Weathering the Storm in the US
The US hospitality industry will take an even harder hit in 2009, according to a new forecast from the Travel Industry Association, which predicts that leisure travel will fall 1.3 percent nationally in 2009, and business travel will decline 2.7 percent.
Overseas travel, which excludes visitors from Canada and Mexico, is expected to slide 3 percent, according to the survey, but the travel association says it expects international traffic will finish 2008 up 9.1 percent from 2007.
The impact on Las Vegas, however, could be deeper than the forecast declines suggest.
Travelers surveyed say they intend to cut spending on food, beverages, entertainment and souvenirs, and shorten length of stays, which will reduce the amount of money visitors leave behind in top destinations.
Domestic travel, by contrast, will end the year down 1 percent, followed by a 1.7 percent decline in 2009.
The association says the forecast shows leisure travel volume remains stable for 2008, down just 0.2 percent and that volume is expected to decline modestly in 2009, dropping 1.3 percent.
The forecast is based on interviews conducted with 2,291 American adults during the week of Oct 13.
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