New year travel trends include appetite for little-known destinations

Hotels are going green, cruiser preference for the Caribbean is slowing and some little-known destinations such as Nicaragua are emerging as travel trends in 2008, according to USA Today.

Destination trends:

The high cost of gas will spark more visits to state and national parks near large urban populations, said Pauline Frommer, creator of the Pauline Frommer guidebook series.

Argentina’s popularity will continue to rise because “it’s incredibly sophisticated and affordable,” said Todd Sotkiewicz, president of Lonely Planet guidebook’s U.S. office.

Lesser-known Latin American destinations such as Nicaragua, where the dollar still goes a long way, are drawing more interest among Americans, some of whom are looking for retirement homes.

Some hotel trends:

• “Probably the No. 1 trend is the greening of the hotel industry,” American Hotel & Lodging Association president Joe McInerney said. But there’s confusion over what green means, and which lodgings are truly eco-friendly.
• Vegas hotels continue on a roll with occupancy over 90% last year, according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

The average rate at US hotels broke the $100 barrier for the first time in 2007, Smith Travel Research said, with rates projected to rise 5% this year.

A variety of affordable, design-centric, tech-friendly hotels with lobbies as social hubs will wash over the landscape. Hyatt Place, Aloft, NYLO and other chains will expand or arrive.

Some cruise trends:

Until recently, “it really was just Cunard that promoted a class system,” but the concept is spreading, says Carolyn Spencer Brown, editor of Cruisecritic.com.

More ships in Europe and less in the Caribbean. The later development is due in part to the rush to more profitable European cruises.

Cruisers are paying extra for more and more things, and the trend will continue in 2008 as lines add more à la carte options such as alternative restaurants.

Some adventure travel trends:

“There’s a sense that many places and wildlife we’ve taken for granted are disappearing, and the changes are happening now, within our lifetimes” said Marian Marbury of the woman-only tour group Adventures in Good Company. More people are seeking bigger adventures. There are rising numbers who want to climb Mount Kilimanjaro, for example,

In the face of growing demand, more countries with fragile and limited resources are deciding that “the best way to preserve what they have is to charge high admission prices,” saidJohn Rasmus, editor of National Geographic Adventure. “

Report by David Wilkening