Tour Directing Video
Interested in learning more about becoming a Tour Director and if it's the right career for you? Watch the four minute A Traveling Lifestyle Video and other insightful tour directing videos.

- A Traveling Lifestyle Video
- Other Tour Directing Videos

- Symposium 2010 Brochure (PDF)
- Symposium 2010 Registration Form
- Symposium 2010 Transportation   (PDF)
- Highlights of Symposium 2010
- 30th Anniversary Video

I'm delighted to be here today.

NTA and ITMI have had a close relationship for many years
- in fact NTA was at the very first Symposium 22 years ago
- and many ITMI graduates have gone on to work with NTA tour operators over the years.
So there continues to be great synergy between our organizations.

Ted asked that I share with you a brief overview of NTA and our current initiatives. This is certainly a very busy time for NTA and our members, as the U.S. welcomes in a new administration, markets like India and China are emerging, and we're all adjusting to the current economic conditions.

Last year, despite the early signs of a downturn in the economy, NTA welcomed more than 150 new tour operator members, bringing our total tour operator membership to over 700 strong. There are a couple of reasons for this - one, NTA launched its China Inbound Program in cooperation with the China National Tourism Administration to be the only organization to approve tour operators to service the inbound Chinese groups coming into the U.S. - which we'll talk more about in a minute. But also because in difficult times, businesses recognize that they need their professional associations even more for marketing assistance, professional support, and volume business opportunities.

NTA tour operators are among the most creative, progressive, and dynamic in the industry. On average, they have been in the industry for 23 years. That means that ITMI graduates and NTA tour operators share a common goal for professionalism and meeting customer demands. So we encourage you to continue to seek employment opportunities with these companies.

As I said, this has been a busy time for NTA -- In 2007 and 08, NTA finalized a new strategic plan that has become our road map. It is based on the association's core purpose - to provide maximum value for our members by advancing packaged travel within the global business environment.

With that, we identified six core values that serve as a guide or "filter" for everything we do to ensure we live our values. They are:

We believe...

1. That travel and tourism is a worldwide economic driver.
   
2. In the professionalism, integrity and best practices of our members.
   
3. That events throughout the world impact our members.
   
4. That travel enhances quality of life by providing healthy and happy experiences and an understanding among people and cultures.
   
5. In sustainable tourism for a healthy environment.
   
6. NTA is diverse and rich in varied perspectives.
   

All of these values enable NTA to be the most influential gathering place for the packaged travel industry.

One of our goals focuses on our legislative and advocacy work. A major step we've taken towards that goal is the revitalization of the Grassroots Action Network. We are working on appointing an entire team of Grassroots Network leaders at the state and Congressional District levels. The complete network will include 50 state chairs and 435 Congressional District chairs, as well as an appointment for the District of Columbia. This is the first effort of its kind in the travel industry and it is open to everyone, not just NTA members, so we really hope you'll get involved.

As a GAN member, you will act as the eyes and ears of the travel and tourism economy in your local area. GANners alert NTA to issues like travel taxes, sellers of travel laws, or access to public lands, and help us address the issue by writing letters to legislators or meeting with government officials. In short, network participants are advocates for both NTA and the tourism industry overall.

GAN was established because we know we need many voices to be heard in Washington. And this spirit of collaboration carries through to many other NTA initiatives.

In December, we met with leaders of 37 travel and tourism organizations to draft recommendations for President Obama and his transition team on how our industry can help spur the economy. Those recommendations, which identified seven key actions, are now being circulated in Congress, as well as to contacts within the administration. The recommendations included three that the group felt should be included in the economic stimulus package:

1. Funding for federal lands (parks, forests, etc)
2. Inclusion of the Travel Promotion Act of 2008, which was developed by the Discover America Partnership and the US Travel Association
3. Funding for federal grants for state, regional and local tourism development

The other recommendations were considered to be actions that would stimulate commerce in the travel and tourism industry, and they included:

Establishment of an Executive Office of Travel and Tourism in the White House
1. Funding of the Highway Reauthorization Bill
2. Re-examination of travel bans to other countries

As part of NTA's strategic plan, NTA is also focused on building an inclusive community and bringing more business to its members through alliances and collaboration.

NTA has developed several strategic partnerships with other associations to increase business opportunities.

Earlier this year, NTA announced a new industry partnership with Destination Marketing Association International. The two associations will work together to create enhanced educational, marketing and business opportunities for members and have an increased presence at each other's conventions.

We also announced a new agreement with the World Religious Travel Association. As part of the partnership, we will work together to educate both memberships on the value of the faith-based market and bring new business opportunities. NTA managed their inaugural World Religious Travel Expo this year, and next year, we will collocate the NTA Convention with the Expo in Reno.

We developed a cooperative agreement with Sister Cities International to enhance its travel exchange programs, with NTA members providing the travel products.

We have a partnership with the International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association to educate our membership on the Gay and Lesbian travel market as it is one of the most resilient, even in tough times.

And finally, we just announced that we're exploring collocating our convention with the United Motorcoach Association convention in coming years to bring together two major conventions in the tour and travel industry.

You've likely heard about the emerging China market - I hope many of you are learning Mandarin. NTA has been working with the U.S. Commercial Service on travel and tourism affairs, including the NTA China Inbound Program. In 2008, NTA became the only U.S.-based trade association to have a tour operator qualification program approved by the China National Tourism Administration. We are so honored to serve as the official facilitator for those tour operators approved to serve the U.S. inbound market from China. To date we have more than 170 on the approved list.

A memorandum of understanding was signed between the United States and Chinese governments in late 2007, representing a historic moment and a significant development in international business for the U.S. travel industry. NTA members have an unparalleled opportunity to be the first to serve the groundbreaking U.S. inbound leisure group market. And with nearly 600,000 leisure Chinese travelers expected to travel to the U.S. by 2010, this market represents huge opportunities.

NTA also wants to ensure that we are taking the right steps with the China Inbound Program so we've established a China Inbound Task Force to serve as a sounding board. This task force will help NTA gather advice from members who are experts in this market and offer guidance on trends and educational needs so our members can best serve this market.

We will also be actively involved in educating our members - operators as well as their U.S. supplier and destination partners - about the China market in cooperation with the U.S. Commercial Service through seminars at our convention and Webinars.

Beyond this, there are many other initiatives NTA is currently working on - we just launched a redesigned Web site, as well as an updated monthly magazine and weekly e-newsletter. And this fall, we will introduce a new Convention format to better reflect the way our members do business.

It is an exciting time for NTA and I thank you for giving me an opportunity to tell you a little bit about what is going on. This spring, NTA also will introduce a job bank on our Web site, NTA Online. ITMI graduates looking to get connected with NTA members should be sure to check out this new resource in the coming months.

Thank you and safe travels!