The U.S. Travel Association
U.S. Travel Reacts to CDC Guidance on Unvaccinated Travelers
U.S. Travel Association | September 2, 2021
WASHINGTON — September 2, 2021 — U.S. Travel Executive Vice President of Public Affairs and Policy Tori Emerson Barnes issued the following statement on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendation advising unvaccinated Americans to avoid Labor Day travel: “As Labor Day weekend approaches—a traditional peak for leisure travel—the CDC recommendation to unvaccinated individuals is a further reminder that vaccination is the fastest path to normalcy for all, including for widespread travel. The vaccines have proven safe and highly effective, and now with full FDA approval, there is no reason why anyone sh...
U.S. Travel Expresses Extreme Disappointment on Relief Talks Ending
The U.S. Travel Association | October 7, 2020
WASHINGTON (October 7, 2020)—U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow issued the following statement on the White House ending coronavirus relief negotiations: “Hardworking Americans whose livelihoods depend on travel and tourism cannot wait until after the election for relief. The reality is that small businesses in every pocket of America are shuttering—they needed relief months ago, which has been made clear week after week. “With millions of Americans suffering, it is woefully shortsighted to end relief negotiations. New data from Tourism Economics shows that, without immediate aid, 50% of all travel-supported job...
U.S. Travel Announces New Dates for IPW 2021 in Las Vegas
The U.S. Travel Association | October 1, 2020
WASHINGTON (October 1, 2020)—The U.S. Travel Association today announced that IPW, its annual international inbound travel trade show, will be a live, in-person event held in Las Vegas from September 18-22, 2021. The September dates are revised from previously released 2021 event dates. U.S. Travel, together with premier sponsor Brand USA and our hosts, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority and Travel Nevada, secured later dates to provide additional time for international long-haul travel to the United States to broadly resume. “Next year’s IPW will reunite the global travel community and be the keystone for safely rebu...
Small Businesses in Grave Peril Unless Washington Acts
The U.S. Travel Association | September 23, 2020
WASHINGTON (September 23, 2020)—More than half (55%) of all small travel businesses in the U.S. are at risk of either taking longer than six months to recover or never recovering at all, according to data released Wednesday by the U.S. Travel Association. The numbers, prepared for U.S. Travel by the data analytics firm Tourism Economics, indicate an extreme threat to travel-supported jobs, which employed one in 10 Americans pre-pandemic. A massive 95% of all accommodation and food service employment is found within small and medium-size businesses, as defined by the U.S. Small Business Administration, with only 5% of those sectors’ emp...
Travel Community Calls on Congress to Pass Relief Legislation
The U.S. Travel Association | August 19, 2020
WASHINGTON (August 19, 2020)—U.S. Travel Association Executive Vice President of Public Affairs and Policy Tori Emerson Barnes issued the following statement on reports that both chambers of Congress may soon consider separate actions on coronavirus relief legislation: “It is crucial that leaders in Washington return to the negotiating table immediately and continue the important work they started. Since March, more than half of the 15.8 million pre-pandemic jobs supported by the travel industry have disappeared, leaving workers and small businesses in every pocket of America vulnerable to the economic pain of this public health crisis...
Study: 40% of Excess Unemployment Is in Leisure & Hospitality Sector
The U.S. Travel Association | August 12, 2020
WASHINGTON (August 12, 2020)—Faced with a fresh round of bleak employment data, the American travel industry is renewing its pleas for leaders in Washington to return to the negotiating table and finalize another coronavirus-related relief package—without which the prospects for an overall U.S. economic recovery look increasingly grim. A report prepared for the U.S. Travel Association by Tourism Economics finds a bevy of chilling jobs figures—and underscores the fact that an overall U.S. employment recovery will not be successful unless the hard-hit travel and tourism industry can be safely restarted: 40% of excess U.S. unemploy...
Travel Community Reacts to Breakdown of Coronavirus Relief Talks
The U.S. Travel Association | August 10, 2020
WASHINGTON (August 10, 2020)—U.S. Travel Association Executive Vice President of Public Affairs and Policy Tori Emerson Barnes issued the following statement on reports that congressional and administration leaders are suspending negotiations on the next phase of pandemic-related legislative relief: “It is critical that leaders in Washington resume talks and move forward on much-needed coronavirus-related economic relief. The travel and tourism industry accounts for 38% of all U.S. jobs lost so far, and travel companies—83% of which are small businesses—remain particularly vulnerable to the economic impact of the health crisis. ...
U.S. Travel Reacts to Economic Plunge
The U.S. Travel Association | July 31, 2020
WASHINGTON (July 31, 2020)—U.S. Travel Association Executive Vice President for Public Affairs and Policy Tori Emerson Barnes issued the following statement on the record plunge in U.S. GDP announced Thursday morning: “This morning’s news of a 32.9% Q2 contraction is evidence that this economy is not going to be able to make it up off the mat without bold action by Congress to provide significant and meaningful relief. “The travel industry, which helped employ one in 10 Americans last year, has been hit hardest by the economic fallout of the pandemic—having lost half its jobs already and on track for a drop of more than a half...
