US rank in travel continues to nosedive
PR for the US stinks, says a Global Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report, 2008. The second annual edition of the report shows global travel to the US slipping yet another notch.
The US is in 7th place now - not even within spitting distance of the podium. Switzerland, Austria, Germany, Australia, Spain and Great Britain all rank higher than the US, with Sweden, Canada and France bringing up the rear.
Welcome to US of A!So what's up with "not" traveling to the US? For starters it ranks 105th out of 130 countries on price competitiveness. The average American's openness toward foreign visitors also proved to be a problem. The US owned the 114th place in this category. And they didn't do so hot in the safety and security category either - 119th place.
"The low score on this pillar is not only a result of relatively weak regulatory measures to combat global warming, but is also driven by inefficient energy consumption and the relatively high levels of air pollution in major cities," said Justin Zubrod, Vice President at Booz Allen.
We're shocked and appalled the world thinks the US is self-indulgent, lazy and wasteful. Shocked.
Still, the US is doing some things right. Overall prioritization of travel and tourism rose from 47th place in 2007 to 21st place in 2008.
"To attract more tourists in the long term, the US might consider adopting environmental policies that not only preserve natural assets but also change global perceptions about our leadership in environmentalism, said Justin Zubrod, Vice President at Booz Allen."
Do think the report's perception of the US tourism industry is right? Does the world really see the US in such a bad light?
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