While the economy slowly rights itself—and I do mean slowly—the U.S. hospitality industry may take a bit of comfort in the recent signing of the Travel Promotion Act. While not the cure-all for everything that ails us, the fact that the government is placing a priority on promoting tourism is certainly a move in the positive direction.
Having recently traveled to Tupelo to attend the Mississippi Governor’s Conference on Tourism, I can attest to how front-and-center the issue of the economy is. The opening general session speaker, Caroline Beteta, president and CEO of the California Travel & Tourism Commission and chair of the U.S. Travel Association, said that we are starting to see a slow recovery, and that international travel to the U.S. could be back on a record pace by 2013. Not a reason to start singing "Happy Days Are Here Again," but once again, a move in the right direction.
Check out our story on the Mississippi Governor’s Conference on Tourism on the news page, and make sure to access some video content shot at the event in the digital edition, available on MeetingsFocus.com, for even more perspective both on the hospitality industry and the prodigious cultural tourism offerings available in the Magnolia State.
In the words of Tupelo native son Elvis Presley, "Thankya very much."
