Tourism to Goa takes beating after Mumbai attacks

Beach beds are lined up outside the snack bars dotting the sandy white coastline and dance music booms from bars and restaurants. The only thing missing from Goa’s beaches are the throngs of merrymakers who normally flock here for the hedonistic year-end parties. With the country on alert in the wake of the terror attacks [...]

AirAsia offers 100,000 free tickets to Thailand

Southeast Asia’s top budget carrier AirAsia said Tuesday it would offer 100,000 free tickets to Thailand under a regional marketing campaign to support its tourism industry battered by recent political unrest. AirAsia said it would collaborate with Tourism Authority of Thailand to bring back tourists and businessmen by “reinstating the core message that it is [...]

Cuban tourism surges as rest of Caribbean stalls

Cuba’s vacation industry has remained as hot as the tropical sun here, even as the world economic crisis sparks cancellations and layoffs elsewhere in the Caribbean. The communist country says it’s booked solid through December and expects a record 2.34 million visitors this year — largely because global financial woes have so far been softer [...]

NH prof’s mysteries entertain, teach tourism

Elegant resorts long for glowing accounts of their sumptuous meals, breathtaking views and meticulous service — but how about a shady employee, a missing guest, a murder? Mark Okrant, whose day job is teaching the tourism business to college students, makes resort owners smile about it all in a series of mystery novels he began [...]

Refill of vanished Wis. lake about to begin

The road is back. The shoreline is reinforced. The dam is stronger. And maybe the dollar signs won’t be far behind. The three dozen or so resort and restaurant owners that ring this south-central Wisconsin tourist village’s namesake lake have been wringing their hands since heavy rains blew out a section of shoreline in June. [...]

Bangkok airport chaos deals blow to tourism

Thousands of bleary-eyed tourists mingled with yellow-clad protesters who brought flights to a halt at Bangkok’s international airport Wednesday, dealing a major blow to Thailand’s tourism industry during its peak season. The tourism industry, which makes up 6 percent of the economy and employs about a million people, was already flagging after protesters in late [...]

Mojitos, salsa greet Cuba’s 2 millionth tourist

Cuba welcomed its 2 millionth tourist of 2008 with a salsa band, strong mojitos and word that the island expects to set a record this year for foreign visitors despite three hurricanes and a global economic crisis. Authorities hung a red-and-white banner reading “welcome visitor” in five languages just outside the customs area as Air [...]