Leisure Travel

Tourism has become a highly popular global leisure activity. Increased disposable income and leisure time, the development of transport and accommodations, low cost air fares, emerging markets and expanding economies have all contributed to a boost in travel. According to the World Tourism Organization (WTO), January through April of 2007 saw a rise of over 6% arrivals, raising the number of trips to 252 million. This represents an additional 15 million from the same period in 2006. There was a 9% growth of travel to Asia and the Pacific, an 8% growth to Africa, an 8% growth to the Middle East, a 6% growth to Europe and a 4% growth to the Americas. WTO predicts that barring any unforeseen incidents, international tourism will continue to grow at an average annual rate of 4%.
 

Ideally, a growing realization of the tremendous contribution of tourism to the economy and employment rate of countries should lead to increased investment in vehicle safety, improved road infrastructure and better trained public and private drivers. However, this is not always the case. Americans are traveling increasingly to countries where the chances of being killed or seriously injured may be from 20 to 40 times greater than in the U.S. Road crashes are the single greatest cause of death for healthy Americans traveling abroad.

Mature Travelers 

Resources for seniors planning trips abroad:
Elderhostel  www.elderhostel.org
ElderTreks  www.eldertreks.com
INTRAV  www.intrav.com
CDC  www.cdc.gov/Features/SeniorTravel/
Frommer’s http://www.frommers.com/articles/163.html
Travel Unlimited: Uncommon Adventures for the Mature Traveler (Avalon)
The 50+ Traveler's Guidebook (St. Martin's Press)
 

Please visit the link below for more information about how to make safe road travel choices while on vacation.
 

Safety Tips for Tourists