After 9/11, there was a real shift toward family-oriented travel. Visiting small-town America became more popular as people were looking for a piece of Americana. You have your big all-American cities, but the majority of the country is small areas with fun events and cultural traditions that are a draw these days. |
Aquariums are popular because they fill what people are looking for in a vacation. There has been a trend toward family-oriented vacations and traditional type of vacations. People also want their vacations to have an educational component that is disguised as fun. When you are doing a big downtown revitalization project, it makes sense to have a flagship attraction that you can build around. |
For a lot of people, it's become a chance to take a week-long vacation. |
Historically, gas prices alone have not discouraged people from taking summer trips. You'll see more people driving because it's still cheaper than flying. |
If anything, people tend to modify their travel plans before canceling them. |
If we remain stable this fall, that's not necessarily a bad thing. You're still talking the highest numbers we've ever seen. |
If we remain stable this fall, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. You’re still talking the highest numbers we’ve ever seen, |
In the fourth quarter of 2005, we saw a slowdown, and we're seeing that slowdown continue into the first quarter of 2006. |
It looks like we'll probably sustain $3 a gallon gas throughout the summer. |
It's a phenomenon, and it has really taken hold in the industry, ... It really brings people into some of the smaller areas, the rural areas that are not like first-tier destinations. |
It's had a big impact on the economy, especially as conventions have had to relocate. But by the end of the year, I think we are going to see recovery workers leaving and more venues opening up. I don't think tourists are going to give up on the city for long. |
It’s a phenomenon, and it has really taken hold in the industry, ... It really brings people into some of the smaller areas, the rural areas that are not like first-tier destinations. |
Most people make plans about a month before they travel. We haven't seen any anecdotal evidence showing people are canceling plans for the weekend, ... Americans have gotten used to terror alerts after having gone through the drill before. I think the difference now is that people do want to get away and they're putting more importance to that than being holed up in the house in fear. |
That's natural, though, based on the phenomenal growth in '05. |
There are definitely more people traveling. And they might not be spending more on each trip, but they are definitely taking more trips. |