Cruisers getting free hotels in Maine
Maine’s just-started 2006 cruise season has something new: business card-size vouchers good for a free night at select lodging places.
The vouchers are part of a new program called “Free-Stay Maine.”
Organizers hope to hand out 100,000 of the vouchers to encourage repeat visitors.
Tourism is the state’s largest industry but visitation has been flat for the past five years, according to news reports. So officials are looking at non-traditional ways to attract new and repeat business.
The cruise passengers are particularly desirable visitors because they typically have high-average incomes. More than two thirds in a study said they wanted to return to the state.
“We’re getting passengers and tourists from non-traditional market areas, so we want them to come back,” said Amy Powers, director of CruiseMaine, the coalition conducting the program.
A typical hotel room in Bar Harbor is worth anywhere from $100 to $300, tourist officials said.
Report by David Wilkening
David
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Qatar Airways offers reduced timetable to over 60 destinations
Hands In, UATP join forces for airline multi-card payments
AirlineRatings reveals world's safest airline rankings for 2026
Vietnam warns airlines of possible flight reductions amid jet fuel shortages
Fliggy opens AI-powered travel bookings and developer tools