SAN DIEGO— The tourism industry is dropping prices, boosting advertising and begging people to start traveling again. According to a report in a San Diego, CA-based newspaper, the San Diego Convention & Visitors Bureau is beginning a new program to invite locals to rediscover the region. The $500,000 campaign, which began last week, includes full-page advertisements in local newspapers and publications in Los Angeles, the Inland Empire and Phoenix. Although no major conventions pulled out of the area, the loss of smaller, corporate business meetings hurt area hotels. The Hotel/Motel Association in San Diego is meeting Thursday to discuss “todays marketing challenges,” said the report. Travel industry professionals are targeting those who live within driving distance for deals and bargains in San Diego. But for places like Hawaii, which relies on air travel to bring in travelers, hotels are even harder to fill. Representatives from the Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau were in San Diego Oct. 8 to invite residents to visit the islands at deeply discounted rates. Teams from Maui, Kauai, Oahu and the Big Island are traveling up the West Coast this week to Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland and Seattle asking for support from their top markets. The $10 million campaign is coming from both private pledges and state coffers, said the report. The group is also expected to visit Atlanta, St. Louis, Phoenix, Denver, Detroit and 10 other cities to spread the message that now is a good time to visit Hawaii.
