TOURISM VITAL TO USA AND UK; WAR ON TOURISM

The tourists have fled from North Africa, thanks to NATO.

The travel industry is extremely important to the USA and UK.

Travel and Tourism Contributes Nearly USD2 Trillion To America GDP

New research, by Oxford Economics, shows that the travel and tourism industry's total contribution to GDP in the Americas was US$1.9 trillion in 2011.

This is 8.6 percent of total GDP.

This compares to 6 percent for 'automotive and mining' and 7 percent for 'chemicals'.

Pennsylvania by wavz13

The travel and tourism industry has 15 million direct employees in the Americas.

This compares with 10 million in financial services, 2.5 million in mining, 2.5 million in chemicals manufacturing, and 4 million in vehicle manufacturing.

France gets more tourists than the USA

In the UK, travel rivals financial services in importance, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council C

New research from the World Travel & Tourism Council shows that the UK travel and tourism industry:

1. Is nearly five times the size of the vehicle manufacturing industry.

2. Provides almost as many jobs as the financial sector.

3. Contributes around £101 billion per year, or 6.7% of total GDP.

This compares to 2.3% for vehicle manufacturing, 1.9% for mining and 4.1% for chemicals.

Travel and tourism’s contribution to GDP is growing faster than most other sectors in the UK.

Brazil by André Pinnola

However, the tourism industry is being hit by:

1. High taxes including Air Passenger Duty.

2. Lack of investment in roads, railways...

3. Scares about terrorism.

Perverted fascists in the USA?

International tourist arrivals

1  France 76.80 million
2  United States 60.88 million
3  China 55.67 million
4  Spain 52.68 million
5  Italy 43.63 million
6  United Kingdom 28.13 million
7  Turkey 27.00 million
8  Germany 26.88 million
9  Malaysia 24.58 million
10  Mexico 22.40 million

DANGEROUS DESTINATIONS

The beach at Khao Lak, in Thailand, just before the Tsunami struck in 2004. Photo taken by Chris Jefferies on 5th December 2004, looking north from the beach outside the 'Khao Lak Resort' hotel.

On 28 March 2012, we read that, according to British travel firm Hayes and Jarvis, certain long haul travel bookings are showing unexpected growth‎

1. Bookings to Kenya and Egypt are down.

This is presumably because of CIA terror activity.

Egypt sales are down 47 per cent since 2010.

2. Bookings to Sri Lanka are down.

The UK media has been criticising Sri lanka for human rights abuses.

Visas are now required for Sri lanka.

Sales of Sri Lankan packages have fallen by 43 per cent compared with a year ago.

3. South Africa and Tanzania have seen much reduced booking levels.

Mexico can be dangerous. 47,515 people were killed in narcotics-related violence in Mexico between December 1, 2006 and September 30, 2011, with 12,903 narcotics-related homicides in the first nine months of 2011 alone. The number of U.S. citizens reported to the Department of State as murdered in Mexico increased from 35 in 2007 to 120 in 2011.

4. Bookings to Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Barbados and St Lucia are up.

UK tourists are presumably unaware of the large number of murders by drugs gangs in Mexico and much of the Caribbean; and the high prices in much of the West Indies.

However, prices for St Lucia and Barbados have been slashed by over 40 per cent.

2012 bookings in the Caribbean are up 37 per cent overall.

800 per cent up for the Dominican Republic.

66 per cent up for Cuba.

55 per cent up for St Lucia.

143 per cent up for Mexico.

British Airways launched direct flights to Cancun in autumn 2010.

5. Mauritius has seen bookings rise 24 per cent.

Mauritius has a high murder rate.

The Caribbean can be dangerous.

6. Hayes & Jarvis Top Ten Destinations 2012 to date

- Mexico
- St Lucia
- Las Vegas
- Dubai
- Dominican Republic
- Barbados
- Mauritius
- Cuba
- Penang
- Khao Lak

In the Caribbean, murder rates, including gang-related killings, have 'increased substantially' in the last 12 years. Murder rates are exceedingly high by world standards - 27 per cent (UN – 'Gangland Threat': CARICOM People 'Feel Unsafe' with Rising ...)

Safety and Security in St Lucia (St Lucia travel advice)

There was an increase in incidents of violent crime, including murder, in 2010. These can affect tourists. Muggings and thefts from hotels, yachts or holiday homes do occur, and are occasionally accompanied by violence, and there have been a number of serious assaults involving tourists and residents in recent years. There have been armed robberies at waterfalls in the Anse La Raye area in the past and these sites should be avoided. Ensure that your living accommodation is secure. Avoid walking alone in isolated areas, including beaches, after dark, and only camp out in large groups. Be extremely cautious about accepting lifts and use only licensed taxis...

MIXED SEX

In Egypt, some Islamist candidates and religious scholars want to:

1. Destroy ancient monuments - seen as a form of idol worship

2. Ban mixed sex beaches

3. Ban bikinis

4. Ban alcohol

5. Ban gambling

Egypt's Islamists and tourism‎

The Islamists are expected to win two thirds of the seats in the Egyptian parliament.

Nader Bakkar, spokesman for the Salafist (Islamist) party says:

"We do want to see a type of Halal tourism ... such as segregation of beaches."



Not surprisingly, Egypt's economic woes mount

AFP reports:

"The fall of foreign currency reserves and the decline in tourism seriously complicates the economic situation," says Samer Suleiman, economics professor at the American University of Cairo.

"The large scores of Islamist parties in the first phase of elections will make investors nervous," he added.

(Egypt's economic woes mount)

The Muslim Brotherhood party and the fundamentalist Al-Nur (Salafi) party have won two thirds of the votes so far.

Both are committed to having sharia law.


Foreign investments have fallen from $6.8 billion in 2010 to $2.2 billion this year.

Foreign reserves have fallen from $36 billion at the beginning of the year to $20 billion.

By February, they are expected to fall to $15 billion, a level at which it will be difficult to pay for imports such as wheat, analysts say.

Egypt is the world's biggest wheat importer.

The army has recently lent the central bank $1 billion to help shore up its finances.

Inflation has reached 9.1%.

(Egypt's economic woes mount)

Expect more violence.