Interactive Websites + Value = Tourists

During the February long weekend, I spent 19 hours in a car. The real purpose of my trip was to visit my best friend, who is currently pursuing an Ivy League education. Because Yale just over an hour outside of NYC, I figured it was only appropriate to make a one-day pit stop to do some shopping, go out on the town and, of course, have a romantic Valentine's Day in The City That Never Sleeps.

After going to Las Vegas and seeing firsthand how the economy was suffering, I was curious to see if The Big Apple was in the same boat. I've been to NYC once before in 2007 and I remember it being a lot busier but I think there were some valid reasons. Firstly, it was summer. Secondly, it wasn't during a recession. Thirdly, it was during the week of Independence Day.

NYC seemed a little quiet when we drove in on Saturday morning, but by the afternoon I was wondering where all the tourists came from. I couldn't help but wonder if they, too, flocked to the city for a romantic weekend getaway.

Because our road trip was spontaneous, we didn't book any hotels or have any plans in advance. Luckily, we found a hotel in Times Square and got a dinner reservation at The Mercer Kitchen in Soho (after the concierge phoned 20 places). If I had known about this site, it would have made our trip planning more seamless.

Until I read this article, I was unaware that NYC had unveiled a $1.8 million visitor centre just a stone’s throw from Times Square. The centre, along with an interactive website, nycgo.com, enables visitors to create custom travel plans with state-of-the-art touch screen technology. This initiative was carried out by NYC & Company, the city’s marketing and tourism arm.

While this swanky new tourist centre may be great once you're in the city, it doesn’t help lure tourists to the city. The website, however, does. It not only promotes positive messages about the city to distant locations, but shows package deals, discounts and a plethora of other fun activities. Focusing on value is key for attracting international visitors during the recession and that’s why I think destinations should be investing money in tourist-centric websites as opposed to blowing budgets on tourist centres.

During this downwards slump in the tourism industry, destinations need to focus on bringing travelers in before anything else. What better way to accomplish this by launching a website or implementing another social media tactic. Your thoughts?

This is What Vegas is Like During a Recession

What’s it like going to one of the most popular tourist destinations in a recession? Fun, affordable and absolutely vacant.

Although this was my first time in Las Vegas, it wasn’t hard for me to tell just how badly the economy was affecting its tourism. The hotel check-in lines were completely empty as were the shows and casinos. The Strip was also undergoing a large construction project that will most likely delayed. Did I mention I went on Super Bowl Weekend—supposedly one of the busiest weekends in Vegas?

During one of my numerous cab rides up and down The Strip, I asked the driver “So, has it been busy?” The cab driver, who had moved from New York City ten years ago to support the city’s booming tourism, pithily replied, “When you can drive up and down The Strip this fast, things aren’t good.” According to her, some hotels are going bankrupt and the only person she thinks will keep afloat in the sea of economic uncertainty is Steve Wynn.

Wynn, a multi-billionaire casino developer who has slowly taken over Las Vegas, recently opened his newest hotel, Encore, on Dec. 22, 2008. However, given the economy, the opening was much more subdued than previous ones. I took a stroll through Encore and if I could sum it up in one word it would be “palatial.” Encore houses some of the world’s most lavish restaurants, shops and entertainment. Although the lack of tourism isn’t great for the local economy, it sure is for the tourists.

Even though I was only in Vegas for the weekend, I attended the private Miller Lite Super Bowl party with some friends who had been there in previous years. Like the opening of Wynn’s newest hotel and resort, the party (according to them) was much more modest. It had all the free food and drinks anyone could ever dream of, but was much more intimate in terms of how many people were actually there. Miller Lite also scaled back on swag. Tough times call for tough measures.

After getting back from my trip, I did some research about how Vegas brands itself as a tourist destination and came across this. In response to the economic downturn, Las Vegas trashed its “What Happens in Vegas” campaign for a new one—“Vegas Bound.” This new campaign features real people from Cranfills Gap, Texas who venture to Vegas for a funfilled vacation.

Blogger Grant Johnson ponders if a tagline can really make a difference in terms of generating business. He writes: “Why not ditch the ‘Vegas Bound’ tag and really drive home the value people can get. “Vegas: The best vacation bargain around!” Sexy, heck no. Effective? With the right subhead and testimonials and pricing packages featured it sure would be.” Maybe Vegas just needs to hear what prospective tourists want and create some new key messages.

After being in this downwards slump for a few months, maybe Vegas tourism has decided to shuffle things around. I was speaking to a friend today who is going there in a few weeks and for two people, a roundtrip flight and accommodations at a 4.5 star hotel for a week, it’s slightly over $1,000 CDN.

So, what is the best solution for popular tourist destinations, like Las Vegas, in this economy? Or is there one? Or is it just a big waiting game?

Venturing to Vegas

In the words of Elvis Presley, “Viva Las Vegas!” On Thursday night I’ll be flying there for the weekend. It’ll be my first time.

I mentioned in my previous post that I’ve done more traveling this year than ever before—partly because it’s so affordable. The current economic state has presented many challenges, especially for the travel and tourism industry.

Every morning while I’m perusing the paper, I see countless ads for discount travel companies like itravel2000. My inbox is also flooded with e-mails from Air Canada coaxing me to see the latest discounts. And I do. From a consumer standpoint, their strategies and tactics have worked. I visited the Bahamas in December and will be going to New York City in February.

During my recent trip to the Bahamas, I really noticed how much the economy was hurting. This popular Caribbean destination, normally oozing with families during the holidays, was more like a ghost town.

Vegas is, no doubt, a hot travel destination and the cost to visit is at an all time low. While doing research for my trip, I came across this. The site, which is the largest of its kind in the world, is embracing social media to keep up with the “pace of change” and is probably reaching more consumers than ever before. Vegas.com is “always open” for potential visitors and has Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Flikr and MySpace. Site visitors can now feel like they’re in Vegas without leaving their desk chairs. Talk about being connected.

So, this is my question: Does social media contribute to increased tourism in a plunging economy? I’ll have to report back with my findings and let you know if Elvis’s words are still true.