VISIT USA NOW! ISSUE 83 | SEPTEMBER 2010 Travel tax not much of a burden
USA, said it was “pleasantly surprised” at the $14 tariff. “We were anticipating something
around $20, so the fact that it comes in at under £10 at current exchange rates is obviously good news for travellers and anyone selling US holidays,” said Visit USA chair Kate Burgess-Craddy. “While nobody likes taxes I don’t think
Travellers heading to the USA will
have to pay a fee for their travel authorisations from September 8, but the $14 price tag – £9 at current exchange rates – is lower than was widely anticipated. The authorisations, known as an Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA), have been compulsory for UK tourists and other
European visitors since January 2009, but until now have been free. The fee, part of a package of
measures in the Travel Promotion Act, which was signed by President Obama in March, has been met with cautious relief by UK-based travel associations and operators. The Visit USA Association, which does not support a tax on travel to the
this fee will prove a barrier for travel to the USA. It is much lighter than the travel taxes imposed by many other countries and, importantly, visitors do not pay it every time they travel to the USA because each ESTA application is valid for two years regardless of the number of visits that are made.” Burgess-Craddy says the authorisation fee presents an opportunity for agents to be proactive in assisting clients with their ESTAs. “This is an area where agents can
provide an added-value service for their clients. There are several bogus websites out there asking consumers to pay a much higher price for their ESTAs than they need to. "Agents can step in and offer their
clients the correct advice and refer them to our website (
www.visitusa.org.uk) to avoid them getting ripped off.”
Musical South a hit with Titan
Titan HiTours’ 2011 programme
of group holidays around the world includes the new 10-day Southern Musical Medley tour, featuring Nashville and Memphis. Priced from £1,495pp, the
itinerary follows in the footsteps of the Deep South's noted musical greats and includes visits to Elvis Presley's Graceland mansion, his birthplace in Tupelo and the spiritual home of Country & Western music, the Grand Ole Opry. For a unique memento of the trip,
each group of guests has the opportunity to record their own 'hit' record in a working recording studio on a visit to the Alabama Hall of Fame.
www.titanhitours.co.uk
22 September 2010 •
www.sellinglonghaul.com Travellers heading to
Washington State can now take advantage of a new rapid and affordable light-rail train connection between Seattle- Tacoma International Airport and downtown Seattle. Passengers arriving at Seattle-
UK holidaymakers can celebrate their birthdays in style at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay. Until the end of this year guests visiting on their birthday are being invited to spend their big day among the giraffes, zebras and white rhinos on a free Serengeti safari. Worth £22pp, the tour takes guests
around the 65-acre Serengeti Plain on an open-truck, taking them up-close to a
range of free-roaming African animals, with the chance to hand-feed the giraffes. The Serengeti Safari lasts 30 minutes
and proof of birth date is required in the form of a passport, along with a valid park ticket. Guests must be five years of age or older and the free safari is only valid for the birthday boy or girl. The offer is valid until December 31
2010.
www.seaworldparks.co.uk
Tacoma International Airport can be in downtown Seattle within 25 minutes – for just $2.50pp. Trains run every seven minutes during rush hours and every 10 to 15 minutes at off-peak times. The new rail service, which opened last year, is operational seven days a week from early morning until midnight.
www.soundtransit.org
Wild birthday celebrations at Busch In Brief... The ninth-annual Miami Spice
Restaurant Programme, which offers cut-price dining at some of the city’s best top-rated dining establishments, runs until September 30, 2010. Three-course fixed price lunches
are priced at $22pp, and dinners at $35pp (excluding taxes and gratuities). Each menu includes an appetizer, entrée and dessert offering an average discount of 30-50 per cent off the regular lunch price. Participating restaurants include
Hakkasan at Fontainbleau Miami Beach, Shula’s Steak House, Miami Beach, and A Fish Called Avalon, a long-time South Beach seafood favourite.
www.ILoveMiamiSpice.com.
InterContinental Hotels Group
(IHG) last month opened the InterContinental New York Times Square, the largest new hotel in Manhattan since 2002. Located on 8th Avenue and 44th Street, it is within walking distance of 40 theatres and is close to the fashion district. The 36-floor hotel has 607 bedrooms and great views over Times Square, Broadway, the Hudson River and the New York City skyline. Highlights include its French restaurant, Ça Va, run by celebrity chef, Todd English.
www.InterContinental.com
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