The Buzz: Pricey pumps

Wednesday, May 07, 2008

By Henry Sweets

Jackson Hole, Wyo.- As record-high prices at the gas pump keep Americans complaining about their shrinking budgets, the tourism industry remains optimistic that visitors will still come spend money in Wyoming this summer.

European travelers taking advantage of favorable exchange rates and Americans on short-distance journeys are expected to make up for a loss in the numbers of cross-country R.V. travelers who traditionally make the Yellowstone region a popular stop.

According to a Travel Industry Association statement, motorists might take shorter vacations closer to home or eat at less expensive restaurants during this summer’s peak tourism months, but “the expected increase in gas prices for this summer is not going to deter Americans from traveling.”

Tim O’Donahue of the Jackson Hole Chamber of Commerce, which represents area businesses, said he isn’t worried, yet. In some years, when fuel prices have been a concern, the end result has been record-setting summers in terms of tourism dollars, he said.

If Americans are fretting about expensive fuel prices, foreign visitors see an advantage to the dollar’s exchange rate being at an historical low.
Agents booking European’s vacations are “swamped” this season, according to Diane Shober, the director of the Wyoming Travel and Tourism, a state agency.
Rick Hoeninghousen, the Yellowstone director of sales and marketing from Xanterra Parks and Resorts, a large booking agency for park-based lodging, said agents he has spoken with who book for European travelers are between 60 and 200 percent ahead of sales compared to this time last year.

“America is on sale,” he said.

Shober said many European travelers, who have already been to America’s big cities, now want to get off of the beaten path. The Yellowstone region is a very well-known brand of “out of the way” places to visit, she added.

This could offset the loss of R.V. owners, who are rethinking their itineraries when planning cross-country trips that require more fuel, according to an online survey done by the Recreation Vehicle Dealers Association (RVDA). The study showed two-thirds of R.V. owners surveyed will alter their travel plans due to high fuel prices, but 93 percent of them plan on taking as many trips, if not more, than last year. Courtney Robey, a spokesperson for the RVDA, said R.V. owners will take more weekend trips close to home and less multi-state endeavors.

The state tourism office is also targeting closer markets like Denver in an effort to lure last-minute visits from unsure American travelers looking for short-distance trips.
The good news, according to the state tourism offices, is that the number of travel information requests increased 49 percent from the same time last year, which officials said could be a result of Wyoming’s effort to market itself as much as neighboring states Montana and Idaho have been. The new interest might not pay off until next summer, but Shober said she is confident that Wyoming’s tourism industry will continue to grow.
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