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About National Travel and Tourism Office

The National Travel and Tourism Office works to enhance the international competitiveness of the U.S. travel and tourism industry and increase its exports, thereby creating U.S. employment and economic growth through:

• Management of the travel and tourism research and statistical program for assessing the economic contribution of the travel and tourism industry and providing the sole source for data on international travel to and from the United States;
• Organization and administration of travel and tourism export expansion activities; and
• Development and implementation of travel and tourism policy, strategy and advocacy initiatives through collaboration with domestic and international public and private sector stakeholders.

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Read more about the travel and tourism advisory board, check out the tourism policy council, discover information about the travel and tourism industries, explore industry & analysis careers.

National tourism organization and administration

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National tourism organizations (NTOs) or administrations (NTAs) are country-level organizations established to foster or guide the development of tourism. In some countries and studies, the term NTA is reserved for national organizations having mainly administrative functions, while NTO refers to those having other national-level functions, particularly international marketing. However, the usage of these terms does vary, and international comparisons must be made carefully as these organizations take various forms, perform a range of functions, and evolve over time.

A core function is to provide policy and strategic advice to national governments. Other functions include international and domestic marketing, planning, research, development, regulation, and quality assurance (Pearce 1992 ). In some instances, all or most of these functions are undertaken by a single national organization. In other cases, not all functions are performed, or functions are distributed among two or more...

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Pearce, D. 1992 Tourist Organizations. Longman: Harlow.

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Seppälä-Esser, R., D. Airey and E. Szivas 2009 The Dependence of Tourism SMEs on NTOs: The Case of Finland. Journal of Travel Research 48:177-190.

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Wight, A. 2013 Identifying Best Practice in National Tourism Organizations: Lessons for the United Kingdom. Journal of Vacation Marketing 19:133-148.

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School of Management, Victoria University of Wellington, 19 Kelburn Parade, 6012, Wellington, New Zealand

Douglas G. Pearce

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Pearce, D.G. (2016). National tourism organization and administration. In: Jafari, J., Xiao, H. (eds) Encyclopedia of Tourism. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-01384-8_483

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From its beginnings, the National Park System has had an important and dynamic relationship with travel and tourism. Well before the establishment of the National Park Service (NPS) in 1916, railroad companies and lodging operators brought visitors and commerce to parks and gateway communities. Today, as tourism and destination management grow in scale and complexity, the National Park Service works with destination organizations, tourism associations, the private sector, and park tourists to manage responsible tourism that supports conservation and preservation, provides high-quality visitor experiences, and contributes to community vitality. NPS Educational Presentations for the Travel Trade  - Are you a travel agency, tour packager, automobile club, or travel sector association whose members or staff could benefit from having a better understanding of the national park system? The NPS Tourism Program is available to deliver educational presentations where we'll cover the width and breadth of the park system, essential elements for planning a park visit, tips for having a great park experience, and the latest information on visitor management. Reach out for more information via the "Contact Us" link on the bottom of the page.

The Tourism Program collaborates with the travel sector to support responsible tourism that benefits parks, communities and visitors.

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Travel and tourism.

The National Travel and Tourism Office , part of ITA, creates a positive climate for growth in travel and tourism by reducing institutional barriers to tourism, administers joint marketing efforts, provides official travel and tourism statistics, and coordinates efforts across federal agencies through the Tourism Policy Council. The Office works to enhance the international competitiveness of the U.S. travel and tourism industry and increase its exports, thereby creating U.S. employment and economic growth through:

• Management of the travel and tourism statistical system for assessing the economic contribution of the industry and providing the sole source for characteristic statistics on international travel to and from the United States;
• Design and administration of export expansion activities;
• Development and management of tourism policy, strategy and advocacy;
• Technical assistance for expanding this key export (international tourism) and assisting in domestic economic development

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According to the GNTO, the show’s first episode dedicated to Evia aired on April 29 on Spain’s national television, captivating over 1.3 million viewers and achieving a remarkable viewership of up to 12.4 percent .

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National council of state tourism directors (ncstd).

The National Council of State Tourism Directors (NCSTD) leverages the collective strength of state tourism offices to provide leadership and a forum for information sharing on issues impacting tourism. Representing all 50 states, the five U.S. territories and the District of Columbia, NCSTD serves its members by:

• Providing a voice on critical public policy issues.
• Offering learning opportunities to increase the effectiveness of state tourism offices.
• Driving internal and external communication.
• Shaping and supporting coordinated domestic and international marketing efforts.
• Offering state tourism directors a forum for sharpening leadership skills.

NCSTD Highlights

In addition to their usual U.S. Travel membership benefits, NCSTD provides programs and services specifically for the state tourism directors and their office personnel. These programs and services are designed to enhance professional development, address common state tourism issues, provide resources and other tools to help state tourism offices perform mission critical activities.

EDUCATE and NETWORK:

• The NCSTD Leadership Forum, held in the fall, provides programming and training specifically for state tourism directors.
• Meet several times a year to enhance professional development, address common issues and provide resources to help state tourism offices perform mission-critical activities.
• Advancing tourism and travel issues relevant to state tourism offices.
• NCSTD members are represented on U.S. Travel's Board of Directors.
• Leveraging the collective strength of the industry to influence policy on travel-related issues at Destination Capitol Hill, the U.S. travel industry’s premier legislative fly-in.
• Utilizing tools like the Travel Economic Impact Calculator to show the direct impact of a change in traveler spending on a state's economy.
• Gaining access to authoritative industry research on the latest travel trends and forecasts that affect marketing decisions.
• Participating in the annual Mercury Awards, which showcase creative accomplishments in tourism marketing and promotion.
• Nominating a colleague for the NCSTD State Tourism Director of the Year Award which recognizes excellence in marketing, promotion and individual leadership within the nominee's state.

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