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SATW CONFERENCE
I was in D.C. to speak at the Society of American Travel Writers (SATW) Editors Council meeting. All the top travel editors from the big media players (USA Today, L.A. Times, Chicago Tribune) were there. I stuck around and listened to the other speakers and panelists, which included Roger Dow (U.S. Travel Association) and Wendy Perrin from Condé Nast Traveler. Demonstrating the power of social networking sites like Twitter, she and Chris Elliott "tweeted" some of my talk and when I checked my email, I had a ton of new followers within minutes.



TWITTER TIPS
It took me a while to figure out Twitter but it's really an amazing and fun tool, especially when used for business. Wendy got me all fired up on Twitter so I figured out how to sync up my Facebook status with my Twitter account and learned how to have my Twitter feed go directly to my blog and website. Those were the two most useful websites I found. If you have any more ideas, please let me know.

ONLINE MEDIA
Here are some of the things I learned from the conference (other than tips on using Twitter). Something we all hear about in the news is that newspapers, including the major ones, are in serious trouble. Some of the stories told at the conference about people losing their jobs and about cutbacks brought tears to my eyes. What was fascinating (and unexpected) is that all 60 of us had to get up and speak for two minutes or less and almost every newspaper representative was in dire straits, while the five to 10 people working on websites said they (including JohnnyJet.com) had had their best year ever (more traffic and more revenue). What's crazy is that when I first began taking press trips, some tourism boards and PR firms didn't accept me because I didn't write for a print outlet. Now I'm getting calls to recommend other bloggers and journalists for trips because they only want online media. Talk about coming full circle.

TRAVEL INDUSTRY
Roger Dow, who is the president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, spoke about how the travel industry is the darling of the U.S. economy. Out of 27 states, travel and tourism is in the top three for revenue. He explained that the reason why the U.S. Department of Commerce's recent numbers were 650,000 fewer travelers today than in 2000 (before September 11) is because it's getting more difficult for our visitors to get visas to the U.S. And it's not because they fear terrorism. They are afraid they will stay here. The rest of the world gained four percent while we denied 17,000 people. That's over $130 billion since the average tourist ends up spending roughly $4,000 a trip. He informed us that it takes 85 days for Brazilians just to get a visa interview! It takes 32 days for a Chinese person. That's just to get an interview and only three out of four get approved. Dow pointed out the AIG effect, which happened last October. Now businesses are canceling meetings and conventions in leisure destinations like Orlando, Las Vegas, Hawaii and Arizona. Hotels are stripping off the name resort and not showing what conferences are in town on the reader boards.

LUXURY IS OUT
The head of PR for the Ritz said the Ritz doesn't want to be known as a luxury brand in this current economic environment. They want to be known as relevant luxury; great service but not over-the-top. There are no more bath butlers but if you need one, they can arrange it. Luxury hotels don't lower prices since it would take years for them to recover so instead they add value. For example, buy three nights get two free. Or how about a free breakfast, free parking or a spa treatment?

OTHER INTERESTING TIDBITS
I also learned that the AARP has three niche magazines. One is aimed at their readers aged 50 to 59; another 60 to 65; and 65 and up. The editor of Bride magazine said honeymooners are willing to spend more and are less adventurous. They just want to lie on the beach. They don't want to hear stories about how to be a savvy traveler or about reality really. They are dreaming. The editor of Zagat said he doesn't get any free food. He said Tuesday is the best night of the week to go out (no wonder all the restaurants in my neighborhood offer two for one deals). If you fill out a Zagat survey, you'll get a free book.

CRUISE TRENDS
A representative from one of the cruise lines said cruisers want to stay closer to home. But Alaska has had a tax increase so there aren't as many ships there. Casino revenue on cruises has slowed down the most but alcohol revenues are rising because passengers are drinking more. People are now booking their travel (not just cruises) three to six weeks in advance, sometimes even just 24 hours. Before it was six months to a year.

JOHNNY JET AND PRESIDENT OBAMA
Regarding the picture I posted last week with President Barack Obama: If you bought that he came in to hear me speak, then what can I say but April Fool's! That was my first April Fool's joke I've ever pulled off on you but I just couldn't resist since it was April 1st. That picture was taken the morning of the conference at breakfast, where the folks from the nearby Madame Tussauds brought him over since we didn't have time to go there. My whole story wasn't a tale; he (well, his wax figure) did pop in unannounced (to me, at least) and I did see police with bomb sniffing dogs around the property (but the day after). But it was fun to take pictures with the life size figure but it was weird to see them put him on a dolly, place a blanket over his head, then wheel him into the elevator. FYI: They unveiled a Michelle Obama figure yesterday and President Obama has seen his clone. Admission: Adults $18, seniors (60+) $17, children (3-12) $15.

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