New Survey Measures Health of the Travel Industry -- Tours.com

SAN FRANCISCO, CA--(Marketwire - Oct 4, 2012) - If you try to take the temperature of the travel industry these days you are probably going to come up with a number between Olympic sprinter and down with the flu. But a new survey of travel agents conducted by the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) delivers the facts about how travel agents are doing in 2012 and what they are projecting for the travel industry in 2013. The findings come as no surprise to those who watch the industry closely, all reported in the latest edition of Travel-Intel.

Travel-Intel, a division of Tours.com, monitors the travel industry with weekly newsletters on trends, news and updates about the travel industry sent to a permission-based database of more than 100,000 travel agents in the U.S. and Canada.

The latest issue also looks at where not to rent a car in the U.S. It turns out that Anchorage ranks highest most expensive daily rate ($95), with Washington D.C. and Denver following not far behind. The article looks at the cities with the highest -- and the lowest -- car rental rates and delivers tips on how to save money in car rental transactions.

Also of note in these travel updates is a feature about the latest trend in hospitality in Las Vegas: wellness rooms. Travel-Intel checks out the new "Stay Well" rooms at the MGM Grand to see just what it takes to stay healthy on a trip to Las Vegas.

And for travelers seeking a complete New England retreat, Travel-Intel profiles the upscale Twin Farms country inn near Woodstock, Vermont. The all-inclusive gourmet stay, a member of the Kurtz-Ahlers collection, is a showpiece for architectural design and art by Roy Lichtenstein, David Hockney or Frank Stella.

Finally, Travel-Intel provides insight into trends in tour & travel through an in-depth interview with Insight Vacations president Marc Kazlauskas.

Although Travel-Intel is direct-mailed, current features and archives can be viewed at www.travel-intel.com.

"Travel is an industry, if not a complicated endeavor, that is changing every day," says Lark Ellen Gould, content director for Travel-Intel and Tours.com. "Travel-Intel keeps on top of this Protean focus by traveling to the destinations, going to the key conferences, and talking to the leaders who are guiding the travel industry."

Gould, a veteran travel journalist who has been covering the travel industry for more than 20 years, brings her incisive perspective to the weekly publication, with features and news updates on the 1st and 15^th of each month. These issues are complemented by a Travel-Intel "packages" issue during the between weeks that detail great deals to be found worldwide at hotels and resort locations, all sent to more than 100,000 travel agent subscribers in the U.S. and Canada, before posting on Tours.com.

About Tours.com: Tours.com since 1995 -- The Official Directory of Tours & Vacations Worldwide. Tours.com has a deep and searchable database of vacation and tour companies searchable by company name, destination and/or activity. A comprehensive one-stop Travel Resource section, plus the Find A Travel Agent Specialist search allows one to search for travel agents with in-depth knowledge in their chosen specialty.