Welcome to the January 2009 Issue of Travology Today

Directravel is pleased to announce that effective February 2, we will be implementing after-hours international toll free numbers to be handled by the Directravel team.

Current countries where the 800 number is applicable are the United Kingdom, Denmark, Germany, Italy, France, Hong Kong, the Philippines, the Netherlands, Switzerland and China. The common number is 00 800 5252 1111; for Hong Kong the number is 001 800 5252 1111.

These numbers will be printed on all itineraries in the event of a travel emergency. Additional countries will be added at a later date.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact your National Account Manager.

The National Business Travel Association (NBTA) released its 2009 Business Travel Overview & Cost Forecast predicting increases in business travel costs and slower than usual travel industry growth. According to the study, travel managers project an increase of 5 to 8 percent for business travel costs in the coming year. Additionally, as shifting market forces equalize with new levels of supply and demand for travel services, the number of business trips will continue to expand but at a slower pace than the annual growth from 2004 through 2007.

“This year we saw a slowdown in the growth of business travel from the rate of growth we saw in 2004 through 2007. In 2009, we will see a continuation of that slowdown in growth,” said NBTA President and CEO Kevin Maguire, CCTE, GLP. “The expansion of the trend is the result of measures travel managers are implementing to contain travel costs during an economic downturn. The measures vary widely from company to company. In some companies, we are already seeing major cutbacks in travel, while other companies have higher travel budgets in place for 2009. Across the board, we can expect to see some changes in the way travel is managed to further maximize value.”

NBTA’s research predicts that travel managers will amplify their cost-containment strategies in 2009 by implementing or expanding a number of measures, including: reducing non-essential travel; enforcing new travel policy mandates; and implementing tools to track hotel data.

In addition to trends in travel management and projections for corporate travel expenditures, the comprehensive forecast predicts rate changes for air travel, hotels, and car rentals:

• In 2009, published airfares are expected to increase 7-10 percent over 2008. This year-over-year change is more difficult to project this year for several reasons: changes in airlines’ ancillary fees could add up to 5 percent of airfares, rapid fluctuations in oil prices impact airline pricing, and airline pricing strategies are designed to react quickly to changes in demand.
• Hotel rates are projected to increase only 1-4 percent, less than increases seen in recent years.
• NBTA predicts nominal car rental rate increases of 1-3 percent.

“NBTA’s 2009 forecast supports travel management and c-level leadership with comprehensive insight about the changing travel landscape,” added NBTA executive director and COO Bill Connors, CTC. “Our research shows just how much the outlook varies across companies. That’s exactly why companies are turning to their travel managers to implement the best strategy to meet the challenges that lie ahead. Those companies who manage travel effectively in the coming year will clearly be better positioned than their competitors who don’t. ”

For more information, click here.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reminded travelers from all Visa Waiver Program (VWP) countries that they are now required to obtain approval through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) prior to traveling to the United States. This requirement, effective January 12, applies to all eligible citizens or nationals traveling under the VWP.

ESTA is a web-based system, initially launched in August 2008, that determines the preliminary eligibility of visitors to travel under the VWP prior to boarding a carrier to the United States. To date, more than 1.2 million ESTA applications have been received, and more than 99.6 percent of applicants have been approved, most within seconds.

DHS will take a reasonable approach to travelers who have not obtained an approved travel authorization via ESTA, and will continue an aggressive advertising and outreach campaign throughout 2009. Travelers without an approved ESTA are advised, however, that they may be denied boarding, experience delayed processing, or be denied admission at a U.S. port of entry. Visitors may apply for travel authorization via the ESTA Web site at https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov.

The citizens or nationals of the following countries are currently eligible to travel to the United States under the VWP: Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Eight of these countries joined the VWP in 2008, and their citizens and nationals have been required to comply with an ESTA since their designation as VWP participants: the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, the Republic of Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia and Malta.

For more information, click here.

STR, a source of historical lodging performance trends, released its revised 2008 and 2009 forecasts and its projections for the U.S. hotel industry’s performance in 2010.

The revised 2008 forecast includes the following:

• a 3.0-percent drop in occupancy from year-end 2007 to 61.2 percent;
• a 3.4-percent increase in average daily rate average from year-end 2007 to $107.44;
• a 0.4-percent increase in revenue per available room from year-end 2007 to $65.75; and
• a 2.5-percent increase in supply and a 0.5-percent decrease in demand.

Mark Lomanno, president of STR, said one encouraging sign for the industry is that despite the turbulent economic environment expected for the next two years, ADR growth should remain in positive territory.

“What is different this time than with the last two downturns is hotel operators are less inclined to give rate away,” Lomanno said. “They have learned that holding rate is important for their business in both the short- and long-term.”

For 2009, STR projects:

• a 3.5-percent year-over-year decline in occupancy to 59.1 percent—the lowest level since 2003, when it was 59.2 percent;
• a 1.0-percent year-over-year increase in ADR to an all-time industry best of $108.52;
• a 2.5-percent year-over-year decline in RevPAR to $64.10.
• a 2.4-percent year-over-year increase in supply and a 1.0-percent decrease in demand.

Smith said that on the development front, the opposite of what occurred during 2008 will happen during 2009.

“In 2008, the increases in supply built to a crescendo as the year went on,” Smith said. “The deeper we get into 2009, the fewer new hotel rooms we will see enter the industry.”

Lomanno said development pipeline attrition will be higher than normal—even with projects that have broken ground—because of the continued tightness in the financial markets.

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Companies around the world may be placing their operations at risk by permitting too many of their executives to travel on the same plane. According to a survey of 101 firms conducted by the Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE), 16 percent of corporations located in Asia-Pacific, Canada, Europe, the Middle East/Africa and the United States do not have a policy restricting the number of executives that can travel together on a plane, either corporate or commercial. Of the 84 percent that do have such a policy, 61 percent apply it only to the “executive” level, while 28 percent include all employees, and 11 percent strictly held corporate officers and directors to the rule. ACTE conducted the survey in the wake of a commercial aircraft landing in New York’s Hudson River, in which 24 executives of one financial firm were reported to be on the same flight.

There is a difference of opinion regarding what constitutes a safe number of executives to travel on one flight, even among those 86 companies that claimed to have stringent policies on the subject. Forty percent limit the number to 3-4. Thirteen percent permit 5-6. Eight percent restrict travel on the same aircraft to no more than 1-2, and an equal percentage state 7-8 is acceptable. Thirty-three percent of survey respondents allowed more than 10 employees to travel together.

While it was surprising that 16 percent of survey respondents did not limit the number of executives to travel on one flight, 14 percent are now claiming they will look into it. The ACTE survey revealed that 58 percent of the corporations that participated in the survey rely on their Travel Management Companies to report on program compliance. Sixteen percent claimed they used an internal system, while 26 percent cited other means of verifying who travel on which flights.

For more information, click here.

Continental is demonstrating the use of sustainable biofuel to power a commercial aircraft for the first time ever in North America. The demonstration flight -- which is being conducted in partnership with Boeing, GE Aviation/CFM International, and Honeywell's UOP -- marks the first sustainable biofuel demonstration flight by a commercial carrier using a two-engine aircraft, a Boeing 737-800 equipped with CFM International CFM56-7B engines.

"This demonstration flight represents another step in Continental's ongoing commitment to fuel efficiency and environmental responsibility," said Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Larry Kellner. "The technical knowledge we gain today will contribute to a wider understanding of the future for transportation fuels."

The biofuel blend includes components derived from algae and jatropha plants, both sustainable, second-generation sources that do not impact food crops or water resources or contribute to deforestation. The algae oil has been provided by Sapphire Energy, and the jatropha oil by Terasol Energy. This is the first time a commercial carrier will power a flight using fuel derived in part from algae.

Continental's Boeing 737-800, tail number 516, will depart from and return to Houston's Bush Intercontinental Airport operating under a specially-issued "Experimental" aircraft type certificate, and will carry no passengers.

During the flight, which will last approximately two hours, Continental test pilots will engage the aircraft in a number of normal and non-normal flight maneuvers, such as mid-flight engine shutdown and re-start, and power accelerations and decelerations. A Continental engineer will record flight data onboard.

The flight will operate with a biofuel blend, which consists of 50 percent biologically-derived fuel and 50 percent traditional jet fuel, in the No. 2 engine. This biofuel blend will result in a significant net decrease in carbon emissions relative to traditional jet fuel, as both jatropha and algae consume carbon during their lifecycles.

The aircraft's No. 1 engine will operate on 100 percent traditional jet fuel, allowing Continental to compare performance between the biofuel blend and traditional fuel. As Continental has worked with Boeing, GE Aviation/CFM and UOP for more than nine months to carefully evaluate and test the biofuel in engines on the ground, no difference in performance is expected.

The biofuel is a "drop-in" fuel, and no modifications to the aircraft or engine are necessary for the flight to operate. The biofuel meets and exceeds specifications necessary for jet fuel, including a flash point and a freezing point appropriate for use in aircraft.

For more information, click here.

American Airlines and NBC Universal have reached an agreement for inflight broadcast content starting March 1. NBC Universal will produce four exclusive 90-minute programs each month for American, featuring content from numerous NBC entities for viewing on the airline’s overhead main-screens and, where available, personal entertainment devices…Delta Air Lines and St. Paul-based 3M are expanding the Delta brand across more than 200 airports worldwide – including 10 in Minnesota previously branded as Northwest Airlines – as part of the airline’s efforts to seamlessly integrate Delta and Northwest following their merger in October… Lufthansa has officially unveiled its new lounge at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York. The facility encompasses nearly 16,000 square feet, about twice the size of the airline’s original JFK lounge, and features three levels, each dedicated to one of Lufthansa’s premium passenger segments – Business Class, Senator and First Class/HON Circle.

in November '08 decreased to 83.3%, up 7.5 points vs. the running 12 month average of 75.8% but down 2.7 points from October’s 86.0%. To view the USDOT's Bureau of Transportation Statistics' (BTS) Air Travel Consumer Report, click here.

The United States Government has posted recent travel advisories and warnings for Afghanistan, Algeria, Burundi, Chad, Colombia, Cote d’lvoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eritrea, Georgia, Iran, Israel, the West Bank and Gaza, Kenya, Lebanon, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Uzbekistan, Yemen and Zimbabwe.