Fresh Destination Marketing Initiatives

A selection which we find representative of the current global tourism and travel market trends.

UK focuses on GREAT “Holidays at Home”

Wallace and Gromit, the Nick Park-created animation duo, are to star in a £4m UK tourism campaign, appearing in a TV advert designed to inspire Britons to take holidays in their own country.

The pair, who will also feature in cinemas, will be seen on their travels, discovering what tourist chiefs describe as “the best of the UK”.

The campaign forms part of “Holidays at Home are GREAT“, a pan-UK Government-funded strategy which launched last year.

Designed to boost domestic tourism, the campaign aims to raise £80 million in additional tourism spend and more than a million overnight stays.

The £4m integrated campaign, led by VisitEngland, and supported by the home nation tourist boards of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will see Wallace and Gromit take to the road exploring the country and discovering the best of the UK (including some top spots for elite cheese tasting).  The Government funded campaign, ‘Great Adventure’, aims to inspire Britons to book a holiday through their local travel agent.

VisitEngland is working with a number of high street travel agents and operators across the country who will be putting together exciting British holiday packages for Wallace and Gromit and the rest of their customers.

More: www.visitengland.com 

New York Launches its Largest Tourism Campaign ever

At the conclusion of the first New York State Tourism Summit, where hundreds of tourism experts gathered in Albany to discuss ideas and new ways to bring tourists to every corner of the state, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced the launch of the states largest tourism campaign ever.

After discussions with tourism experts and hearing the concerns and ideas of local and international tourism officials, the governor announced a series of initiatives designed to make New York the tourism capital of the world:

Highest Level of Tourism Funding in Decades: Cuomo announced the state would invest nearly $60 million in tourism funding – the highest level of tourism funding in decades.

New I Love NY Marketing Campaign with Port Authority and MTA to Promote Upstate NY Tourism Destinations: Under the partnership announced, The MTA and Port Authority will provide $2 million worth of advertising space on subways, bus and commuter rail systems and at airport arrival points and kiosks to promote Upstate tourism.

• The MTA/I Love NY Partnership will result in more 7,000 advertising spaces throughout the MTA subway, bus and commuter rail systems. In addition, the MTA and I Love NY will co-brand railroad destination and getaway packages to Long Island and Hudson Valley beaches, wineries, parks and attractions.

• The Port Authority/I Love NY Partnership will result in advertising at the Port Authority’s most important travel hubs and services and more than 20 indoor and outdoor print/digital advertising resources at the Port Authority bus terminal, including high-visibility column wraps.

• Additional Airline and Airport Partnerships: As the first entry point for many travelers and tourists, the governor announced new initiatives to welcome visitors to the Empire State and inform them about the state’s many assets and attractions. This will include on-site greeters and welcome centers at New York’s airports. The governor also announced the state’s airports will feature Taste NY. Additionally, Delta Airlines will start featuring I Love NY advertisements in its in-flight magazine starting this month.

NYS Sports and Special Events Commission: The state will create a sports and special events commission. The commission will be charged with recruiting sporting and other special events to venues across the state – and competing for part of the $600 billion global sports tourism industry.

New Welcome Centers at Border and Interstate Crossings: The centers will serve as hubs of information about the state’s tourism assets and attractions. New signs showcasing local attractions will also be strategically placed at these border and interstate crossings.

New Taste NY Marketing Efforts: As announced, Taste NY products will be sold at strategically located rest stops across the state.

International Tourism Campaign: From Asia to South America: The governor announced an international tourism campaign – I Love NY Asia / I Love NY South America – that will invite people overseas to the Empire State and have a presence in emerging markets such as China and Brazil.

New Tourism Information for Decision-Makers: Empire State Development will be a clearinghouse for tourism metrics, offering New York’s businesses a place to go for information on how to best market to visitors and attract tourists.

I Love NY in Times Square: The Times Square Alliance has agreed to give the state space at the Visitors Center to help market state attractions to the millions of tourists who pass through Times Square every year.

I Love NY LGBT: The governor announced an I Love NY LGBT niche tourism initiative to market New York to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender community, which accounts for approximately $70 billion in tourism spending in the U.S. every year.

More: www.iloveny.com

Chile’s New International Campaign

A new campaign for the international tourism promotion of Chile was launched by the Subsecretaría de Turismo and Turismo Chile, the institution responsible for the promotion of Chile in international markets, as part of the events at World Travel Market (WTM) in Latin America.

Geographical, climatic and cultural contrasts play a fundamental role in this campaign, which promotes the diversity of activities in which to take part in Chile, such as trekking in the Parque Nacional Torres del Paine national park, one of the best nature destinations in the world, rafting down rivers surrounded by ancient forests and towering volcanoes, skiing the best slopes in the continent with the Andes as a backdrop, or experiencing the ancient culture of Rapa Nui on the remote Easter Island.

The images within the new promotional materials seek for a way of communication that is more focused on the traveler’s experience of the landscape and use, in addition, messages with humor and irony in order to engage a more diverse audience, conveying the essence of the local culture. Furthermore, it is based on the framework of the plan to promote Chile abroad, which has six experiences: Natural Inspiration, Adventure and Sport, Culture and Heritage, Flavors and Wine, Health and Wellbeing, and Urban Life.

The new images will start to be exhibited in all the markets that have been established as priorities: Argentina, Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Germany, France, Spain, England, the USA, Mexico and Australia.

More: chiletourism.travel

Staycations to the rescue – Your destination needs you!

“Jordan is Beautiful” for Jordanians as well

Jordanians planning to spend their vacations in the country can avail of discounted offers at tourism sites across the Kingdom under the “Jordan is Beautiful” campaign that was launched in April.

Organised by the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities in cooperation with the Federation of Tourism Associations, the campaign will provide offers all year-round, according to Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Haifa Abu Ghazaleh.

The campaign provides 26 programmes with the aim of promoting domestic tourism and encouraging Jordanians to spend their holidays in the Kingdom. Abu Ghazaleh noted that information about these programmes can be viewed on the ministry’s new website http://www.tourism.jo.

Ministry of Tourism Secretary General Issa Gammoh noted that the programmes will be reviewed every two months and a new list of programmes will be announced. He added that the ministry is currently working on a project to develop services in tourist sites. “We want to establish an administration to run tourism sites through conducting surveys to define the required services at each site to be implemented through investors,” he said.

Gammoh explained that investments will be open to interested local, Arab and foreign investors. Meanwhile, Shafiq Hayek, head of the Tourist Transportation Association, said the association is committed to providing sufficient means of transport for the campaign. He noted that in case of any shortage due to outbound tourism, the association will rent vehicles from other companies.

Source: www.jordanembassyus.org

British Columbia’s “Don’t miss a moment” campaign

The BC’s ‘Don’t Miss a Moment’ new tourism marketing campaign encourages North Americans to visit B.C. this spring and summer. It focuses on the key markets of B.C., Washington State, Alberta, Ontario and California and runs until the end of September.

The campaign uses online and print advertising and search engine marketing to guide people to special offers, trip ideas and itineraries on HelloBC.com. It also uses social media, travel media relations and partnerships with online travel agencies like Expedia and Travelocity.

The campaign features ‘B.C.’s Great Vacation Giveaway,’ a contest that offers people a chance to win a personalized B.C. vacation worth $20,000. A 30-second television spot will also air across the province, showcasing B.C.’s wide variety of vacation experiences. The spot is designed to encourage British Columbians to travel within the province and enjoy provincial parks this summer during BC Parks’ 100^th anniversary celebrations.

B.C. residents make up the single largest group of travellers in the province and represented roughly 52 per cent of all travellers within B.C. in 2009.

Pat Bell, Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation: “We are committed to supporting a strong tourism industry in our province, which means jobs for British Columbians – and that’s good for B.C. families. This campaign builds on the increased attention B.C. received as a result of the 2010 Olympic Games and promotes all the regions of the province. This year we are putting an increased focus on special offers and trip ideas for travellers, which will promote B.C. as an affordable destination and motivate people to visit.”

Source: www2.news.gov.bc.ca

Fraser Coast launches Staycation scheme

Fraser Coast Regional Council has announced a partnership with media supporters the Fraser Coast Chronicle and Channel Seven to promote the highly successful Fraser Coast Staycations scheme.

During a 25-week period, starting May 2011, the region’s two largest media outlets will support Council’s marketing initiatives by implementing a $100,000 multi-media campaign to boost the Fraser Coast economy.  The Fraser Coast Chronicle and Channel 7 are jointly providing the campaign free of charge to the Fraser Coast.

Supporting editorial, multi-media coverage and an extensive advertisement series will help raise consumer awareness of Fraser Coast Staycations and increase resident sign up and business take up of the scheme.

Staycations rewards residents for spending locally by offering discounts and deals from regional businesses and attractions. It offers residents generous incentives to holiday, shop and dine locally and encourages visiting friends and relatives to lengthen their stay and spend more while in the region.

Fraser Coast Mayor Mick Kruger says the Fraser Coast Regional Council initiative is becoming a major economic driver for this region.“Staycations provides all regional businesses – not only the tourism industry – an opportunity to leverage off a proven formula that provides benefits for all,” Cr Kruger said. “It helps stimulate regional business by encouraging residents to explore and spend in their backyard.” “Staycations is a win-win for both Fraser Coast businesses and residents as it allows local businesses to promote their products and services through great deals that encourage residents to holiday and shop locally.”

Council’s revamped Staycations “locals” campaign has had an extremely successful start. In just a few short weeks of the campaign there have been over 4,470 new registrations bringing the membership to more than 10,000 active cardholders. In addition, over 10,000 visitors to the campaign website have accessed 61,000 pages of information on regional businesses and their special Staycations offers.

Source: www.frasercoast.qld.gov.au

Related link: Check out what we wrote a year ago:

https://aboutourism.wordpress.com/2010/05/27/staycations-much-more-than-a-trend/

Staycations: Much more than a trend..

A staycation, (a term which was only recently added to the 2009 version of the Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary) according to The New York Times, is “a neologism used by [those] who prefer to unravel the mysteries of the world from the comfort of their living room couches.”  Staycations have achieved high popularity in the US during the financial crisis of 2007–2010 in which unemployment levels and gas prices were quite high. However, the long-lasting global economic crisis and its impact on the tourism industry caused a lot of skepticism to the travel industry and made a lot of analysts to  believe that staycations is not just a trend but a ssocial phenomeno which is here to stay. To this direction  Sarah Sharma (M/C Journal, Vol. 12, No. 1 (2009) points out that:

”The emergence of the Staycation occurred precisely at a time when American citizens were confronted with the reality that their mobility and localities, including their relationship to domestic space, were structurally bound to larger geopolitical forces. The Staycation was an invention deployed by various interlocutors most threatened by the political possibilities inherent in stillness. The family home was catapulted into the circuits of production, consumption, and exchange. Big TV and Big Box stores furthered individual’s unease towards having to stay at home by discursively constructing the gas prices as an impediment to a happy domestic life and an affront to the American born right to be mobile. What was reinforced was that Americans ideally should be moving, but could not. Yet, at the same time it was rather un-American not to travel. The Staycation was couched in a powerful rhetoric of one’s moral duty to the nation while playing off of middle class anxieties and senses of privilege regarding the right to be mobile and the freedom to consume. The Staycation satiates all of these tensions by insisting that the home can become a somewhere else.”

Throughout the 2007-2010 period, lifestyle experts, representatives from major retailers, and avid Staycationers filled morning slots on ABC, NBC, FOX, CBS, and CNN with Staycation tips. CNN highlighted the Staycation as a “1^st Issue” in their Weekend Report on 12 June 2008 (Alban). Throughout the summer ABC News’ homepage included links to specific products and profiled hotels, such as Hiltons and Holiday Inns, where families could at least get a few miles away from home (Leamy). USA Today, in an article about retailers and the Staycation, reported that Wal-Mart would be “rolling back prices on everything from mosquito repellent to portable DVD players to baked beans and barbecue sauce”. US media continued to build over the staycation phenomenon by gradually connecting it with all major issues of our days including the global financial downturn and the global warming. As Shara Sarma succesfully points out:

“‘Playing on the American democratic ideals of freedom of mobility and activating one’s identity as a consumer left little room to re-think how life in constant motion (moving capital, moving people, moving information, and moving goods) was partially responsible for the energy crisis in the first place. Instead, staying at home became a way for the American citizen to support the floundering economy while waiting for gas prices to go back down.  And, one wouldn’t have to look that much further to see that the Staycation slips discursively into a renewed mission for a just cause – the environment. For example, ABC launched at the end of the summer a ruse of a national holiday, “National Stay at Home Week” with the tag line: “With gas prices so high, the economy taking a nosedive and global warming, it’s just better to stay in and enjoy great ABC TV.”  It comes as no shock that none of the major networks covered this as an environmental issue or an important moment for transformation. In fact, the air conditioning units in backyard tents attest to quite the opposite. Instead, the overwhelming sense was of a nation waiting at home for it all to be over. Soon real life would resume and everyone could get moving again.”

In the other side of the Atlantic and UK in specific, VisitEngland announced a couple of weeks ago its findings from the first significant research into the staycation phenomenon . Tourism statistics indicate that in 2009, England enjoyed an 18 per cent increase in the number of holiday trips taken with holiday makers spending £1bn more than in the previous year. The research discovered that the uplift in tourism last year has helped awaken a latent pride in England as a holiday destination, and as a result, in the longer term, almost half the population expect to take more domestic breaks then than they did in the past.

The research identified two groups who changed their behaviour in 2009 to generate the uplift in domestic holidays. Together, these two groups, the ‘Staycationers’, account for one in four of the population. One group ‘Switchers’ accounted for 13 per cent of respondents and included a high proportion of families. This group was primarily motivated to ‘switch’ a foreign holiday for one at home because of financial constraints.

The second group, ‘Extras’, accounted for 15 per cent of respondents and tended to be younger, and were more likely to be single. This group was less affected by the credit crunch and their economic situation and was more motivated by a desire to explore the UK and go somewhere new. In addition to more domestic breaks they also took more overseas breaks.

The quality of experience has certainly led those who took a holiday at home last year to consider including England as part of their holiday mix this year. 86 per cent of Staycationers (those groups that the research identified as responsible for the uplift) described their holiday experience as ‘excellent’ or ‘very good’, and 80 per cent described their break as ‘excellent’ or ‘very good’ value. Over half said their holiday was better value than the overseas holiday it replaced.

Findings from this research show that 90 per cent of Staycationers expect to take at least one break in England this year. Some people will choose to travel abroad again when they can afford it, but with half the population expecting that they will take more domestic breaks even beyond 2010, the year of the staycation seems likely to have a longer term impact for English Tourism.

James Berresford Chief Executive VisitEngland said: These findings prove that England’s new found popularity as a holiday destination is not merely a flash in the pan. Of course, circumstances last year certainly encouraged more Brits to take a break at home, however this research shows that there is a more permanent shift in attitudes to holidaying at home. It’s a hugely rewarding experience to rediscover your own country and it’s clear that once you do, you want to do it again and again.’

He goes on to say: ‘England is a wonderful destination. We have some of the world’s best countryside, coast line, cities, festivals and people – literally on our doorstep! With so much on offer to see and do I’m not surprised England is becoming more and more popular with Brits as a top class holiday destination.’

The research was carried out over two stages. In an initial quantitative stage ,1000 adults aged 18+ were interviewed about their attitudes to the credit crunch, their holiday behaviour in 2009 and their plans for 2010. A qualitative stage followed with 8 group discussions in London, Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds among respondents with a variety of opinions towards domestic breaks. (click here for the full report)

To conclude, the staycation phenomenon is just one example of a behavioral shift caused by a rapidly changing travel cost structure. Certain destinations are experiencing stronger staycation interest than others, but with a an international increase in major tourism markets and no foreseeable reprieve from high gas prices & other effects of the financial crisis it looks like the staycation isn’t going anywhere any time soon.