Hotels, airlines and cruise ships are quietly offering steep discounts in the wake of last week's terrorist attacks in an attempt to lure back skittish travelers.
Hotels have been most aggressive, slashing room rates by 50% in popular tourist destinations such as San Diego, Hawaii and Las Vegas. Though airline and cruise line discounts are less prevalent, some cruise lines are offering free air fare. And at least one airline is selling a round-trip fare between Los Angeles and Las Vegas for less than the price to fill the gas tank of a large sport-utility vehicle.
Some industry veterans say deep price cutting is a futile marketing ploy at a time when many travelers' biggest concern is safety, not penny-pinching. Figuring out how to advertise the bargains is proving tricky as well. Leisure travel, in particular, is inextricably linked with fun and celebration--hardly in keeping with the mood of the nation. Some operators have temporarily tabled ad campaigns, concerned about wasting money and appearing insensitive at the same time.
Still, for people looking for a quick getaway from all the stress and sorrow, bargains abound.
"The whole industry is on sale," said Ron Archer, head of Montrose-based Archer Travel Group. "If people are psychologically prepared to travel, there has never been a better time in terms of deals."
Though travel suppliers of all stripes are cutting prices in the wake of the Sept. 11 tragedy, hoteliers undoubtedly have been the quickest and most aggressive. In contrast to the airlines, whose first priorities have been to slash operating expenses and lobby for a federal bailout, hoteliers have homed in on pricing as a way to get more heads in beds.
In Las Vegas, where nearly half the city's 36 million annual visitors arrive by air and hotel-casinos adjust rates frequently to keep gaming areas full, hotels have been quicker to drop prices than many in other cities. Room rates at the six Las Vegas resort hotels operated by MGM Mirage, for example, have been cut 50% or more from what they would normally fetch this weekend, company spokesman Alan Feldman said Thursday. MGM Mirage is Las Vegas' biggest operator, with 18,000 rooms on the Strip and downtown.
Rooms at the Bellagio, normally the priciest bed in town, can now be had for $199 a night even on weekends. At the Mirage, rates have fallen to $99; Treasure Island is $89.
