Volcano Eruption Sparks Tourism

Mount Nyamuragira 

Mail and Guardian: Its status as the battleground in "Africa's world war", and possibly the worst place on Earth to be a woman, makes it arguably the world's most counterintuitive holiday destination.

Yet tourism in the Democratic Republic of Congo's ravaged east is doubling by the year as intrepid travellers set out to witness its natural wonders.

From a standing start of zero in 2008, when war was still raging, Virunga National Park's visitor numbers climbed to 550 in 2009, then 1 800 in 2010 with an expected 3 800 for 2011. As a result, this year the oldest national park in Africa expects to raise more than $1-million.

Among the attractions on offer are an overnight trek to the eruption of the Mount Nyamuragira volcano and tracking through forests to glimpse critically endangered mountain gorillas.

In a sign of growing confidence, Virunga is also due to open its first tourist lodge on January 1, with guests paying $200 a night in 12 bungalows boasting lava-rock walls and thatched roofs.

"Clearly it's not Spain we're trying to sell," said Cai Tjeenk Willink, the park's business development officer. "The good thing is we have high-quality attractions here: the mountain gorillas, the active volcanos, safaris with elephants, lions and leopards, the lake, a lowland forest and one of the highest mountain ranges in Africa. We have a lot to offer."

Willink said that most visitors were from Belgium, the former colonial power, and about one in 10 is British.

The Nyamuragira volcano began erupting on November 6 and has several lava fountains spewing up to 200m into the air, with lava flowing slowly north into an uninhabited area of the park.

The park, a Unesco world heritage site, has set up a tented camp in a safe area close to Nyamulagira, where visitors can stay overnight.

Yankee Magazine's New Leaf-Peeping App

AP: Yankee magazine is going mobile with a new app for chasing fall color.

The magazine, which released its annual fall issue Tuesday, is also sponsoring a contest to pick the best foliage town in New England.

Last year, the magazine's editors named Kent, Conn., as the best town in the region for fall color, but this year the public is invited to make the choice by nominating and voting via YankeeFoliage.com. The "Readers' Choice Best Foliage Town in New England" winner will be announced on Sept. 28.

Yankee's new Leaf Peepr app, free and downloadable for iPhones and Droids, lets users check color status by region or zip code, and also offers interactive elements like the ability to upload new reports and photos to YankeeFoliage.com's fall foliage map. Leaf color on the Leaf Peepr app is coded as green, turning, moderate, peak, fading and gone.

The YankeeFoliage.com website also offers more than 30 scenic routes across New England, including 12 new road trips for 2011. There are driving tours for each of the New England states — Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont — as well as recommended routes for certain regions such as Moosehead Lake in Maine and Route 100 in Vermont.

Features in the magazine's September/October issue include a look at the Topsfield, Mass., annual fair, this year set for Sept. 30-Oct. 10, said to be the oldest agricultural fair in New England, dating back to 1820; a list of five notable country stores in Vermont (Willey's in Greensboro Village, Currier's in Glover, Dan & Whit's in Norwich, Floyd's in Randolph Center, and Warren in Warren Village); and tips for carving a pumpkin (use an ice-cream scooper and scouring pad to clean it out, cut the lid from the bottom, not the top, and seal the cut edges of your design with Vaseline).

Editor Mel Allen writes in the magazine that he hopes the issue will inspire readers "savor a cider doughnut, or take a camera to a marsh or a lake in the early morning, or even set out to get lost for a while in the maze of country roads somewhere."

To vote in Yankee's contest for best foliage town, click on "Vote for your favorite town" on the lefthand side of YankeeFoliage.com. Type a town name in the white box next to "Choose your favorite foliage town," then click on the correct place from the list of choices that pops up.

MLK Memorial Unveiled in Washington D.C.

MSNBC: Public art can be difficult. Artists and funding organizations are never going to please everyone. I remember the controversy when the Vietnam Memorial was built. Opponents blasted the design as “a black gash of shame.” Many veterans voiced displeasure.

However, time has shown how powerful Maya Ying Lin’s design was. The Vietnam Memorial receives over 3 million visitors each year and has become something of national shrine.

Controversy also accompanied the MLK Memorial unveiling today in Washington D.C. Critics are upset that the work of a Chinese artist was chosen. They say MLK’s 30-foot likeness is too confrontational and appears too Asian.

MLK’s son, Martin Luther King III, told USA TODAY that he likes the statue."I've seen probably 50 sculptures of my dad, and I would say 47 of them are not good reflections — that's not to disparage an artist," King said. "This particular artist — he's done a good job."

The memorial is scheduled for dedication on Aug. 28 which will coincide with the anniversary of MLK’s “I Have a Dream” speech.

'The Help' Boosts Mississippi Tourism

Houston Chronicle: Less than two weeks since the nationwide release of 'The Help,' convention and visitors bureaus in Greenwood and Jackson have self-guided driving tours targeting fans of the book and movie. Tour requests from groups and individuals have risen dramatically over the past few days in Greenwood, where most of the movie was shot, said Paige Hunt, executive director of the Greenwood Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Inspired by the Steel Magnolias tour in Natchitoches, La., the bureau began planning its tour in May 2010, shortly after DreamWorks Studios announced The Help would be shot in Mississippi, Hunt told The Clarion-Ledger.

"We plan to have the tour indefinitely," Hunt said. "Steel Magnolias was released in 1989, and the tours are still around."

Hunt said the Greenwood tour not only includes both private houses used in the film and favorite hangouts of the cast and crew, such as The Alluvian Hotel, Tallahatchie Tavern and Webster's restaurant. "I received a call from a lady in Louisiana who is coming here with some girlfriends for a weekend getaway," Hunt said.

"They're not just doing The Help tour. They're taking a class at Viking Cooking School and exploring what Greenwood has to offer. The movie has brought a lot of excitement to our community."

Jackson Convention and Visitors Bureau spokesman Marika Cackett says her agency offers two self-guided tours. A Belhaven tour highlights several Jackson streets mentioned in the book, as well as the childhood home of author Kathryn Stockett. A Jackson tour includes stops at the governor's mansion, Medgar Evers' home and Brent's Drugs, which is featured in the film.

Cackett said the tours could kick off a domino effect that proves profitable for hotels, restaurants and other businesses. "People read the book, see the movie, then Google Jackson, Mississippi," Cackett said. "It's cool to say we've been in a motion picture, and the residual effects from this could be a very good thing."

Bill Crump, chairman of the The Greenwood-Leflore-Carroll Industrial Foundation, estimates the movie's direct economic impact at $13 million — a conservative figure, he says. "After seeing the success of the film and looking back on that Sunday afternoon in December 2009 when we first met with the production team, it's very emotional for me to see how successful it's been," Crump said.

"There's no reason we shouldn't have more films made here in Mississippi. With the movie's release, I think we have an excellent opportunity."

Crump said The Help gives Mississippi an advantage in the close-knit film industry. While attending the movie's premiere in Los Angeles, Crump reunited with some of the film's stars who reminisced about their time in Greenwood. "It doesn't hurt that Bryce Dallas Howard, Ron Howard's little girl, had a wonderful experience here," Crump said. "Ron Howard is a prominent director, and through word of mouth, more people will hear about what Mississippi has to offer."

In addition, new film incentives approved by the Legislature have made the state more competitive, said Ward Emling, manager of the state bureau of film and cultural heritage. Mississippi's program this year increased its rebates to filmmakers from 20 to 25 percent to cover payroll for non-Mississippi cast and crew and 30 percent from 25 percent for in-state cast and crew payroll. Rebates are capped at $8 million per production.

During fiscal 2010, the Mississippi Film Office coordinated the activities of more than a dozen productions, including films, documentaries, music videos, short films and commercials. Emling said the film bureau is reviewing feature productions under the $20 million budget range.

Thailand Seeks to Shed 'Sex Tourism' Slur

DaijiWorld: Arguably called the sex tourism capital of the world, Thailand is now deliberately using the family tourism tag to shed the sex destination tag, Tomwit Jarnson, the Royal Thai country consul general in Mumbai has said here.

Jarnson told IANS on the sidelines of an event organised Friday to promote Thailand as a tourism destination that family tourism would eventually edge Thailand away from the slur of 'sex tourism' in the years to come.

"We are trying to project Thailand as a family tourism destination. We are slowly changing the perception of Thailand to the rest of the world," Jarnson said.

He said the Thai food and dance festival in Goa, in association with the Vivanta by Taj hotels and resorts, was just such an attempt to project Thailand as a place steeped in culture, which is quite similar to the culture of the Indian sub-continent and tradition and a rich and diverse culinary palette.

"Destination Thailand is an annual event organised by us which helps us reach out to the people of India through our food, music and dance," Jarnson said.

"We are very happy to have the festival in Goa this year where the people of this city will experience the unique characteristics and rich cultural heritage which our country has to offer," he added.

"We are slowly developing facilities in Thailand which will attract family tourism. We have a lot of Indian families who travel to Thailand," Jarnson said.

He said the Thailand tourism authorities were trying to project Phuket - which along with Bangkok and Pattaya are regarded as the prime sex tourism areas in Thailand - as a family tourism destination.

Although banned by law, prostitution is common place in the tourism districts of Thailand, which see nearly 14 million tourists annually, a large chunk of which are single males or male groups of tourists seeking sex or sex-oriented fun.

A recent World Health Organisation (WHO) report has pegged the number of female prostitutes at two lakh.

Tourists Flock to 'Planet of the Apes' Park

Visitors are flocking to California's Muir Woods to glimpse backgrounds used in "Rise of the Planet of the Apes."

The movie starring Palo Alto's James Franco, features a scene where apes run across the Golden Gate Bridge and escape to Muir Woods. While none of the CGI filled movie was actually filmed in the park, the movie's producers took pictures of Muir Woods' famed redwood trees and replicated them on screen.

The park has seen an uptake in visitors this summer. For the first time since Sept. 11, 2001, Muir Woods has at times drawn 5,000 people a day.

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Amsterdam's Floating Bus Tours

A unique tour bus called the Floating Dutchman welcomed aboard its first paying customers in Amsterdam this week. The tour is a cross between a bus and a boat and drives tourists from the airport to the city, enters the water at a specially-built ‘Splash Zone’ to give passengers a floating canal tour and then returns, via the highway, to the airport.

The bus carries 48 passengers, cruises the canals on battery power and is a partnership between the airport, the city of Amsterdam and a local cruise company.

Tours last two hours and 45 minutes and are offered three times a day. Tickets cost about $56 (39 Euros) for adults and about $28 (19.50 Euros) for children. Booking online offers a 10 percent discount.

“It may prove to be one of the best ways to explore Amsterdam during a connection,” Cristian Petre of Romania wrote in the Flying Dutchman guestbook after the first day of tours on Wednesday. “We’ve now got an idea what the city is about and would return for more exploring,” noted the Kireta family of Australia.

Tourism Driving Growth in New York, California, Florida

Wall Street Journal: A rebound in tourism is helping drive economic growth in three key U.S. markets despite data, including Friday’s jobs report, that shows the overall recovery is slowing.

There’s been a pickup in the number of tourists and business travelers in New York City, Southern California and Central Florida in the past six to 12 months, which has boosted state and local sales tax revenue, hotel occupancies and employment in the leisure and hospitality sector.

Recent jobs data suggest hospitality is at least one bright spot in a sputtering economy, analysts said.

“It’s more than just a silver lining,” said Steven Cochrane, managing director at Moody’s Analytics in West Chester, Pa. “The recession is over and one of the reasons why is travel and tourism spending in these markets.”

Though the leisure and hospitality industry lost 6,000 jobs in May, it added about 126,000 jobs during the previous three months — accounting for about 20% of total non-farm payroll gains. Economists say pent-up demand is fueling domestic tourism, as families begin to take trips postponed during the recession. Visits from international travelers have increased too, prompted in part by the weaker dollar.

Sean Snaith, an economics professor at the University of Central Florida, said many people feel more secure about their jobs and are taking trips again. Rachel Atkinson, the district manager for a staffing agency in Colorado Springs, said her commission income rebounded last year, which helped her and her husband take their daughter to Orlando for a national cheerleading competition.

“It would have been tougher for us,” she said.

Occupancy rates and the average daily rate hotels are rising in these markets, according to Smith Travel Research Inc. In the Los Angeles-Long Beach market, occupancy levels in April increased to 71.1% from 66.3% a year earlier, while the average daily rate increased to $119.38 from $114.54. In New York City, average daily room rates rose to $236.41 from $217.19.

In Central Florida, the rebound in tourism has been dramatic. The two major airports that serve Orlando saw passenger traffic increase 60.57% the first three months of 2011, according to Moody’s Analytics.

Last month Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer said the city would move forward with the construction of a $425 million state-of-the-art performing arts center. The project, funded by a six-cent Orange County resort tax, was delayed during the recession.

Apple Store the Most Photographed Site in New York

eTurboNews: When you think of tourists taking photos in New York, you think of the Empire State Building, Times Square or maybe Central Park. But according to new research the most photographed location in New York is actually the Apple Store on Fifth Avenue.

Researcher Eric Fishcher made a map of where tourists take photos using information from millions of pictures uploaded to website Flickr. The iconic glass cube above the underground Apple Store came top of his list of photographed sights in the Big Apple - possibly because when consumers purchase iPhones they immediately take pictures in the store.

Other popular spots for snaps included the Rockefeller Center, Columbus Circle and Times Square. The researcher used the geotags of photos uploaded to the site to create a heat map of popular photo opportunities.One factor in the popularity of the Apple Store could be because of the large number of iPhone users who use the photo-sharing site. Last month the iPhone 4 was on track to become the most-used camera on the site.

Mr Fishcher found that the flagship Apple store was much more photogenic than stores in other U.S. cities such as Chicago, which were not ranked as highly.

Most photographed locations in New York:

1. Apple Store, Fifth Avenue
2. Rockefeller Center
3. Columbus Circle
4. Times Square

Thailand Seeks to Ban Buddha Tattoos

Associated Press: Thailand's Culture Ministry says foreign tourists should be barred from getting Buddhist tattoos while visiting because the practice is culturally insensitive.

Culture Minister Niphit Intharasombat said in a statement that his ministry has been receiving complaints from residents that tattoo parlors are etching sacred images of Buddha and other religious images onto the skin of non-Buddhist visitors across the country."Foreigners see these tattoos as a fashion," Niphit said in the statement posted on his ministry's website Thursday. "They do not think of respecting religion, or they may not be aware" that it can be offensive.

Thailand is mostly Buddhist, and Buddha statues and images here are considered sacred objects of worship. Millions of foreigners visit the Southeast Asian nation annually. Niphit said his ministry had called on tattoo parlors nationwide to halt the activity. According to the country's government news agency, NNT, he also asked provincial governors to "inspect tattoo studios and seek their cooperation."

NNT also reported that Niphit is pushing for a law banning the practice. However, Ladda Thangsupachai, director of the ministry's Cultural Surveillance Center, said Thursday that tattooing religious images is not yet illegal under Thai law.

West Virginia Coal Tourism?

Bluefield Daily Telegraph: The ongoing Spike TV series “Coal” is helping rekindle a level of coalfield-based tourism not seen in the region since the release of the 1999 motion “October Sky.”

With millions of viewers tuning in each week to watch the unscripted McDowell County-based reality series, we aren’t surprised to hear of renewed tourism interest in the county’s coalfields. Local officials are already reporting a new wave of visitors to the area, including some who are hoping to learn more about the region’s coal industry. These tourists will be looking for places to visit, and for people with knowledge about the coal industry to talk to.

We hope McDowell County officials are ready to seize upon any influx of tourism interest generated by the television show. There are still three more episodes to air. The same can be said for the ongoing interest in Cape Coalwood, and the true story of the Rocket Boys of McDowell County.

With both a movie, and now a television series to brag about, there is certainly a lot of tourism potential in McDowell County — and most of it, including the story of the Rocket Boys — is related to coal. While the television series “Coal” could be an emerging tourism boon, a looming big-screen torpedo is threatening to deliver an unwelcomed and unnecessary black eye to the region’s historic coalfields.

It seems that environmental attorney Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been busy filming a new documentary that will be hitting theaters this month. The movie targets the process known as mountaintop mining removal. The documentary, called “The Last Mountain,” is the product of several dozen trips to West Virginia over the years by Kennedy, a longtime opponent of mountaintop mining removal.

In an interview with the Associated Press, Kennedy calls the forthcoming documentary a fair-minded exploration of the facts aimed at educating and outraging the public. Outraging? That doesn’t sound very balanced. We are told the coal industry is granted only a cameo in the movie, with only a brief defense of coal mining offered by West Virginia Coal Association President Bill Raney.

If Kennedy wanted to be truly fair, he should have allocated equal time to the industry in his new documentary. Instead, the movie argues that the practice of mountaintop mining removal is so destructive and harmful that it should be illegal. This doesn’t sound like a fair conclusion, but Kennedy is entitled to his opinion in “The Last Mountain.”

Fortunately, we still have “Coal” on Spike TV if we really want to get an accurate, unscripted and unbiased opinion of the region’s coal industry. And no movie ticket is required.