Welcome to the TravelTalkMEDIA and Happy New Year
We ended 2013 on high notes in our industry with travel thriving in every realm. On a personal note, I was named one of the top 20 travel bloggers by USA Today. Honored for the mention I invite you all to visit my blog and add your comments.
Travel Conferences and Exhibits are attended in record numbers in 2013
World Travel Market London 2013 photo by Sandy Dhuyvetter
Jobs in the industry were one of our top topics in 2013 on TravelTalkRADIO and BusinessTravelRADIO. We found that business travel and leisure travel both offered opportunities to those looking for fulfilling careers. Perhaps the biggest growth we found was in meetings and incentive travel. Thanks to organizations like ACTE, the Association of Corporate Travel Executives who offer worldwide education and advocacy of managed travel, we see unprecedented opportunity for those who want to work in hospitality. EIBTM another massive organization verified that thread with interviews with the leaders including Graeme Barnett, Senior Exhibition Director, Reed Travel Exhibitions.
The doors to new jobs are opening for every age and with varied backgrounds, and many travel organizations are projecting a fruitful 2014. We see that leisure travelers have packed their bags and continue to book International tickets in record numbers. The US Travel Association who strive for relevancy with perpetual displeasure with US travel numbers despite what the U.S. Department of Commerce Office of Travel and Tourism Indusries report to be legitimate gain. We cannot dispute what the United National World Tourism Organization has maintained that the numbers are indeed positive. In the first nine months of 2013, international tourism grew by 5% according to the latest UNWTO World Tourism Barometer.
The number of international tourist arrivals reported by destinations around the world increased by some 41 million between January and September, growing above UNWTO’s initial forecast and creating an important stimulus to the receiving economies. In fact, even the US Travel Organization released one of their most positive statements yet by saying “Since the economic recovery began in early 2010, the travel industry has created jobs at a 12 percent faster pace than the rest of the economy, and has already made up 91 percent of the jobs lost during the recession compared to just 78 percent of jobs for the rest of the economy, proving yet again that travel is a significant driver of our economy’s growth and a leader in America job creation.”
Whether you are a travel buyer, a leisure traveler, one of our road warriors or an arm chair traveler, we invite you to jump on in, listen, partake, and stay connected with our programming, our blog and our network of social media.
So, let’s buckle up because keeping it under 90 is going to be hard to do in 2014.
Happy Travels and thanks for joining us,
Sandy Dhuyvetter
Executive Producer and Host
program@traveltalkmedia.com
