Faith Tourism and Timeshare Use Bring Strength to U.S. Economy PART 1 November 11, 2008
Posted by Bryan Connelly in : ARDA, Customer Comments, General, New Features, News & Events, Timeshare Rental, Timeshare Resale, Timeshare Resource, Travel , trackbackTourism in the U.S. doesn’t bring to mind huge economic importance—but in today’s rough times, every penny counts. The U.S. tourism industry is fast becoming an area of interest, with a lot of potential in some divine areas. Who better to save the travel sector than religion? Faith Tourism, or traveling for religious enlightenment, makes up a surprising amount of world travelers to and from the United States.
Figures that concern the U.S Department of Commerce is the estimated decline in U.S. bound travelers by 1.6 percent in 2009. By the end of 2011, it is projected that overseas arrival will not exceed the record levels in 2000. As the dollar gains strength and the global economy cools, the need to make America more attractive to international travelers is growing. The U.S. Government is helping the tourism industry in hopes that sparking international interest will help our disposition.
Most people that travel today, get to those destinations by renting a timeshare resort anywhere across the country. Many are traveling beyond the U.S. and recent reports indicate that folks are traveling to churches and historical sites. Travel Industry Association (TIA) has a cooperative agreement with the Department of Commerce to create the nation’s first official travel and tourism website. Discoveramerica.com has already logged over 1million minutes of research by travelers worldwide and more than 1.1milllion page views in the first three months of operation.
Roger J. Dow, president and CEO of the TIA said “we are welcoming more international visitors—who spend as much a $4,000 per traveler, per visit. It’s critical to strengthen the American Economy.†To attract tourism the dept of commerce has launched 6 websites designed for English, French, Spanish, Japanese and German languages rich content in dozens of popular U.S. cities and all 50 states and 5 U.S. territories with hundreds of attractions and activities. 5 nations, Japanese, Germany, United Kingdom, Canada and Mexico generate 75% of all inbound travel.
According to the Office of Travel and Tourism Industries, part of the U.S. Department of Commerce, the number of U.S. residents venturing beyond the U.S. and Canada and Mexico increased by 3.6% between 2006 and 2007. The number traveling for religious reasons grew by 7.4%. TIA reports North American religious travel market, which accounts for moth than ½ of the global faith-tourism industry’s annually turnover of about $18 billion.
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