I've been writing about heritage tourism now for five years trying to encourage folks to embrace our unique history and rake in millions in heritage tourism dollars. This year, May 8-16 is National Tourism Week.
Still, there are no coordinated efforts to embrace heritage tourism here, although the latest facts and figures only reinforce the argument to incorporate it into our economic base.

The Tourism Industry Association of America (TIA), the D.C.-based, nonprofit association that has tracked the U.S. travel industry since 1941, recently published the latest facts about heritage tourism.

Heritage tourists are affluent, educated, family-oriented travelers who are willing to spend money to get authentic experiences involving history and culture. For the average heritage tourist, the experience and authenticity are more important than the cost of getting to it. They visit the places and activities that authentically represent the stories and people of the past and present. Can you imagine any more of a historic region to visit than Albany, Schenectady, and Troy?

In 2000, travel and tourism contributed $582 billion to our economy. Travel and tourism is the third largest retail industry in America, behind automotive dealers and food stores. Travel and tourism directly employs more than 7.8 million people and indirectly supports another 11.5 million jobs, creating a total of 19 million jobs (1 of every 8 people in the U.S.). In addition to creating new jobs and new business, as well as higher property values, well managed tourism improves quality of life and builds community pride.

However, the biggest benefits of cultural heritage tourism are diversification of local economies and preservation of a community's unique character.

The latest study by TIA and Smithsonian Magazine reveals a continued and growing interest in our desire to experience cultural, arts, and historic/heritage activities. A remarkable 81 percent of U.S. adults who traveled in the past year (118 million) are considered historic/cultural travelers. These travelers included historical or cultural activities on almost 217 million person-trips last year, up 13 percent from 192 million in 1996. (A person-trip is one person on one trip traveling 50 miles or more from home, one way.)

The sheer volume of travelers interested in arts and history, as well as their spending habits, travel patterns, and demographics, leaves no doubt that history and culture will continue to be a significant and growing part of the U.S. travel experience in the future. They spend more money on historic/cultural trips compared to the average U.S. trip (average $623 vs.
$457, not including transportation), making historic/cultural travelers a lucrative market for destinations and attractions. Historic travelers specifically stay an average of 5.7 nights. For 30 percent of historic/cultural travelers, a specific historic or cultural event or activity influenced their destination choice.

According to the Meredith Family Vacation Study, an estimated 86.3 million U.S. adults took a family vacation 100 miles or more away from home in 2002. Family travelers are technologically savvy with 63 percent using the Internet to seek information on places to go (an increase from 54 percent in 2001). In addition, nearly half (49%) used the Internet to reserve a trip. The Rensselaer County Chamber of Commerce placed a tourism "button" on their Web site only last week! The types of family vacations that were most popular in 2002 were city (54%), small town/rural (50%), historic sites (46%), ocean and beach (46%), and science center, zoo, or aquarium (40%). 'Minorities' travelers are important too: in 2002, Hispanics generated 8 percent of all U.S. domestic person-trips, African-Americans generated 7 percent, and Asian-Americans accounted for 3 percent.

So what does that mean for the Capital District and the rest of Upstate New
York? Not much! According to a study by the University of Buffalo School of Architecture and Planning this year, factionalism and lack of leadership have resulted in upstate New York missing out on the opportunity of a lifetime to "reinvigorate heritage tourism" in the region.

The study focused on 12 heritage themes unique to our region: Iroquois, military heritage, agriculture, sports, urban places, architecture, religion, freedom, literature, science and innovation, and visual arts. They also included the transportation heritage that connects New York State communities: canals and waterways, railways, trails, and historic trails and roadways.

Here is the punch line. Although there is a great deal of shared historic, cultural, industrial, military, and artistic material to work with, the study noted that: "this legacy has never been considered the important asset it is to upstate New York."