1. Legislative Advocacy

2. Arches Timed Entry

3. Federal Update

4. Labor & Employee Resources

5. Educational Resources

6. New & Renewing Member Spotlight

Following a successful Utah Legislative Session, UTIA jumped right back in with our annual visit to Washington D.C. in collaboration with US Travel and Destination Capitol Hill. As the Utah Delegation we had great meetings with Representative Moore, Representative Curtis, Representative Stewart, Representative Owens’ staff, Senator Romney, and Senator Lee - there even was an indulgence of green jello! 

As a delegation our key priorities in our meetings included labor - specifically around solutions for the J1 and H2B Visa programs and support in prioritizing the return of the inbound international travelers - streamlining visitor visas and lifting pandemic era restrictions. Additional conversations took place regarding National Parks, climate and daylight savings. 

We are optimistic with the engagement we received from the Congressmen, Senators, and staff - as well as the work they are doing. We will continue the engagement and continue to engage in advocating for solutions for our industry.

Following engagement with the Grand County community and businesses, Arches National Park has launched a pilot timed entry system as of April 3rd. 

Suggested consumer messaging has been outlined: 

• Arches' traditional operations do not guarantee reliable access during the peak travel season. See gate closures last year.

• The National Park Service expects timed entry to provide more reliable access and to improve the visitor experience.

• What if I don’t have a reservation?

  • You can still access the park before and after the timed entry window (before 6 am, after 5 pm).

  • Arches National Park releases a limited number of tickets for the following day at 6 pm on recreation.gov.

  • Explore Arches with a local guide or outfitter.

  • Other activities in Moab. 

Please find links to additional resources provided by Grand County Economic Development, National Park Service Southeast Utah Group, and the Utah Office of Tourism.

• Grand County Economic Development overview: Arches Timed Entry system

• National Park Service Southeast Utah Group - what you need to know and what to expect

• Rack Cards providing information on the pilot timed entry system - The Rack Card can be downloaded virtually here. Or you can fill out the following form to request physical copies be sent to your location.

If you need more information about the Arches Timed Entry, contact Melissa Stocks with the Grand County Economic Development Department at socialmedia@discovermoab.com.

The #NTTW22 Toolkit can be found here.

AHLA and U.S. Travel together submitted recommendations for updating the National Travel and Tourism Strategy to the federal interagency Tourism Policy Council. The national strategy seeks to improve the competitive position of the United States in attracting international visitors and to increase travel to promote economic growth and job creation over the next five years. It was last updated in 2019. Since that time, the downturn in international travelers has resulted in more than $140 billion in lost travel spending. A cohesive federal strategy is necessary to ensure travel’s recovery.

AHLA STATE OF THE INDUSTRY REPORT

AHLA released their second annual 2022 State of the Hotel Industry. The report, which was written in collaboration with AHLA Silver Partner Accenture, highlights forecasted macroeconomic trends from Oxford Economics and AHLA Platinum Partner STR, reveals shifts in consumer and business sentiment, and profiles technology trends from AHLA Platinum Partner Oracle Hospitality.

Top findings include:

• Hotel occupancy rates and room revenue are projected to approach 2019 levels in 2022

• The outlook for ancillary revenue, which includes food & beverage and meeting space, is less optimistic

• Hotels lost a collective $111.8 billion in room revenue from 2020-2021

• Business travel will remain down 20%

• 58% of meetings and events are expected to return this year

• Bleisure travel —the blending of business and leisure travel—has risen rapidly, with 89% of business travelers globally saying they want to add a personal holiday to a business trip in the next year

• These changing traveler segments will impact how hotels operate to meet travelers’ expectations. In this environment, technology will be even more critical to a property’s success

Pharmacy is one of the most frequent touchpoints in an individual’s health care journey. Yet, the high and rising prices of prescription drugs set by drug manufacturers is an issue impacting many Americans. In the past year, 30% of adults reported not taking their medicines as prescribed due to cost.

Learn more about health care options including our pharmacy discount program by visiting: https://utahtourism.org/healthcare 

Additionally, mental health is an ongoing and rising need for employees and resources. Please view this resource for free mental health resources and communities.

High School Hospitality Program

As the UTIA Hospitality and Tourism Management Career and Technical Education Program enters its third school year, we are asking our tourism partners to reach out and encourage your local Utah public high schools to enroll in the course. 

Some highlights of the program include:

1. The course consists of 15 lessons covering the basics of the Tourism and Hospitality industry. Each lesson contains a mix of materials for teachers to use, including a lesson outline, PowerPoint presentations, quizzes, in-class discussion questions, assignments, and more! 
2. This course includes four industry guest speakers that we arrange to come to the teacher's classroom to meet with the students and speak on their real-world industry experience.
3. This program is free for Utah public high schools as the costs are covered under a grant currently available to Utah schools, so there is no cost for participation.

Onboarding for SY 22-23 wraps up in May. If you know of a school district or teacher who is interested, please have them reach out to cicily@utahtourism.org and she will get them enrolled! 

Red Emerald Resilience Training

Starting March 2022, the Institute of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism and the Utah Office of Tourism launched the Red Emerald Resilience Training Program to help Utah’s tourism-based businesses build a more resilient economic future. The 9-part training program addresses the most salient needs expressed by tourism and recreation-based industry personnel from across the state. Trainings will be held on a monthly basis from March through November 2022. Each session will cover best practices and lessons learned, creative approaches, and stories of success to support Utah’s outdoor recreation and tourism destinations to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and facilitate economic prosperity. Registration links can be found on the training program website.

Stillwater Equity Partners, a subsidiary of Reef Capital Partners, is a real estate development partner that delivers solutions to unlock potential value in real estate assets through creative capital structures and strategic repositioning. Our investments are designed to grow our partners’ capital within dynamic real estate markets. 

Visit Kanab, Utah - A charming
western town where you'll find an incredible array of red rock trails, slot canyons, high mountain forests and just the hike you've been looking for. Nestled in the middle of the greatest concentration of natural wonders including Zion, Bryce Canyon, and Grand Canyon national parks, Lake Powell, five national monuments and two state parks - Kanab makes the perfect basecamp for adventure, any time of year. Come, stay awhile, let the red rock dirt get in your shoes and in your heart. The magical beauty of this unspoiled region will stay with you forever.

Ski Utah is the marketing arm of the Utah Ski & Snowboard Association and has been creating brand awareness of and demand for the Utah wintersports product since its inception in 1975. Ski Utah publishes Ski Utah magazine, an annual publication which is distributed to hundreds of thousands of skiers and snowboarders annually. Ski Utah also owns and maintains SkiUtah.com with the most up-to-date snow and travel information.

Join the U.S. Commercial Service and the Utah Office of Tourism representation firms for market insights, data, and education from Utah's top inbound international markets. Learn from experts about Utah's top inbound markets, consumer behaviors/sentiment, travel and booking behaviors, recovery forecasts/data, and how to welcome international visitors back to Utah. 

UK and Ireland Webinar | April 13, 2022, | 9:00 am MST
Register HERE.

Canada Webinar | April 20, 2022, | 12:00 pm MST
Register HERE.