According to the latest figures from the US Department of Commerce , a total of…
According to the latest figures from the US Department of Commerce , a total of 7,463,000 US citizens traveled to Europe by transatlantic air through July. Compared to last year’s July figures, which registered 7,236,000 US visitors to Europe, US travel to Europe is up more than three percent. In fact, in 2005 every month except February saw an increase in US visitors.
“We are very pleased with these healthy results,” said Jean-Phillipe Perol, vice chairman of the European Travel Commission in New York, addressing tourism professionals at the ETC’s annual marketing summit, “especially in light of the ongoing Iraq War and economic challenges including the impact of unprecedented oil prices. We believe that the US still holds enormous potential, and that Europe can draw ever larger numbers of American visitors for many years to come.”
Certainly American Express is convinced of Europe’s potential. This year the company, the world’s largest organization of travel agencies, will give particular emphasis to Europe in its consumer marketing.
Europe is so accessible, so rich in history, romance and adventure, no wonder consumers are crazy about it, said Audrey Hendley, vice president of marketing and strategic partnerships, American Express. Consumers continue to book Europe, and since we expect the trend to grow, we have a number of initiatives in place to promote Europe for 2006.
With some 200 million Americans still lacking passports, the U.S. holds a vast, untapped first visitor market. Other markets being eyed by shrewd marketers include Generation X travelers (born between 1965 and 1980), which began outnumbering — and often outspending their Baby Boomer parents for the first time in 2005. In addition, the youth market has attained the age of travel, with 45% choosing Europe for their first trips abroad.
“The dollar is down to $1.17 per euro from a high of $1.36,and the picture looks bright for continued growth from all segments of the US market,” Mr. Perol continued. “With endless opportunities for discovery and joy, it’s no wonder that Americans love Europe, and next year we offer a full slate of blockbuster events for all generations in addition to perennial attractions.”
For starters, Europe will host major sports events such as the Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy, and the World Soccer Cup in 12 cities of Germany (June 9-July 9). In addition, several important anniversaries honor artists, composers and thinkers whose groundbreaking ideas still reverberate.
Here are just a few highlights of these and other events:
Ireland is celebrated all over the world with St. Patrick’s Day festivities on March 17, but you can’t beat the fun in Belfast, with multicultural carnival floats, music and entertainment. Summer in Belfast swings with the J2Z Festival August 11-28, celebrating modern urban music from Portuguese and Brazilian funk to Polish hip hop and German house music plus rising local talent, free street jams included.
Denmark is cooking up an artful and flavorful “Renaissance Year” with concerts and exhibits about the period when science, art, and architecture all catapulted Denmark into the modern era. Denmark is also enjoying a culinary renaissance, celebrated in the annual Copenhagen Cooking Nordic Food Festival August 19-27 with special restaurant menus, food tents on Kongens Nytorv Square, Danish beer fests and more.
2006 is the centenary of the death of Paul Cezanne, the post-Impressionist painter who prefigured Cubism. From June 9-September 17, Aix-en-Provence’s Musee Granet hosts “Cezanne in Provence,” with 80 major oil paintings and 30 watercolors. Various Cezanne sites around Provence will also welcome visitors, including his studio, family manor house and the small hut in the Bibemus Quarries where he painted Mt. Ste. Victoire.
Mozart’s 250th birthday will be widely celebrated in 2006, and in Austria it will be a year-long fete starting with his birthday on January 26, with hundreds of performances in Salzburg and Vienna. In Salzburg, it will be all Mozart, all the time: lunch concerts, 5:00 PM concerts, dinner concerts, chamber music, operas, almost 24/7 in almost every conceivable venue.
Vienna’s Mozart vibe will rule four opera houses, with 90 star-studded performances at the Theater an der Wien alone. Alternative events include unannounced outdoor performances and free chamber music concerts in public buildings, offices and museums. In 2006 Vienna will also honor Sigmund Freud, who founded psychoanalysis there. A special exhibit examining the role of the couch in relation to Freud’s theory runs from May 4 through October 29 at the Sigmund Freud Museum, where he lived and practiced.
Germany, too, will celebrate Mozart this year. From January 27-February 2 it’s Mozart Festival Week in Munich, with six operas plus Zubin Mehta conducting the C Minor Mass. Children rule at Chemnitz from May 5-21, with kid-friendly Mozart programs. Between performances, visitors can stretch their legs on a bicycle tour between the cities and towns frequented by the composer.
Holland marks the 400th birthday of 17th century superstar Rembrandt with yearlong exhibits in Amsterdam, Leiden and The Hague. Amsterdam highlights include “Rembrandt & Caravaggio” at the Van Gogh Museum February 24-June 18, the two geniuses of the Northern and Southern Baroque. The Rijksmuseum displays all its Rembrandts, with a special “Really Rembrandt” exhibit of pieces once attributed to him, March 9-May 31.
Monaco is “larger than life” with new and renovated hotels including the new Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel and Resort. It’s the 150th anniversary of the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra, the 20th anniversary of the Monte-Carlo Ballets and the 30th anniversary of the International Circus Festival. “New York, New York” at the Grimaldi Forum Monaco this summer displays major “Big Apple” art back to 1945, including Abstract Expressionism (de Kooning, Pollock) photography (Arbus, Klein), Pop Art (Warhol, Lichtenstein), Neo-Dada (Johns, Twombly) and more.
Shakespeare’s Macbeth turns 400 years old in 2006, and in April the Royal Shakespeare Company will launch its year long Complete Works Festival with 37 plays and sonnets in Stratford-upon-Avon. Henrik Ibsen was Norway’s bard, often credited with inventing modern realist drama in works such as “Hedda Gabler” and “A Doll’s House.” His death in 1906 is being marked with events throughout the year, including the opening of a refurbished Ibsen Museum in Oslo on May 23 and an Ibsen Quotation promenade inlaid in the pavement from Arbins to the Grand Cafe.
At last, Madrid’s Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia has reopened after its $110 million expansion that doubled exhibition space for its stellar collections of 20th century art. Luxembourg is anticipating the July opening of its Musee d’Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean in a new building designed by I.M. Pei that cost more than $100 million, with 230 works of art from 1980 to the present.
Laid-back Lisbon is a summer-long festival with street parties in every historic quarter starting in June and carrying into September. In June, dance, drink and dine on grilled sardines to the soulful strains of Fado. Late June segues into July with a focus on African and Brazilian music, featuring international stars like Zap Mama and Gilberto Gil.
Switzerland boogies to the Montreux Jazz Festival June 30-July 15, bringing together jazz, blues, rock, reggae and soul, while classical music devotees gather at Lake Lucerne for the Lucerne Festival in August-September.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
