New Hampshire

Canadians vs. U.S.: the COVID Border Blues

Published September 8, 2020 | By Clark Norton

The U.S.-Canada border crossing, normally busy and often backed up for miles, is now often deserted. Photo from Shutterstock.

When contributing writer Robert Waite told me he was heading from his Canadian home for a family camping vacation in New England, I asked him to consider doing a piece on his experience.

Normally (pre-COVID) crossing the U.S.-Canadian border by automobile has been a relatively simple procedure, albeit one that often required long waits at immigration due to the huge volumes of traffic.

But, as Bob reports, things have changed dramatically.

By Robert Waite

Champlain, NY – Unless you have dual citizenship, perform an essential service, or hold a current student visa, don’t expect to cross the world’s longest border any time soon.

Canada currently bars all non-essential travel to the United States until September 21 – and there is every expectation the ban will be extended at least another month.… Continue reading →

Posted in Baby boomer travel, Canada, New Hampshire, travel documents, travel tips | Tagged Canada tourism, Canada travel, Canada-U.S.border, Covid-19 travel, U.S.-Canada border restrictions, U.S.-Canadian border | 2 Comments

Is “Personalization” the Next Big Trend in Hotels?

Published September 10, 2013 | By Clark Norton

Starwood Hotels CEO Frits van Paasschen.

Starwood Hotels and Resorts CEO Frits van Paasschen, regarded as a visionary in the industry, has a fascinating take on what travelers will soon expect from their chosen lodgings (as recounted in this piece by Greg Oates in Skift.com).

“Today,” he recently told the hotel group’s annual sales pow wow in New Orleans, “a hotel brand can’t stand apart just by having a comfortable, reliable, clean room…that expectation today, driven by technology, is personalization.”

Van Paasschen gives the examples of Amazon.com and Facebook, who not only seem to know everything about their customers and users, they do know what their customers and users are looking for and like. (After all, we give them the information, and they know how to mine the data.)

“So how long will it be,” he asks, “before all of us expect a hotel brand where we spend… Continue reading →

Posted in Cruises, Festivals, New Hampshire | Tagged baby boomer marketing strategies, baby boomer travel, baby boomer travel trends, baby boomer travelers, baby boomers, baby boomers and tourism, Frits van Paasschen, marketing baby boomer travel, selling travel to baby boomers, Starwood Hotels and Resorts, travel, travel marketing, traveling baby boomers | 2 Comments

According to government and private surveys:

Leading-edge baby boomers (born between 1946 and 1955) and seniors account for four out of every five dollars spent on luxury travel today.
Roughly half the consumer spending money in the U.S.--more than $2 trillion--is in the hands of leading-edge baby boomers and seniors.
Baby boomers (born 1946-1964) travel more than any other age group.
When asked what they would most like to spend their money on, baby boomers answered “travel” more than any other category, including improving their health or finances.