Travel hardy

ShermansTravel Media Experiencing Rapid Growth

ShermansTravel.com Announces Relaunch of Popular Web Site, Sherman's Travel Magazine to Increase Circulation and Frequency

Last update: 4:12 p.m. EDT Aug. 5, 2008

NEW YORK, Aug 05, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- ShermansTravel Media announces a major redesign of its popular travel Web site, ShermansTravel.com, as well as plans to increase frequency and circulation of Sherman's Travel magazine.

Increased expert content and editor-vetted deals, along with enhanced functionality and improved design all help to firmly position ShermansTravel.com as the online leader in expert-recommended travel deals and information. Distinguished by fiercely independent research and a stable of hundreds of expert writers based around the globe, ShermansTravel.com is uniquely positioned to educate consumers on thousands of locations, and then to direct them to the absolute best travel deals to these destinations. Only ShermansTravel.com has the ability to recommend deals and then link consumers directly to the best means to book their travel, often sifting through hundreds of deals to bring them hard-to-find specials from major providers like Travelocity and Orbitz.

Launched in 2002, ShermansTravel.com boasts 3.24 million unique visitors in June 2008, making it #8 among all travel information web sites in the world. This number is nearly triple the unique viewers last year at this time, according to comScore. The newly relaunched ShermansTravel.com boasts new design, simplified navigation, and the addition of 300 comprehensive ShermansTravel Guides for cities, regions, and countries in the United Stated and around the world, written by renowned travel experts and fully vetted and edited by ShermansTravel.com editors and writers.

Says ShermansTravel.com Editorial Director Arabella Bowen, "We're proud to be considered one of the top travel sites by millions of sophisticated consumers. One of our biggest challenges was competing out of the gate with so many sites that had decades of content to draw on. At both ShermansTravel.com and Sherman's Travel magazine, we started fresh with a new premise that people want to travel smart but need help sifting through the vast options available to them at all price points."

As Sherman's Travel magazine goes into its third year in print, ShermansTravel Media also announces plans to increase both the circulation and frequency of the magazine, to take effect in early 2009. The quarterly publication plans to increase to 6 issues/year, and will raise circulation from 200,000 to 250,000 due to increased consumer demand for its unique focus on smart luxury values. The only magazine to address the Smart Luxury category, Sherman's Travel magazine speaks to those who seek 4- and 5-star luxury vacations, but want to travel smartly.

"We're proud at ShermansTravel Media that the market is recognizing and embracing our unique contributions to the travel space both in print and online. Our online visitors and our print subscribers value the intelligence behind our content, our diversity of offerings, and the comprehensive expert advice that we give them. This combination distinguishes us from all of the other travel media out there today," said James H. Sherman, Founder and CEO of ShermansTravel Media. "We're here to save people time and to find the best travel experiences for our consumers, and they appreciate that," he adds.

Research shows that most travelers who book online visit at least four sites before they make a purchase. Now, the new ShermansTravel.com aims to become the one-stop travel site for research, comparison shopping, and proceeding directly to booking. The largest publisher of editor-selected travel deals and independent expert travel advice online is also among the top travel sites on the internet.

ShermansTravel.com also has approximately 1,000 editor-vetted travel deals representing the best the web has to offer, culled from tens of thousands of offers from more than 250 trusted online travel providers. Enhanced search results, varied destination photos, Top 10 lists, Spotlight Articles, Perfect Trips, Today's Top Deals, Slideshows, as well as access to content from Sherman's Travel magazine and Smart Luxury travel deals and advice round out the site.

ABOUT SHERMANS TRAVEL MEDIA

ShermansTravel Media is a leading travel media company that publishes ShermansTravel.com and Sherman's Travel magazine. Founded by James Sherman in 2002 to help travelers make sense of the overwhelming number of online travel specials, ShermansTravel.com is now the web's most trusted source for editor-screened travel deals and destination advice. Sherman's Top 25, a free weekly e-newsletter published every Wednesday, recently surpassed four million subscribers. The company also has syndication partnerships with leading web sites, including MSNBC.com, MSN.com, USAToday.com, and Yahoo!. Building on its trusted online brand, ShermansTravel Media launched Sherman's Travel, the first magazine serving sophisticated, value-conscious travelers, in October 2006.

     Media Contacts:      Roland Alonzi/Joanne Bloomstein, MMG Mardiks      Tel. 212.219.0759, ext: 6765/646-237-4519      ralonzi@mmgmardiks.com/jbloomstein@mmgmardiks.com

Travel sites receive 50% of visits from travel media & referral sites

According to a new PhoCusWright study, just over half of the top 200 travel Web sites in February 2008 were booking Web sites. The remaining were referral and media sites, which attract travel shoppers with expert and traveler-generated reviews, metasearch capabilities, and maps of travel destinations.

Travel bookings are no longer the whole story as advertising and referral-based business models gain ground.

Just over half of the top 200 travel Web sites in February 2008 were booking Web sites.

The remaining were referral and media sites, which attract travel shoppers with expert and traveler-generated reviews, metasearch capabilities, and maps of travel destinations.

Travel industry research authority PhoCusWright and Hitwise partnered to track and analyze the online travel space.

The resulting report, Search, Shop, Buy: Inside The Tangled Web of Online Travel uses traffic data from Hitwise to determine how Travel 2.0, the Long Tail and search are affecting the online travel space, tracing the trends that are emerging throughout the travel search, shopping and buying processes.

"Search and shopping sites are having a major impact on the travel category, and their power is expected to grow as the slowing economy prompts travelers to spend even more time searching for travel deals," said Cathy Schetzina, technology analyst for PhoCusWright. "This trend underlines the need for travel suppliers and intermediaries to target search marketing and online advertising efforts based on a clear understanding of online travel shopping patterns."

Also among the report's findings about the trends impacting online travel:

- While travelers continue to report shopping at an online travel agency site and then switching to a supplier site to book (and vice versa), online travel agencies and suppliers in fact lose more downstream traffic to competitors of the same type of site.

- Metasearch sites were initially hailed as a boon to suppliers, but online travel agencies are in fact the top beneficiaries of these sites.

- Despite the fact that two general social networks rank within the top 10 sites on the Web overall, only two travel-specific social networks appear within the top 200 travel Web sites.

The report also analyzes fast-growing travel Web sites based on increase in visits year over year, search engine traffic to the travel category, including search term patterns, and lifestyle descriptions for online travel shoppers.

Related Link: PhoCusWright, Inc.

Town used Open to promote Oakville

While dozens of reporters enjoyed the sights and sounds of Glen Abbey Golf Club during the first morning of the RBC Canadian Open on Thursday, a handful of journalists were taking in the sights and sounds in another part of town.

By Tina Depko

News, Oakville, Ontario -- Oakville Beaver

Jul 30, 2008

This special group was part of Tourism Day, an initiative by the Town, where travel writers and photographers were taken on a tour to promote Oakville as a tourist destination.

"Tourism Day is an opportunity for us to showcase Oakville to travel writers and convention planners," explained Dorothy St. George, director of economic development with the Town of Oakville. "We want to take the opportunity to give these people a snapshot of tourism sights around Oakville and then give them a nice day at the Open. Tourism is a great economic engine and we've got some beautiful places in Oakville and we want to open it up for everyone to enjoy."

Although the number of reporters covering Tourism Day was less than 10, turnout among councillors, members of the three Business Improvement Areas and local business people was high.

Travelling in an Oakville Transit bus, the group spent the morning sightseeing. Following a tour of development in the north part of a town, the bus travelled through Bronte Village.

Ann Sargent, executive director of the Bronte BIA, and Murray McDonald, volunteer chair of the Bronte BIA, served as guides for the area, discussing its history, development plans and health of local businesses.

Sargent said that Oakville is a hidden gem that has the potential to become a major tourist attraction.

"I think it is important to showcase all areas of Oakville, in that we are blessed with two harbours, a magnificent lakefront location and three diverse, vibrant areas we can welcome visitors to," Sargent said.

The next stop on the tour was Kerr Village. The area is special due to its unique combination of restaurants, shops and organic farmers' market, making it a potential tourist mecca, according to Richard Messer, executive director of Kerr Village BIA.

"As a BIA, we are trying to establish our own tourism brand through our arts and culture, music and entertainment, and restaurants," said Messer. "Most of the people that come to Oakville don't come off an airplane from London. We're trying to tell people who come to Ontario to visit that they can come to our community and have a great time."

A stop at Erchless Estate and a drive through the downtown core followed.

"Tourism is a significant industry for the businesses in downtown Oakville, so I think this event today is one way to tell people to come to Oakville," said Suzy Godefroy, manager of Downtown Oakville BIA. "I think we need to tell people what we are all about. We've got the product -- we've got culture, shopping, entertainment and great businesses. We just need to tell people more about it. Getting writers to put the word out like we are today is one way to do that."

The tour wrapped up at noon, with the entourage dropped off at the Canadian Open. The Town invited the guests to mingle in the posh VIP tent, although the enjoyment was short-lived as the play was called off just before 1 p.m. for the majority of the afternoon due to inclement weather.

A common idea expressed during the tour by several BIA members and local business people was the need for a full-time tourism staff members at Town Hall, as well as a public tourism office. Some people cited Burlington's busy visitor's centre located in a prime site downtown as something that could be used as a model for Oakville.

"Oakville currently does not have an individual dedicated to the promotion of tourism and this is something that we feel strongly about," said Sargent. "We're part of the Oakville Tourism Partnership and we all have been advocating for quite some time for a dedicated person on staff with the Town of Oakville. Until this is done, we feel that we're missing many opportunities."

Tourism injects about $85 million into the local economy annually, according to John Sawyer, executive director of the Oakville Chamber of Commerce. The spinoff created by a strong tourism sector can translate into big business, he said.

"Tourism is an important economic driver and is also something that attracts people to want to come and live in Oakville," he said. "One of the main determining factors in where companies locate is where its CEO is at. If we have a vibrant tourism industry, we're going to bring people to town who will want to live here, and then they potentially will bring their company here."

The tourism portfolio is currently the responsibility of the culture and recreation office. When asked if the Town is planning to put more emphasis on tourism, with the possibility of opening a visitor's tourism centre, Mary Chapin, Town councillor for Ward 3, said there are no such plans in the works.

"I think it isn't a bad idea, but I'm not sure we need that, yet," she said. "We're more focused on (tourism) activities and the people who are promoting them."

The travel journalists in attendance had mixed reactions about Oakville being a tourism destination.

David Bell, a freelance travel writer from Kitchener, admitted this was his first visit to Oakville. He said making Oakville a hotspot would take a concerted effort from the Town.

"I didn't really have a reason to come here until today," he said. "It certainly has potential to be a tourist destination. If you can identify half a dozen key attractions to visit, you could get groups of people coming here to visit if you marketed it that way."

Oakville Ontario Canada opening its rich in history doors

By Tina Depko

Arts & Entertainment

Jul 09, 2008

Historical buildings and tourist hotspots across Oakville are opening their doors to the public to celebrate culture.

The first annual Doors Open Oakville will be held the weekend of September 27 and 28. The free family event is part of a larger province-wide tourism initiative called Doors Open Ontario.

"The idea is that for one weekend, people from all different cultural and heritage institutions open their doors to the public and give them a chance to see something they wouldn't normally see," said Bill Nesbitt, Oakville Museum supervisor and a member of the Doors Open Oakville committee. "It is kind of a behind the scenes peek and I think people will be surprised at their own community and there's more going on in Oakville than they think. It is also completely free and run by volunteers, which is nice. We want people to see what a great breadth and depth of culture exists here."

Since the Doors Open Ontario program was launched in 2002, nearly 2.5 million visits have been made to heritage sites participating in the initiative. Doors Open Ontario, now considered a cultural phenomenon, will be even larger in 2008 with hundreds of communities participating in 54 events across the province from April through October.

Various members of the Oakville community have been striving towards hosting such an event here for years. A committee was officially formed last fall, putting the wheels in motion to make it become a reality.

"It will give people a sense of the heritage and history of the town of Oakville, so we encourage people to investigate their community and see what we have to offer," said George Chisholm, president of the Oakville Historical Society.

To date, there are 18 local venues slated to take part in the weekend event. More are expected to be added before the event kicks off.

Doors Open Oakville locations:

 Erchless Estate, Oakville Museum, 8 Navy St.

 St. Jude's Anglican Church, 160 William St.

 St. Jude's Cemetery, 258 Lakeshore Rd. W.

 George K. Chisholm House, (Canadian Sound) 85 Navy St.

 Amos Biggar House (Cork House) 2441 Neyagawa Blvd.

 Oakville's First Post Office, Lakeside Park, Oakville Museum

 Oakville Historical Society Archives, 110 King St.

 Oakville Centre for the Performing Arts, 130 Navy St.

 Sovereign House, 7 West River St.

 Merrick Thomas House, Lakeside Park, Oakville Historical Society

 The Granary, 105 Robinson St.

 Palermo Schoolhouse, 2431 Dundas St. W., Trafalgar Township Historical Society

 Oakville Lighthouse, 1 Forsythe St.

 Oakville Galleries at Gairloch Gardens, 1306 Lakeshore Rd. E.

 Masonic Temple, 125 Thomas St.

 The Kensington (Green Roof) 25 Lakeshore Rd. W.

 Appleby College, 540 Lakeshore Rd. W.

 Turner Chapel Antiques, 37 Lakeshore Rd. W.

The variety of venues means there will be something for everyone, according to Nesbitt.

"We're looking at places of worship, historic areas and we even have a boat," Nesbitt said.

"It is not just old buildings and museums, it is a really broad definition of heritage. It encourages people to get out and explore parts of their communities they might otherwise not see."

Many of the sites will be offering special programming and exhibits that weekend, Nesbitt added.

"There will be a lot for people to do and see," he said. "If I were a kid, I would love it."

As Oakville's population continues to rapidly increase, Nesbitt said this event is a good way to introduce newcomers to the town.

"I think in a town like Oakville, which has changed so much over recent years, it is a good chance for newcomers and people who have lived here all their lives to see what is happening in their community and bring them together," Nesbitt said.

The event is made possible through grants. One, totalling $18,000 came from the Ontario Trillium Foundation, which is an agency of the provincial government. The money will be used to cover the costs of a coordinator, various program expenses and volunteer support.

"This is a great program and I know that this will show people across the province the cultural treasures and riches we have right here in our own neighbourhood," said Kevin Flynn, Oakville MPP. "It is tough to convince people that our heritage needs preserved so I'm thankful to all our volunteers who made this event possible. Oakville has a remarkable history and a great collection of historical buildings and now we have an opportunity to showcase that to the rest of the province."

The Community Foundation of Oakville, through its Oakville Heritage Trust Fund, also donated $4,000 to the Doors Open Oakville committee.

"The CFO is very pleased to support Doors Open, which gives an opportunity to showcase the history and vibrancy of our town," said June Cockwell, vice chair of the foundation. "The CFO has long been a proud supporter of heritage. We recognize that remembering and celebrating our history and heritage of our community plays an important role in ensuring that we support and maintain a vibrant and exciting community that has roots."

Organizers say they expect the event to draw between 15,000 and 20,000 people from Oakville and across Ontario. This includes Doors Open "groupies" who travel from town to town to take part in the local events.

The potential for this event to turn into a significant tourist attraction is something organizers are banking on.

Hamilton's recent Doors Open, for example, featured close to 70 venues and attracted about 250,000 people over the course of the weekend.

Doors Open runs September 27 and 28 at various sites from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Volunteers are still needed.

For information, e-mail doorsopenoakville@gmail.com or call 905-845-6601, ext. 5019.

Quick Vacation Workout

This ultra-quick workout targets the major muscles of the body for a quick, efficient workout.  This won't take the place of a complete total body program, but it's great for maintaining fitness without spending a lot of time exercising.  For this workout you'll need a light-medium weight resistance band and a chair.

• Warm up with a few minutes of walking in place
• Do each exercise for about 1 minute (add more sets if you have time)
• Go slowly to really work your muscles
• If you don't have a resistance band, use full water bottles as dumbbells or nothing at all

Pushups  Pushups work your arms, chest, abs and back and you don't need any equipment. Do them on your knees (easier) or toes and keep your back straight (no sagging) and your head in neutral alignment. Keep abs tight as you lower and exhale as you push back up. Do as many as you can for one minute and move on.

Plie Squats w/ Resistance Band Stand with feet wider than shoulders, toes turned out and resistance band stretched beneath feet. Keeping the band taut, lower into a plie, keeping knees in line (and behind) toes and curl arms up, lower back to 90 degrees and squeeze butt to stand up. Repeat for 1 minute.

One-legged Squat with Shoulder Press Stand with right foot on band and left foot lifted a few inches off the ground, holding onto a chair for balance. Bend knee and lower into a slight squat (butt back, knee behind toe) then raise right arm straight up over head. Do about 16 and switch to the other side.

Deadlift with Band Row Stand on band and pull it tight, hands in front of thighs. Keeping back flat, tip from the hips and bring hands down the legs to mid shin. While you're down there, bend elbows and pull them up to your ribcage, contracting the back. Tighten butt to lift back up. Do as many as you can bear and move on.

Tricep Dips  Find a chair or solid object and sit on it with hands next to hips. Move hips in front of chair and, keeping butt close to the chair, bend the elbows and lower a few inches. Don't sink into the shoulder or lower past 90 degrees. Do a whole bunch and get ready for your last exercise.

Side Plank Ab Twist Lie on your side and push up so that your body is supported by right hand (or bent forearm), feet stacked. Straighten left arm and sweep it down, twisting your body and turning shoulders towards the floor (hips don't move). Do it on the other side and then hit the beach.

From Paige Waehner,
Your Guide to Exercise.
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About.com Health's Disease and Condition content is reviewed by our Medical Review Board

Updated: June 5, 2007

Get outdoors with GOogle Georgia!

6/17/2008 11:02:00 AM

Posted by Maureen Schumacher, GOOGLE Regional Sales Director, Atlanta

Our Atlanta office recently teamed up with the Parks, Recreation and Historic Sites Division of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources to support an initiative called Get Outdoors Georgia (GO Georgia). An effort to help Georgians get outdoors, get fit and enjoy their diverse natural resources, the initiative focuses on family-friendly, nature-based, healthy outdoor recreation opportunities throughout the state. As a founding sponsor of the program, Google will offer consultation on products including AdWords, Analytics, Maps, Earth, Picasa, Gadgets and a branded YouTube channel

According to a 2007 report from the Trust for America's Health, Georgia is one of the "heaviest" states in the union, ranking 14th for adult obesity and 12th for overweight children (16+ percent of its youth overweight or obese). We're pleased that our products will play a part in an historic effort to improve the health and well-being of all Georgians. And today, we're expanding our relationship with GO Georgia by spending a day in Panola Mountain State Park. Atlanta Googlers will help to restore the park and remove growth not indigenous to the area, improving the experience for Georgians and other visitors when they get out and visit the park.

For more info on this forward-looking new program, visit the GO Georgia site.

Travel portals hit heights as biz travel slows down

23 Jun, 2008, 2130 hrs IST,Vishakha Talreja , ET Bureau

NEW DELHI: The slowdown in the business travel market is making at least one industry sub-sector happy––travel portals like Makemytrip, Yatra, Cleartrip and Travelguru. Major players in the online travel market say that they will break-even by end of this fiscal thanks to dip in corporate travel which has led to cheaper deals for that these portals on hotel bookings.  Though majority of transactions on these portals are for air-tickets ,hotel bookings, which offer higher margins, is catching up fast. For instance, over 90% of Travelguru's Rs 250-crore yearly sales comes from hotels, whereas it accounts for 10% of Yatra's Rs 513-crore turnover.  Explains makemytrip CEO Keyur Joshi, "As there is a liquidity crunch in the market, not many new players have entered the online travel industry this year, that could have further crowded it. Also as corporate travel is dipping, the tophotel chains, which did not consider makemytrip and the likes earlier, are now supplying us the inventory to get leisure tourists."  The website, which claims sales of over Rs 1,000-crore in 2007-08 , hopes to break-even in the next few months. Adds an Indiatimes official : "The air-ticket space has been cluttered . Portals are now offering accommodation , cruises and packages which have a higher propensity to make money , improving portals bottomline."  Also Read à Sikkim on a mission to woo tourists à India eyes becoming top tourist destination for Chinese à Rich Indian tourists making a beeline for Malaysia à Revised estimates put tourism earning at $9.16 bn à Foreign tourist arrivals on rise Online space witnessed mushrooming of travel portals around two-three years back. But with rising customer awareness about e-travel overtime, travel portals also intend to cut down on their advertising & marketing spends, and this will also help shore up their bottomlines faster. Says Cleartrip CEO Sandeep Murthy ; "In the last three months we have cut our marketing cost significantly . Around 70% of our customers are repeat clients."  Agrees Travelguru CEO Ashwin Damera ; "Marketing cost this year will be much lower. With global economic slowdown , we know that venture capitalists will be stingy with their money (either for new ventures or follow-up funding) travel websites are not spending excessively on marketing absurd schemes to attract customers" .  Most of the travel portals have opened travel shops, and their sales (and profits) includes revenue from the offline medium as well. For instance Yatra has opened Yatra lounges in malls and is bullish on them. "We now are a sales of over Rs 100-crore a month. We will end up covering our cost in the last quarter of this year," says Yatra co-founder Dhruv Shringi.