Public-Private Partnership Provides Travelers with Welcoming Message, Advanced Trip Planning Resource. Travel Industry Association (TIA) and U.S. Department of Commerce Launch DiscoverAmerica.com, First-Ever Official Website to Promote Travel to U.S.
A comprehensive online source of United States travel information designed specifically for international travelers is now available. DiscoverAmerica.com, the first-ever official travel and tourism website of the United States, is the result of a public-private partnership between the Travel Industry Association (TIA) and the United States Department of Commerce.
“DiscoverAmerica.com is the result of a successful partnership with the U.S. Department of Commerce, Office of Travel and Tourism Industries, and I commend them on their vision and leadership in the development of this important website,” said Roger J. Dow, President and Chief Executive Officer of TIA. “This is a sound example of how public and private industry can achieve shared results for the good of our country. I expect DiscoverAmerica.com to become a highly used planning resource for international travelers.”
The 15,000-page website is filled with rich content on the 50 U.S. states, popular cities and the country’s five territories, plus vibrant traveler galleries picturing American locales and attractions, official entry policy information, interactive mapping tools, an activity finder, travel booking options and other unique features. User-generated reviews and images are included as well, designed to provide a blend of official and authentic traveler information.
The website will be available in five languages that correspond to the nation’s top five inbound travel markets: Canada (both English and French), Mexico, the United Kingdom, Japan and Germany. These markets account for roughly 75 percent of all inbound travel to the United States.
Content is supplied by the United States Department of State, state tourism offices, destination marketing organizations, Fodor’s, American Express, Weather.com, Google Maps and others. Translated content for each site is provided by Translations.com.
With its wealth of information on American destinations, DiscoverAmerica.com will help inbound travelers research and design U.S. travel experiences such as city breaks to New York, Boston or Chicago, a visit to one of the many theme parks, beach vacations in Hawaii, South Carolina or Puerto Rico, and guest ranches in Arizona and Texas. Visitor highlights from dozensof other cities are featured on the website as well.
DiscoverAmerica.com’s Unique User Functions
Interactive U.S. Map: This feature allows visitors to explore the United States by region, state, city or activity. Another planning feature allows visitors to map distances between destinations (in kilometers and miles). While browsing, users are led inside DiscoverAmerica.com pages by selecting a destination they have viewed on the map.
Activity Finder: This feature allows visitors to research U.S. travel by preference of activity rather than location. Users can select from 23 popular trip activity categories, such as shopping, theme parks, beaches and coasts, and national parks. The site will display recommended destinations that correspond to the user’s search parameters.
Traveler Stories: A community feature on DiscoverAmerica.com will allow users to share self-generated content in native languages, such as reviews, recommendations and images. The intent of Traveler Stories is to provide a place for site users to communicate with one another in an informal and unedited format.
Booking Options: DiscoverAmerica.com enables customers to research and book their travel the way that they choose. The site offers booking capabilities through a directory of travel agents/specialists and tour operators, as well as hotel bookings through Travelocity, the website’s official online travel provider.
DiscoverAmerica.com will evolve as a trip- planning resource following its spring 2008 launch. The Travel Industry Association is identifying the site’s next phases of development to assist travelers in markets with high inbound traffic patterns to the United States (such as France, South Korea, Australia, Brazil and Italy), as well as emerging markets such as China and India.
The Travel Industry Association is the national, non-profit organization representing all components of the $740 billion travel industry. TIA’s mission is to promote and facilitate increased travel to and within the United States. TIA is proud to be a partner in travel with American Express. For more information, visit www.tia.org and for key travel facts and figures, visit www.poweroftravel.com .
Media Contact:
Greg Staley
TIA Manager, Communications
202-408-2128