Group Travel Scoop - Groople.com

Business Travel Update

Here we go with another travel economics update. We’ve been bringing you stories about how places like Las Vegas and other leisure destinations should be getting cheaper in the coming months as the economy slows. Expect leisure travel to become more affordable.

The same does not hold true for higher end business travel. There's new evidence that this segment of the travel business is doing well.

Bjorn Hanson, a consultant at PricewaterhousCooper’s, sees overall hotel growth of .8% in the United States with only a 2.2% increase in new rooms, leading to increased hotel prices. The growth coming largely from business class. Higher end demand is the most stable of all.

Internationally don’t expect any higher end discounts either. Growth in many international destination is growing at a clip of 4% or more.

The basic point is demand is softening, but not across the board. With demand still moderately increasing and hotel room availability growing slowly, prices shouldn’t decrease much at higher end properties.

"No Decline for Business Hotels in 2008" by Nick Passmore from BusinessWeek was reviewed for this report.

Group Travel to America's Festivals

One more causulty of the slowing economy for Group Travel…

Many groups plan pilgrimages to festivals of all kinds. This we know. The United States is teeming with festivals for nearly any interest. This we also know. What you might not know is the nation is seeing a rash of cancelled festivals this year. Granted, most of the cancelled festivals are not the largest, but many are still well attended.

I get this information from personal experience but also from a story I reviewed by Emily Fredrix.

She highlights case of the Harbor Fest music festival in Racine, Wis where the event organizers were forced to cancel their festival on the shores of Lake Michigan. The cause? Rising costs, lower attendance, and a huge drop in corporate sponsorship.

Many festivals rely on donations and corporate sponsorship to operate. According to Emily Fredrix’s article, in the past, only 80% of festivals were able to break even. With such tight margins and relying on donations and sponsorships it’s no wonder many festivals are closing down for the year, such things tend to dry up fast in slower economic times.

It’s not terrible out there, but if you’re planning on taking your group to a medium to small sized festival, double check with the organizers to make sure they’re still going to hold it this year. Word to the wise.

Packing Lightly for Group Travel

Time for some ultra-practical travel advice from the Group Scoop – how to pack lightly. With the major airlines now charging people to check their luggage, it’s inviting to think of ways to pack everything on to a carry-on.

I’m not going to go into clothes folding techniques, nor give you a slim pair of shoes to shop for, you can handle that. What I will do is point you towards a couple products out there that will aid you in packing everything into one small case.

First up is the Spacepak… a luggage system that aids you in clothing compression.

What about traveling with toiletries that you can carry-on? We all know that TSA has tight restrictions on bottles of fluid of any kind. MySmartPac is TSA-compliant toiletry kits that including cleanser, deodorant, lotion, toothpaste, and more all in biodegradable packaging.

These products will provide you with a head start, being able to do more with less (luggage) is the real key to victory here.