Travel
and tourism spending by international visitors is helping to boost
the U.S. economy. The U.S. Department of Commerce released data
yesterday showing that international visitors have spent an estimated
$82.2 billion on U.S. travel and tourism-related goods and services
year to date, an increase of 11 percent when compared to the same
period last year. Many people do not know that this boosts exports -
when foreign citizens travel to America and buy goods and services
from American companies, that counts as a U.S. export. The new data
indicate that the first half of 2012 set a new record for U.S. travel
and tourism exports, and, if these trends continue, international
visitors could end up injecting close to $170 billion into the U.S.
economy by year-end.
These
increases help explain why the Obama administration is working hard
to make the United States the top destination for international
travelers. The U.S. Departments of Commerce and Interior are
implementing the National
Travel and Tourism Strategy,
which they presented to
the President in May. The National Strategy is a blueprint for
expanding travel to and within the U.S., setting out the goal of
attracting over 100 million international visitors annually by 2021,
more than a 50 percent increase over the number expected this year.
These international visitors would spend an estimated $250 billion
per year, creating jobs and spurring economic growth in communities
across the country.
The
National Strategy lays out concrete steps to be taken in five key
areas, and at Commerce and Interior, we have already begun
implementing these steps. For example, Commerce's International Trade
Administration is supplying the travel and tourism industry with
important data, including international arrivals to the U.S.,
forecasts of international travel to America from more than 30
countries, and estimates of the total impact of travel and tourism on
the economy. Also, specialists in Commerce's U.S. and Foreign
Commercial Service (US&FCS), located in offices in the United
States and around the world, help local tourist destinations and
nearby companies understand global markets and attract more travelers
to the United States. The US&FCS also promotes U.S. destinations
at international travel and tourism tradeshows and furthers awareness
of U.S.
travel destinations among
foreign media.
At
Interior, we redesigned Recreation.gov as
an initial step in a multi-year strategy to engage visitors with
enhanced interactive web content and more multimedia, mobile,
trip-planning tools. The seven million visitors who use this website
every year will be able to make reservations, see ready-made
itineraries for destination cities, and search for activities on an
interactive map. Several new features have been added such as
an Explore
Trip Ideas section
with interactive maps to help visitors discover points-of-interest on
public lands when planning trips to popular destination cities like
Atlanta, Miami, Las Vegas, San Francisco, and more. And there are
now Go
Lists that
were created to encourage more people to get active outdoors,
including places to go, events, and activities at federal sites
across the country.
As
our economy continues to recover from the worst economic downturn
since the Great Depression, tourism holds the promise of being an
even bigger economic engine in communities across the country. By
continuing to support this critical industry, we are supporting an
economy that's built to last.
The
Office of Travel and Tourism Industries (OTTI) is responsible for
collecting, analyzing, and disseminating international travel and
tourism statistics for the U.S. Travel and Tourism Statistical
System. For more monthly travel and tourism-related trade data dating
back to 1992, please
visit: < http://tinet.ita.doc.gov/outreachpages/download_data_table/Monthly_Exports_Imports_Balance.xls >.