers.” When it comes to representation in marketing, Asians are often ignored and taken for granted. From the perspective of AAPI travelers, depicting Asians in marketing materials (especially outside of the stereotypical shopper) “would go a long way to feel like they want us around.” Richard continued to share that “Particularly in this time where people feel like it’s okay to take shots at us, it will be nice to see that people actually value our presence and value us in the community.”
  • Respect and acknowledgement are critical in developing an AAPI customer base. And this can be as simple as sending an email, posting on social media or giving back to the AAPI community. There were suggestions for travel brands and organizations to send an email to their audiences with messages of support, such as “employees will be held to standards and racism will not be tolerated,” “we stand with you” or “thank you for being a part of our family.” Donations to AAPI organizations and Asian communities are also reassuring. According to Steven, he wants to patronize travel brands that demonstrate their support of Asians because “They give back to the Asian community and I think that’s a strong message.” Similarly, Noelle shared that seeing “airline or travel companies on my social media that promote the issues that are happening right now and promote us and equality makes me more inclined to purchase and support them financially.” Frankly summed up, in the words of Diane, “It all goes down to respect and acknowledgement. You don’t know how much it means to that person, to include them and have them feel worthy to even be acknowledged.”

    • As my own shock and trepidation fluctuate, I’m both relieved and comforted to know that I’m not the only one experiencing these feelings in the wake of anti-Asian attacks. A subtle way to let Asian Americans know that they are welcome is to represent them in marketing materials. A bolder way to let AAPI travelers know that they are welcome is to directly address the surge of violence and take a solid stance. There is much work to do in order to overcome this series of unfortunate events. Being pro-active and addressing current issues and events is one step towards making AAPI travelers feel safe, welcomed, valued, respected and acknowledged.

    /by

    Update on American Travel in the Period of Coronavirus—Week of March 22nd

    Despite feeling safer and increasingly more positive, many Americans do expect a longer term impact from the pandemic on their travel, from spending less to sticking outdoors.

     

     

    IMPORTANT: These findings are brought to you from our independent research, which is not sponsored, conducted or influenced by any advertising or marketing agency. Every week since March 15th, Destination Analysts has surveyed 1,200+ American travelers about their thoughts, feelings, perceptions and behaviors surrounding travel in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, and explored a variety of topics. The findings presented below represent data collected March 19th-21st.

    Key Findings to Know:

  • New COVID variants, uncertainty on the current COVID vaccines’ effectiveness with such variants, a European third wave, and Spring Break rowdiness made headlines this week, likely contributing to a small but notable rise in pandemic-related anxiety among American travelers.
  • Those highly concerned about their friends and family contracting the virus rose to 71.0% and 63.3% of American travelers are highly concerned about personally contracting COVID-19. Such concern is higher among women, Millennials, urban dwellers, and those residing in the West and Northeast regions of the U.S.
  • Americans’ high concern about the pandemic’s impact on our national economy may play a role in their feelings towards tourism in their own communities. Among the 46.1% of American travelers who report they would be happy to see an ad promoting tourism to their town of residence, by far the most common reason for this is that it would help local businesses (64.8%).
  • Americans began receiving stimulus checks and travel looks to certainly benefit. 38.3% of those who have or are expecting a stimulus check say they are likely to spend some portion of it on leisure travel. This is even more prevalent among Millennial age travelers, who are, in fact, twice as likely as Boomer age travelers to spend their stimulus money on travel.
  • With nearly two-thirds both in a ready-to-travel mindset and highly open to travel inspiration, a 2021 record-high 73.8% of American travelers did some travel planning and dreaming in the last week alone. 15.8% said they made a travel reservation in the last week.
  • In each of the months from May through October, over 20% of American travelers report having at least tentative trip plans.
  • As Americans are feeling far safer with travel than they were just a few months ago, unlike earlier in the pandemic, they are including air travel in their plans. Right now, 43.9% of air travelers deem flying on a commercial airline as safe. Over 45% of air travelers say their very next trip by commercial airline will be by the end of Summer.
  • Despite feeling safer and increasingly more positive, many Americans do expect a longer-term impact from the pandemic on their travel. Nearly 60% agree that the pandemic has changed their outlook on life overall, with over 20% saying significantly. As a result, 46.9% agree they will put more effort into visiting places on their travel bucket list in the next few years.
  • Many in the travel industry have pondered a more permanent tie to public health—they may be on to something as nearly three-quarters of American travelers agree they will be more safety-conscious while traveling going forward.
  • When asked if the pandemic had changed their opinions about the types of destinations they want to visit for leisure in the future, 41.8% of American travelers said yes. For beach, National Park and other outdoor destinations, this is welcome news as 52.2% of Americans agree they will be visiting these types of destinations more as a result of the pandemic. Urban, entertainment and theme park-focused destinations will face greater challenges in the recovery, as 44.6% of American travelers report they are less likely to visit these places in the next few years because of the pandemic.
  • About four-in-ten American travelers expect they will be sticking closer to home and spending less on their leisure travel in the coming years.

    •  

    New COVID variants, uncertainty on the current COVID vaccines’ effectiveness with such variants, a European third wave, and Spring Break rowdiness made headlines this week, likely contributing to a small but notable rise in pandemic-related anxiety among American travelers. The proportion of American travelers that feel the pandemic situation will get worse in the U.S. in the next month rose over 7% to 18.5%, after hitting a low of 11.1% last week. Similarly, those highly concerned about their friends and family contracting the virus rose to 71.0% after being at a low of 65.4% two weeks ago. This week, 63.3% of American travelers are highly concerned about personally contracting COVID-19. Such concern is higher among women, Millennials, urban dwellers, and those residing in the West and Northeast regions of the U.S.

     

     

    Americans highly concerned about the pandemic’s impact on our national economy also grew, reaching 79.6% this week. This may play a role in their feelings towards tourism in their own communities. Among the 46.1% of American travelers who report they would be happy to see an ad promoting tourism to their town of residence, by far the most common reason for this is that it would help local businesses (64.8%).

     

     

    Also happening in the last week: Americans began receiving stimulus checks due to the recently passed American Rescue Plan Act. Over half of American travelers surveyed believed they would receive some payment from this legislation. Travel looks to certainly benefit from this injection of money into citizen’s hands, as 38.3% of those who have or are expecting a stimulus check say they are likely to spend some portion of it on leisure travel. This is even more prevalent among Millennial age travelers, who are, in fact, twice as likely as Boomer age travelers to spend their stimulus money on travel (48.4% vs 24.9%).

     

     

    With nearly two-thirds both in a ready-to-travel mindset and highly open to travel inspiration, Americans are dreaming, planning and booking travel at increasingly higher rates. A 2021 record-high 73.8% of American travelers did some travel planning and dreaming in the last week alone. Day-dreaming about vacationing and talking to people about their future trips were each reported by over one-third of American travelers. Nearly 30% researched travel ideas online. Meanwhile, 15.8% said they made a travel reservation in the last week; of this group, 57.0% booked a hotel room while 42.1% bought airline tickets. In each of the months from May through October, over 20% of American travelers report having at least tentative trip plans.

     

     

    As Americans are feeling far safer with travel than they were just a few months ago, unlike earlier in the pandemic, they are including air travel in their plans. Right now, 43.9% of air travelers deem flying on a commercial airline safe. Over 45% of air travelers say their very next trip by commercial airline will be by the end of Summer. For this next air trip, 42.0% report that they will be flying to a destination over 1,000 miles away for nearly a week on average.

     

     

    Despite feeling safer and increasingly more positive, many Americans do expect a longer-term impact from the pandemic on their travel. Nearly 60% agree that the pandemic has changed their outlook on life overall, with over 20% saying significantly. As a result, 46.9% agree they will put more effort into visiting places on their travel bucket list in the next few years. Many in the travel industry have pondered a more permanent tie to public health—they may be on to something as nearly three-quarters of American travelers agree they will be more safety-conscious while traveling going forward. When asked if the pandemic had changed their opinions about the types of destinations they want to visit for leisure in the future, 41.8% of American travelers said yes, to at least some degree. For beach, National Park and other outdoor destinations, this is welcome news as 52.2% of Americans agree they will be visiting these types of destinations more as a result of the pandemic. Urban, entertainment and theme park-focused destinations will face greater challenges in the recovery, as 44.6% of American travelers report they are less likely to visit these places in the next few years because of the pandemic. In addition, about four-in-ten American travelers expect they will be sticking closer to home and spending less on their leisure travel in the coming years.

     

     

    A complimentary report of these key findings is available for you to download and share.
    …
    You can register for our online presentation of these findings Tuesday at 11:00am EST.
    …
    We appreciate your support of this research from our small but mighty team of devoted tourism researchers. If you would like further and deeper insights from the complete study, you can learn more here. Please consider donating or purchasing to support this research.
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    /by

    Spring Break and Safe Travel: Key Lessons on Managing the Visitor Experience

     

     

    There’s no doubt that marketing a destination is a complex undertaking. And with the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, developing a successful destination marketing strategy came with added challenges. With a second pandemic Spring Break season upon us and a current 14.9% of American travelers who will travel specifically for Spring Break this year, we wanted to hear from traveler marketers from some of the most in-demand Spring Break destinations.

    As part of our March 16th industry update webinar, Katie Parrish, Marketing Intelligence Analyst at Gulf Shores & Orange Beach Tourism, Leroy Bridges, Vice President of Digital & Communications at Visit St. Pete/Clearwater, Maria Henson, Senior Manager of Market Research & Insights at Visit Orlando and Terence Concannon, President & CEO of Go Lake Havasu joined a fascinating panel discussion led by Destination Analysts’ President & CEO, Erin Francis-Cummings.
     

    You can watch the discussion on valuable lessons about planning for visitors while pandemic safety remains top-of-mind and how safe travel is being marketed right now in this video and find our key takeaways below.

     

     

    What We Learned:

  • Balancing the visitor experience with safety requires DMOs to be proactive in engaging with different, yet equally important, audiences. Industry outreach is imperative for DMOs, who educate local businesses, partners and stakeholders on the programs that are in place to ensure health and safety. They also guide this key audience around preparation for the upcoming influx of visitors. Local residents are another important audience for DMOs to engage with. DMOs must take the initiative to show local residents the specific measures that are being taken to prioritize the health and safety of the community and gain their buy-in for Spring Break visitors. And when it comes to potential visitors, marketing gets the safety message out. Communicating local safety protocols and expectations of visitors, as well as delivering the message that travel can be fun and responsible in a controlled environment are essential to ultimately balancing the visitor experience with safety.
  • “We’re ready when you are” is an effective message in demonstrating the important work of DMOs. During our December 8th consumer panel about leisure travel in 2021, we learned that travelers want to be wooed. Gently. And DMOs are indeed doing this. Soft messaging around “We’re ready when you are” and “You’re welcome here” has been a successful marketing best practice for many DMOs, including Visit Orlando and Gulf Shores and Orange Beach Tourism. Images of social distancing and wide open spaces, communicating current safety protocols and demonstrating what visitors can expect in-market have all been part of the larger “We’re ready when you are” message—a message that is very much tied to the DMO’s important work of making travelers feel safe and confident in their decisions to visit a destination and in managing the visitor experience.
  • Consider opportunities to reward good behavior. In the case of Visit St. Pete/Clearwater, the DMO instituted the Rise to Shine Pledge. Potential visitors take the pledge to be safe and courteous during their trip and are then entered to win an ultimate beach getaway to the destination. The DMO developed another program in which its on-the-ground street team went around the destination emphasizing the importance of masking up, social distancing and doing the right thing. In turn, visitors who complied with safety protocols in-market were awarded with $25 gift cards. On top of efforts to ensure safety and gain buy-in from both visitors and locals alike, Visit St. Pete/Clearwater experienced the added benefit of positive media coverage.
  • Communicating the value of tourism is key to managing local resident sentiment. While appreciation for spring break visitors, and tourism overall, may vary from destination to destination, demonstrating the importance of tourism and its benefits is instrumental in fostering community support. In addition to showing local residents that they are a priority and that DMOs are taking responsibility to keep the community safe, showing the extent of the local economy that is driven by tourism—such as the businesses patronized by visitors and the jobs sustained by tourism—undoubtedly plays a role in getting residents on board with and supportive of visitors traveling to the destination.
    • /by