With War Over, International Travel Expected to Rise Again

Winter month travelers rarely fill have been more sparse than at any other time in recent history. But now that international tensions and hostilities in the Persian Gulf have died down, tourism officials say that Massachusetts residents will soon resume their searches for exotic cultures and warmer suns, resume their searches for exotic cultures and warmer suns.

According to Larry Meehan, director of public relations for the Greater Boston Convention and Visitor Bureau, 20 percent fewer local business executives and 50 percent fewer tourists from Massachusetts voyaged abroad this winter compared to last winter.

"Luckily for the tourism industry [January and February is] not a prime booking time. The war had little effect," says Meehan. The height of the tourist booking season, he says, doesn't arrive until April and May.

But according to Meehan, the situation would have become critical if the war had lasted a few more months.

Meehan says that most companies ignored the State Department's warnings and continued to make connections in foreign countries in order to keep their clients. Many companies had to face up to the reality that, "If you don't fly, someone else will," he says.

Arthur D. Little, a Cambridge-based think tank and consulting firm, is one of these companies. "We had a small dip in our travel the week following the air invasion of the 15th of January. Shortly after that time, our patterns went back to normal," says Nick Athanasiou, corporate manager for the company. He says the company now sends as many employees abroad as it did at this time last year.

Meehan points out that the war was a blessing in disguise for the Massachusetts tourism industry because it convinced many Americans intent on going to Europe to take their vacations closer to home.

But Meehan says that the unfavorable foreign exchange rate and not the fear of war and terrorism was the deciding factor in cutting travel abroad.

Meehan predicts that the weak dollar will also prompt many West Europeans to travel to the U.S. in the near future. "If something terrible had happened in the U.S. airports, there may have been some hesitancy but the European traveler is not as terrorized as the American," he says.

Meehan says that since the war began, the Bureau has had "good news on all fronts" for inbound tourism, receiving a high number of calls from groups in Texas and Florida interested in New England as a vacation spot. He says that potential vacationers look to New England as the most suitable alternative to Europe.

"We can actually capitalize on that perception," he says, citing New England's strong culture and history as top draws. "Like it or not, Harvard Square, you are a prime destination," Meehan concluded.

In addition, New England is perceived as the most patriotic of the country's regions and is thus a prime target for American tourists whose nationalist feelings have been rekindled by the war. There is a definite feeling of "wanting to get back to the roots" and to celebrate, says Meehan.

"They want to do more than tie yellow ribbons," he says. And Boston plans to satisfy that desire by promoting the Boston Harbor Fest for the Fourth of July. Meehan labels it the "Ultimate Birthday Party," comparing it to the mammoth seven-day party in May promised by the city of New York in honor of returning troops.