> Tourism Highlights
> 
> Tourism Highlights are compiled weekly by the Tourism Reference and
> Documentation Centre (TRDC) of the Canadian Tourism Commission.  For more
> information, contact the Reference Desk of the TRDC at : tel (613)
> 954-3943 fax (613) 954-3945 or e-mail [log in to unmask]
> 
> Tourism Highlights is also posted in: www.ctc-ctx.com under Information
> Exchange in the "Tourism News" section.
> 
> __________________________________________________________________________
> 
> 
> Points Saillants Touristiques
> 
> Les Points saillants touristiques sont compilés chaque semaine par le
> Centre de référence et de documentation touristique (CRDT) de la
> Commission canadienne du tourisme. Pour plus d'information, veuillez
> contacter le service de référence de la CRDT au: tél: (613) 954-3943,
> téléc: (613) 954-3945 ou par courrier électronique:  [log in to unmask]
> 
> Les Points saillants touristiques sont aussi disponibles sur le réseaux:
> www.ctc-ctx.com sous Information Exchange dans la section de "Tourism
> News". Pour le moment, choisissez "English" à la premiere page du CTX.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> AMERICAN AIRLINES AND BRITISH AIRWAYS LAUNCH GLOBAL ALLIANCE
> 
> "American Airlines and British Airways have launched a global alliance
> with Canadian Airlines International, Qantas of Australia and Hong
> Kong-based Cathay Pacific Airways. Company executives in London say the
> new grouping, called ''oneworld, '' will be expanded to include other
> airlines covering the entire globe. The oneworld group will directly
> compete with the existing six-member Star Alliance group formed by United
> Air Lines, Germany's Lufthansa, Air Canada, SAS Scandinavian, Thailand's
> Thai Airways and Brazil's Varig. BA officials say talks are continuing
> with Iberia of Spain and Finnair, the Finnish flag-carrier, and
> negotiations have also been held with Japan Air Lines."
> UP,  Monday, September 21, 1998
> 
> CANADIAN CASINOS ADDING RESORTS
> 
> "Casinos across North America are reinventing themselves as resorts,
> hoping to attract tourists looking for more than just a visit with Lady
> Luck. In Canada, several casinos are adding hotels, showrooms, golf
> courses and spas. They're taking the lead from Las Vegas which is poised
> to change more in the next two years than at any time in its history,
> tourism officials say.  A recent survey shows 50 per cent of leisure
> travellers feel Vegas is an entertainment destination while 48 per cent
> say it's primarily for gambling."
> The Vancouver Sun, Section TRAVEL, Page D16_/_FRONT, Tuesday, September
> 22, 1998
> 
> GAMBLING FACTS
> 
> -Nearly 5 million Canadians have gambled in the past 3 months...
> -About 1 in 4 gamblers are 35-49. But 18-24s are more likely to gamble...
> -Gambling is most popular in Manitoba and Saskatchewan
> -Gamblers attend most pro sports, but they're really off to the races!
> -Among gamblers, 4 in 10 go to casinos and about 1 in 3 use VLTs...
> Marketing Research, September 14, 1998, p. 28
> 
> HIGH TORONTO HOTEL TAXES 
> 
> "Toronto's hotels bring in $1.2 billion to the local economy, but hotel
> owners still have trouble making a buck, a new industry survey says.
> Despite booming business, particularly from visiting Americans, ``there is
> a need to improve the economic environment,'' said Rod Seiling, president
> of the Greater Toronto Hotel Association. ``Property taxes on hotels (in
> Toronto) are the highest in North America - not just the highest in
> Canada,'' he added. ``For 25 years, hotels have been subsidizing the rest
> of the city.'' The association, which represents 132 hotels in Greater
> Toronto, released its survey of the local industry, prepared by the KPMG
> accounting firm."
> The Toronto Star, Section BUSINESS, Page D1, Wednesday, September 23, 1998
> 
> HONG KONG TOURISM ON THE RISE
> 
> "Hong Kong's tourism industry continued to show signs of improvement in
> August with the number of visitor arrivals hitting the highest level since
> May 1997, figures released Monday showed. The Hong Kong Tourism
> Association said 859,310 visitors came to Hong Kong in August, up 4.9
> percent on the previous year. It is the second consecutive monthly
> increase in tourist arrivals after nearly a year of steady declines,
> providing one of the few bright spots for the local economy. Visitors from
> mainland China continued to be the biggest growth market, with tourist
> numbers rising 35 percent.The big increase is due in part to a 30 percent
> rise in the tour group quota and compares with a low base last year when
> travel from China was restricted over the handover period."
> Associated Press, Monday, September 21, 1998
> 
> 
> WORLDWIDE RESEARCH ALLIANCE FORMED
> 
> "The PricewaterhouseCoopers lodging and gaming group and Smith Travel
> Research have signed a definitive agreement to form an unprecedented
> worldwide alliance for lodging industry research.
> Under terms of the deal signed by PricewaterhouseCoopers lodging and
> gaming chairman Bjorn
> Hanson, Ph.D., and Smith Travel Research CEO Randy Smith, the
> organizations will cooperate to
> collect and report hotel industry operating data in at least 20 countries
> outside of North America.
> The agreement is expected to produce the world's largest and most
> comprehensive database of
> lodging industry information ever assembled. The alliance's research
> product will be available to
> customers and clients of STR and PricewaterhouseCoopers and to anyone who
> requires the best
> available worldwide data for the lodging industry."
> PR Newswire, 23 Sep 1998
> 
> TRAVEL SOLD ON THE INTERNET INCREASING
> 
> "This year US$2.1 billion worth of travel products will be sold on the
> Internet, up from $275 million two years ago.  Travelocity, Sabre's online
> agency, is doing $5 million worth a week; 22% of active, adult Web users
> have booked on the Internet, up 49% from six months ago. ... The number of
> people in North America who are online is growing rapidly.  The number is
> now 80 million, up 21 million in nine months.  More than 50% of these are
> between 16 and 34 years of age ... 1-2% of all travel is done on the
> Internet and 50% of that is linked to a travel agency ... by 2002, this
> number is expect to grow to 5-6% of booking, worth some $480 million."
> Travelweek, 10 Sept. 1998, p. 4
> 
> CRUISE SURVEY RESULTS
> 
> "In 1986, a paltry 3.6 percent of Americans had ever taken a cruise, and
> the cruise industry had its work cut out for it. In 1998, 11.3 percent
> have taken a cruise. And while the industry is pleased with the progress
> it's making in introducing the pleasures of cruising to all Americans, it
> still feels it has a lot of growing to do. According to the 1998 Market
> Profile Study sponsored by Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA),
> almost 75 million Americans have indicated a strong desire to take a
> cruise within the next five year ...
> Current cruisers are:
> -- Spread among all age ranges. Twenty-seven percent are under 40 years;
> 45 percent are 40-59, and 28 percent are 60 years or older. The median age
> of current cruisers is 50 years.
> -- Pretty evenly divided between males (46 percent) and females (54
> percent).
> -- Predominantly married (73 percent), although one in four is single.
> -- Less likely than the average vacationer to have children under 18 in
> the family.
> -- Spread among all income ranges, too, with a median income of $58,800.
> One in five earns under $40,000 a year."
> PR Newswire, 23 Sep 1998
> 
> AMEX CANADA RAFLE LE COMPTE DU MINISTERE DE LA DEFENSE
> 
> "Le mardi 1er septembre, American Express (Amex) inaugurait un nouveau
> centre de voyages ultra-moderne conçu expressément pour répondre aux
> besoins du ministère de la Défense nationale. L'ouverture de ce centre a
> créé plus de 70 emplois dans la région d'Ottawa. Le compte du ministère de
> la Défense es le deuxième plus important au Canada.  On estime qu'il
> consacre chaque année entre 40 et 50 M $ au transport aérien et
> ferroviaire commercial."
> Tourisme Plus, 14 septembre 1998, p. 6
> 
> CTC WEBSITE
> 
> "Canadian operators and suppliers may wish to get on-line with the
> Canadian Tourism Commission at their new industry website:
> www.ctc-ctx.com.  This site is available to the entire Canadian tourism
> industry and offers networking opportunities, job postings, direct web
> links, forums, and industry news ... The more Canadian industry partners
> we get on-line, the more worthwhile the site will be ... that's
> www.ctc-ctx.com."
> Courier (National Tour Association), Sept. 1998, p. 10
> 
>