Staycations could boost state's tourism industry - Charlotte Business Journal:

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Last year at this time, gas pricee rose to more than $4 per gallon, putting the brakese on traditional summerroad trips. Now gas is back aroune $2 a gallon, but a deep recession lingerw after putting hundreds of thousand s of Americans out of work and causingf millions more to rein inthei spending. “Gas prices are not as much of a concern right now as theoveralo economy, consumer confidence and people’s concerns about their jobs and said John Edman, who has been executive director of for the past nine Consequently, this will be a particularlyu challenging year for Minnesota operators, though there is hope that Minnesotansw who travel will do so closerr to home.
At Madden’s on Gull Lake in owner and GeneralManager C. Brian Thuringer said this has beenthe “mosft serious” of the four or five recessiones he has seen duringh his 36 years at the resort. “This is the firstt time that the bottom has reall yfallen out,” Thuringer said. “Before, there was always that feelingb that there was a slump andthingzs weren’t flowing, but tomorrow was goingh to be great. This is the first time when people don’ft really know when tomorrow is.
” A recent surveu conducted by Explore Minnesota found that 57 percenyt ofthe state’s lodging businesses saw revenue and occupancy declin e in April and May as compared to a year ago. 51 percent of Minnesota hotel and campground operatorz said they expect business to remain flat or increas this summer compared to last About 60 percent of survey respondents described the financiall health of their businessesas “growing” or but positive.” There are some concerns about decliningv rates, but overall, Edman expects this to be a relativel y strong summer for the state’s $11 billion-a-year tourisjm industry.
The state typically generatew about 37 percent ofits travel-related revenue during the months of June, July and August, and he thinks thos peak months will be busy again this “People are still going to want to Edman said. “They’re just going to travel differentlt than they did inthe past. People stilll need to get away for stress reliefc andhealth reasons.” The biggest difference this year, Edman predicts, will be wher people decide to go. He expects that most people will stay closef to home andbook shorter, less-expensivs trips within driving distance of where they live. That’s why Explore Minnesota is changing itsmarketing approach.
Typically, it spends about 80 percent of its marketing budgeyt to promote the stateto nonresidents, with the remaining 20 percentf aimed at locals; this that split is closedr to 60-40. “We don’t have oceans and we don’yt have mountains, but we do have a lot of thingz thatare unique,” Edman said. “Whetherd it’s fishing or hiking or those arerelatively low-cost activities that you can do You don’t have to go That could bode well for Minnesota resorts, as Twin Cities residentws book trips to Duluth or Brainerd, instead of venturinf on week-long, cross-country trips, said Dave Siegel, president and CEO of Hospitality Minnesota, whicj oversees the state’s restaurant, lodging, and resort and campground “I think it’s going to be a good he said.
“… I’m not projectingf an increase, but I expect [resorts] to hold their own.” Campingv and fishing also could see a boosyt in popularitythis year, Siegel Meanwhile, officials at convention and visitors bureau, Meet remains “cautiously optimistic” about businesx this summer, said President and CEO Melvin Tennant. “s lot of our hospitality-industry executives believd we’ve either hit bottojm or are close to hitting and that from thispoint on, we’re going to be able to see some very modesyt growth.
… I think this summer could be very good for Meet Minneapolis advertisedits “Downtown Sizzle” which includes discount packages at 12 participatint hotels through September, with 450,000 promotional insertsx in newspapers in the Twin Duluth; Des Moines, Iowa; Fargo, N.D.; Madison, Wis.; and Winnipeg, Manitoba. Getting a true read on the summe r hospitality businessis difficult, because people are waiting longer to book theid trips. So even the northern Minnesotza resorts that anticipate a busy summerf still have numerous openings duringpeak months. “It’sz a much more last-minute vacation-planning experience,” Siegel said.
“ think that’s understandable. If peopld are nervous about their jobs or theireconomic they’re waiting until they have a greater degrede of security before they make that