Alexandria CVA Visitor Profile

1
Alexandria CVA Visitor Profile
2
Table of Contents

• Purpose, TravelsAmerica Topics, and Research
  Methods 3
• Executive Summary 8
• Detailed Findings 14
• Overall Market and Purpose 15
• Trip Volume 16
• Trip Purpose 17
• Overnight Visitors 18
• Market Alexandria, Northern Virginia,
  Washington DC 21
• Source, Purpose, Mode 22
• Travel Party Composition, Spending, Activities 25
• Top Hotel Brands 28
• Planning 29
• Demographics and Psychographics 31
• Purpose Alexandria Visitors Business vs.
  Leisure 34
• Source, Purpose, Mode 35
• Travel Party Composition, Spending, Activities 38
• Top Hotel Brands 41
• Planning 42
• Demographics and Psychographics 44

3
PurposeTravelsAmerica TopicsResearch Methods
4
Purpose for Alexandria, VA

• To more fully understand visitors to Alexandria
  and to help guide marketing efforts, TNS provides
  the Alexandria Convention and Visitors
  Association with TravelsAmerica results that
• Profiles Leisure vs. Business Travelers
  Includes general demographics, psychographics,
  and source (from where do they come)
• Indicates Trip Behaviors Reviews trip choices
  such as overnight stays, spending, mode of travel
  (getting to Alexandria), travel companions,
  planning resources used, and activity choices
• Estimates Visitor Volume/Volume Projections TNS
  carefully weights US households by several
  factors to reliably assess the number of visitors
  
• Compares Alexandria to Washington DC and Northern
  Virginia Measure differences among visitors to
  these three destinations

5
Purpose of TravelsAmerica

• TravelsAmerica provides trip information to the
  travel industry. Each month, TNS conducts over
  10,000 Internet-based interviews among past
  12-month travelers who have traveled more than 50
  miles from their homes (excluding commuters).
  From this sample, past-month trip data from
  4,500 travelers provides more detailed insights.
  Key elements to the research include
• Visitor Profiles Substantial demographic,
  psychographic, and geographic (from where do they
  come?) information is available to assess
  characteristics of visitors to various US
  destinations
• Volume Projections With careful attention to
  survey outgo and returns (noted in the research
  methods), TNS statisticians weight US households
  by several factors to reliably assess the number
  of visitors to specific destinations
• Trip Characteristics Destination promoters can
  determine why people come (business or leisure),
  how they get there (transportation), with whom
  they travel, how long and where they stay, what
  they do (activity choices), how much they spend,
  and what resources they used to plan and book the
  trip
• Market Share Because TravelsAmerica includes
  worldwide selections, destinations can determine
  their (and their competitors) real market share
  of all trips taken by US household members
  worldwide or limited to those within the United
  States
• Measurement The projected visitation (Q4a and
  Q4d) counts all household members in the travel
  party and the most recent three trips taken in a
  month (if more than three trips are taken, all
  trips are assigned a multiple to account for
  additional trips, up to 10). Not counted are
  those in the travel party who are not members of
  the respondents household, because technically,
  those should be counted within another household

6
TravelsAmerica Topics

• Designed and updated annually as a collaborative
  effort between travel and TNS professionals, this
  TNS TravelsAmerica syndication tracks trip
  behaviors, specifically
• Number of trips taken, including both household
  and person-trips in the past month
• Trip purpose (business or leisure)
• Transportation used
• Travel party members household and
  non-household
• Number of nights (if any)
• States and cities visited
• Accommodations
• Spending levels by category (transportation,
  lodging, food, entertainment, etc.)
• Activities
• Planning cycle
• Resources for researching and booking travel
• Satisfaction
• Initiated in July 2005, the online survey draws a
  representative sample from TNS 6th dimension US
  Panel. Data are prepared quarterly and annually
  twice per year (for both fiscal and calendar
  years)
• Results are trended as appropriate

7
TravelsAmerica Research Methods

• Through its 6th dimension US Panel (over 1
  million households), TNS queries 38,000 US
  residents about all trips taken in the prior
  month so February email invitations collect
  information about trips taken in January
  whether for business, leisure, personal business,
  or combination of business and leisure.
  Specifically
• Response Rate Enforced response rate of 45 --
  sending reminders as necessary.
• Balanced Outgo Using the most up-to-date Census
  criteria (adjusted in March each year), e-mail
  invitations are balanced on household size,
  market size, income, marital status, family age,
  household type (family, non-family male,
  non-family female), presence of children, race,
  state, top 25 CBSA (cities).
• Balancing Returns Returns typically come back
  representative of reality and the demo-weight
  (sometimes referred to as respondent weight)
  accurately takes care of anything out of line
• Volume Weights TNS statisticians apply US
  household volume weights to data (divided by
  1,000 to keep the numbers more manageable) to
  generate volume counts. In addition to overall
  volume, the weights include adjustments for these
  demographics factors family age, household
  size, marital status, household income, and
  state. These demographics are fit
  proportionately within region, except for state.
• Trip Multiplier The survey tracks information
  on the last three trips during a month, but if
  the respondent takes five trips, trips for that
  respondent are weighted by 1.67 (5 divided by 3).
  This trip multiplier calculation began in Q2,
  2006, thus, FY 2006 and CY 2006 will not sum
  exactly to the quarters within it.
• Person-Trips Volume in the TravelsAmerica data
  (Q4a and Q4d) also includes the number in the
  travel party (up to 20). If three people in your
  household travel on a particular trip, the volume
  for that trip is multiplied by three. It does
  not include those in the travel party who are not
  members of the respondents household, because
  technically, those should be counted within
  another household.
• Levels of Data There are three levels of
  information reported by respondents
• Household Level This level is weighted only by
  the factor needed to make respondents households
  representative of their group within the US
  whether projected to total US population or not
• Trip Level Trip information this factor
  expands the household level weight by the number
  of TRIPS taken. For person-trips, the number
  expands by the number of household members plus
  the trip multiplier if number of trips gt3
• State Level Within each state, respondents list
  the cities that they visit on a specific trip).
  The count for any particular state remains the
  same as the Trip Level count, but multiple cities
  may get a count for that trip

8
Executive Summary
9
Key Insights

• Overview/Abstract
• As a destination, Alexandria attracts a healthy
  level of visitors with the upscale
  characteristics needed to sustain it through the
  current economic uncertainty. With more than 3
  million annual visitors, most (76) spend the
  night and each travel group leaves almost 800 in
  the city (794).
• The Alexandria visitor is an engaged,
  well-informed visitor. They are comfortable
  using a variety of information sources as they
  develop their consideration set of potential
  destinations two thirds (65) plan at least 1
  month ahead of their trip. They find and consult
  more official materials than the average
  traveler (destination websites and printed
  materials) so promoters should ensure that these
  sources reflect Alexandrias features and entice
  potential visitors to discover it for themselves.
  
• The upscale nature of the Alexandria visitor
  appears not only in income and education, but
  also in the activity choices pursued with a
  heavy tilt towards historical and cultural
  interests. Plus, compared to average US
  travelers, they participate in an above average
  number of activities (3.2 vs. 2.2). So, again,
  the Alexandria visitor is engaged, curious, and
  active.
• The psychographic preferences also reflect these
  traits they seek information, like to explore
  new places, and influence others. Their traits
  merit close observation and measurement of what
  they are saying about Alexandria because friends
  and family frequently solicit their advice.
• Promoters may consider observing and measuring
  word-of-mouth (WOM) opinions about Alexandria
  through social media these impact how
  Alexandria stories are told, can lead to product
  and service innovations, determine motivators,
  and also uncover barriers and obstacles to
  Alexandria visitation.

10
Executive Summary

• The 3.3 million annual visitors to Alexandria
  arrive from New York (11), Washington DC (9),
  Philadelphia (5). However, the origin varies by
  purpose. Leisure visitors come from these same
  markets, but businesspeople come from business
  centers, both locally (Washington DC and Norfolk)
  and distantly NYC, Baltimore, Los Angeles, and
  Chicago.
• Leisure visitors (68 of all visitors) to
  Alexandria visit friends/relatives (70) followed
  by entertainment/sightseeing (38). Business
  travelers (27 of all visitors) usually intend to
  conduct general business (53) or attend a
  convention/conference/seminar (36).
• Alexandria visitors (36) arrive by air twice as
  often as average travelers, trailing Washington
  DC (51), but leading Northern Virginia (28)
  which, in turn, also markedly surpasses the
  national average (18). Alexandria business
  visitors fly to the city twice as often as
  leisure (56 vs. 29) visitors.

Origin DMAs
Purpose of Trip
Air Travel Transportation
11
Executive Summary

• Most (76) visitors spend the night and the
  proportion differs little by market (Alexandria,
  Washington DC, or Northern Virginia) or by
  purpose (leisure or business). However,
  Alexandria business travelers tend to stay longer
  (4.3 nights vs. 3.5 nights for leisure
  travelers).
• However, use of paid accommodations
  (hotels/motels/BBs) varies substantially by
  market and purpose. By market, a little more
  than half (56) of Alexandria visitors pay for a
  guest room, similar to Northern Virginia (60),
  but trailing Washington DC (77). By purpose,
  business travelers purchase a guest room much
  more often than leisure travelers (76 vs. 49).
  Consequently, although business travelers
  represent only a quarter (27) of all Alexandria
  visitors, they account for a third (33) of all
  nights and almost half (48) of all paid nights.
• The average party size to Alexandria (3.2) and
  Northern Virginia (3.3) exceeds Washington DC
  (3.0), impacted by a larger proportion of
  business travelers to Washington DC. Most
  Alexandria business travelers arrive alone (68),
  in contrast to far fewer leisure travelers (25).
  

Overnight Visitors
Top Hotel Brads
Average Travel Party Size
12
Executive Summary

• Capturing fewer travel dollars than nearby
  competitors (794 vs. 1,057 Northern Virginia
  and 954 Washington DC), Alexandria travel
  parties spend considerably more than the national
  average (634), impacted by air travel, larger
  travel parties, high incomes, and longer stays.
• Alexandria visitors participate in an additional
  activity compared to the national average (3.2
  vs. 2.2 activities), consistent with higher
  spending and longer stays. Similar to the
  competitive Washington DC and Northern Virginia
  markets, visitors tend to make upscale historical
  and urban activity choices, selecting these much
  more often than average travelers fine dining,
  museums, historic sites, urban sightseeing,
  state/national parks, art galleries, and old
  homes/mansions.
• Compared to total US travelers, Alexandria and
  its nearby competitors tend to be younger (44
  Alexandria vs. 46 US average), more affluent
  (77,000 vs. 62,000 household incomes), and more
  formally educated (30 vs. 20 college graduates).

Trip Spending
Activities
Demographics
13
Executive Summary

• Two thirds of Alexandria visitors (65) consider
  the destination for at least a month before
  visiting similar to Washington DC and Northern
  Virginia visitors. In contrast, visitors
  elsewhere in the US appear much more spontaneous
  overall, more than a third (35) consider a
  destination for less than two weeks compared to
  only one in five (21) Alexandria visitors.
• Alexandria visitors use multiple sources,
  apparently comfortable with the information
  gathering process and use all listed sources
  (except own experience) to a much greater
  degree than average US travelers. Further, more
  of them use most of these sources than visitors
  to Washington DC or Northern Virginia. Leading
  resources include the collective (net) online
  sources, word-of-mouth (friends/relatives), and
  their own past experience, but more of them also
  consult destination printed materials and
  official destination websites than other
  visitors.
• Compared to average US travelers (and to a lesser
  degree, to Washington DC and Northern Virginia),
  Alexandria visitors tend to be more
  environmentally concerned, influential on others,
  ethically minded, information savvy, and
  community minded. They also willingly pay more
  or go to more trouble to achieve original,
  genuine, and authentic experiences and they
  like to be the first to find a great travel
  experience.

Planning Horizon
Planning Sources
Psychographic Traits
14
Detailed Findings
15
OverallMarket and Purpose
16
Trip Volume Alexandria vs. Competitors

• Within Virginia, travelers often choose to visit
  southern destinations
• With 30 million annual visitors in FY 2006/2007,
  Virginia visitors most often select southern
  Virginia cities Richmond, Williamsburg, and
  Virginia Beach
• Alexandria places fourth in visitation among
  Virginia cities
• It leads other Northern Virginia areas
  (Arlington, Fairfax, and Manassas)
• Washington DC claims more visitors than any
  single Virginia city

Visitors (FY 2006/2007) to Selected Virginia
Cities
TNS TravelsAmerica provides estimated visitation
to a city within a given state, projected to the
total U.S. household level.  For Alexandria and
Arlington visitation estimates, responses include
visitors to State of Virginia and the District of
Columbia, who in turn, visited Alexandria and/or
Arlington.  For example, visitation to Alexandria
for FY 2006 and FY 2007 is approximately 3.3
million visitors.  (The sum of visitors to
Alexandria by way of Virginia, 3.562 million in
2006/2007 plus visitors to Alexandria by way of
Washington DC, 3.094 million, divided by two
since the data cover two calendar years Total
6.656 million/2 years 3,328,000).
Please indicate the US state(s) visited (Person
Trips) FY 2006 and FY 2007 combined divided by
2 for an average of the two years Alexandria and
Arlington includes the sums that appear in both
Virginia and Washington DC states
17
Composition of Visitors Business vs. Leisure

• Alexandria visitors come for pleasure
• Two-thirds of travelers to Alexandria (68) come
  for leisure, similar to Northern Virginia (70)
• In contrast, half (47) of Washington DCs
  visitors come for business reasons

Proportion of Business vs. Leisure Visitors
n 163K 719 500 384
Primary Purpose of Trip
18
Overnight Visitation All Visitors

• Roughly three-quarters of travelers stay
  overnight
• Little difference appears between Northern
  Virginia and Alexandria
• Little difference appears between Alexandrias
  business and leisure visitors
• However, Washington DC leisure visitors more
  often just spend the day (35) than Alexandria
  (22) or Northern Virginia visitors (20)

Who Stays Overnight
Business 82 O/N 18 Day 80 O/N 20 Day
Leisure 65 O/N 35 Day 80 O/N 20 Day
Abridged Please specify visits that include at
least one overnight stay.
19
Paid Accommodations Overnights

• Of total nights spent at destination
• Washington DC visitors, who are more likely to be
  business than leisure travelers, pay for most of
  their nights there
• Somewhat more than half of nights spent in
  Alexandria (56) and Northern Virginia (60) are
  in hotels/motels/BBs
• Business travelers usually pay for overnights
  (86 Washington DC 80 Northern Virginia 76
  Alexandria)
• Leisure travelers, especially, more often pay in
  DC (63) than in Northern Virginia (49) or
  Alexandria (51)

Overnights Paid (Hotel/Motel/BB)
3.3 3.1 4.1 3.7 3.5 4.4 Total Overnights
Business 86 Paid 80 Paid Leisure 63
Paid 49 Paid
Abridged Please specify visits that include at
least one overnight stay.
20
Overnight Visits by Business vs. Leisure

• From another viewpoint business travelers
  disproportionately add to overnight stays
• Business travelers tend to stay longer in
  Virginia than leisure travelers so although
  business travelers represent only a quarter (27)
  of all Alexandria visitors, they account for a
  third (33) of all nights
• The shift increases when limited to paid nights
  (hotel/motel/BB) business travelers account for
  almost half (48) of all paid nights

Traveler Contribution to Overnight Stays
Abridged Please specify the number of nights
you stayed. Note Alexandria and Northern
Virginia include all nights in Virginia, but must
have visited Alexandria for Alexandria and must
have visited Northern Virginia for Northern
Virginia.
21
Market Alexandria, Northern Virginia,
Washington DC
22
Market Source of Visitors

• Alexandria draws heavily from Eastern cities
• Overall, Alexandria attracts a quarter of its
  visitors from three cities NYC, DC, and
  Philadelphia
• Alexandria and Northern Virginia draw visitors
  from the same areas and both entice Washington
  DC residents to take a nearby trip to their areas

Origin of Visitors Top DMAs
40 40 41 These Markets of Total
Top Feeder Markets to Alexandria 3
23
Market Purpose of Travel

• Leisure motivates most travelers
• Overall, most people travel for pleasure (80
  leisure 18 business 8 personal business).
  Visits with family, friends, and relatives (VFR)
  account for the largest share more so for
  Alexandria (53) and Northern Virginia (54)
  visitors than the US as a whole (48) and double
  the rate for Washington DC visitors (28)
• Instead, those visiting Washington DC are much
  more likely to be business travelers (50 vs. 32
  Alexandria) and less likely leisure travelers
  (55 vs. 73 Alexandria) than visitors to other
  areas
• Alexandria visitors hosts nearly twice as many
  business travelers as the national average (32
  vs. 18)
• Alexandria visitors choose entertainment/sightseei
  ng (28) as a leisure activity slightly more
  often than travelers to the other key competitive
  markets (24 - 25)

Motivating Factors for Visit
Please select all purposes for trips . . .
? Note Respondents could select both personal
and business reasons and may sum to more than 100
24
Market Primary Mode of Transportation

• Travel mode varies by destination
• Impacted by its large proportion of business
  travelers, Washington DC visitors are nearly
  three times more likely to fly than average US
  travelers
• Alexandria visitors (36) arrive by air twice as
  often as average travelers, trailing Washington
  DC (51), but leading Northern Virginia (28)
  which, in turn, also markedly surpasses the
  national average (18)

Primary Mode to City
Which of the following was the primary mode of
transportation for the month of ?
25
Market Travel Party and Children

• Travelers typically travel with at least one
  other person (71)
• Again impacted by the high proportion of business
  travelers, Washington DC visitors are most likely
  of these markets to travel solo (49) Alexandria
  and Northern Virginia visitors also arrive alone
  more often than most US travelers
• A quarter (23) of Alexandria visitors travel
  with children under the age of 18
• In comparison, Washington DC visitors less often
  travel with children (consistent with business
  travel), but when they do visit for leisure they
  bring their families (highest number of children)

Number in Travel Party
Avg. in Travel Party 2.9 3.0 3.3 3.2
Percent with Children
Avg. Children (If Any) 2.2 3.6 3.0 3.3
Number of travel party members ages over 18 How
many were children under the age of 18 on your
most recent leisure trip to . . . INCLUDES ALL
TRAVEL PARTY MEMBERS whether in household or
not
26
Market Travel Party Spending
Although Alexandria visitors travel party
spending places below that of visitors to
Washington DC and Northern Virginia, it
substantially exceeds the national average (794
vs. 572).
Travel Party Spending (If Any)
Please indicate the total dollar amount spent by
your travel party? Excludes zero
27
Market Top Activities Pursued

• Alexandria (and Northern Virginia) visitors
  pursue more activities than average travelers.
  For Alexandria and nearby competitors, historical
  and urban interests exceed the national norms
• Fine dining, museums, and historic sites are top
  three activities of Alexandria visitors
• Washington DC visitors claim higher interest in
  museums than Alexandria and Northern Virginia
  visitors
• Of the leading Alexandria activities, only
  shopping is a leading activity nationally fine
  dining merits a secondary mention

Top Activities Pursued, Ranked by Alexandria
Visitors
Number of Activities Participated by Visitors
to Total US 2.2 Washington DC 2.7 Northern
Virginia 3.2 Alexandria 3.2
Please select all activities/attractions you
visited?
28
Market Planning Horizon

• Alexandria (and nearby competitors) visitors plan
  ahead
• Two thirds of Alexandria visitors (65) consider
  the destination for at least a month before
  visiting similar to Washington DC and Northern
  Virginia visitors
• Trips elsewhere in the US appear much more
  spontaneous overall, more than a third (35)
  spend less than two weeks considering a
  destination compared to only one in five (21)
  Alexandria visitors

Trip Planning Cycles Consider Visiting . . .
Please indicate how far in advance you considered
traveling to ?
29
Market Information/Planning Sources

• Travelers have a variety of information sources
  available
• Alexandria visitors use multiple sources,
  apparently comfortable with the information
  gathering process
• More Alexandria visitors use most of these
  sources than visitors to Washington DC or
  Northern Virginia and to a much greater degree
  than average US travelers
• Collectively, (NET) online sources lead all other
  information types for Alexandria, Washington DC,
  and Northern Virginia
• Word of mouth (friends/relatives) and their own
  past experience duel as the second place
  information source
• Alexandria CVA visitors more often consult
  destination printed materials and official
  destination websites than others
• More Washington DC visitors have the aid of
  corporate travel departments since a higher
  proportion go there for business

Information/Planning Sources Used (5), Ranked
by Alexandria
Which of the following information/planning
sources did you use for your trip to . . .?
30
Market Demographics

• Alexandria, Washington DC, and Northern Virginia
  visitors differ from those to other destinations
• Alexandria and its nearby competitors (31 - 33)
  attract more younger visitors other destinations
  (26)
• Alexandria and Northern Virginia draw very
  similar age groups, while Washington DC (many
  traveling for business) draws more heavily in the
  35-54 age range
• Washington DC visitors lead household income
  Northern Virginia and Alexandria follow far
  ahead of the national average

Age of Visitors
Average Age 45.8 42.7 45.3 43.7
Household Income
Average Income (000) 62.3 89.5 77.7 76.9
Please indicate your age. Which of the following
best describes your total annual household income
from all sources?
31
Market Demographics - continued
Visitors to Alexandria and its nearby competitor
destinations have attained much greater formal
education than the national average nearly a
third have completed college (4-years).
Percent College Graduates
What was the last grade of school you completed?
Includes both male and female head of household
educational attainment
32
Market Travel Psychographics

• Alexandria visitors differ from average US
  travelers on several psychographic travel fronts
• Compared to average US travelers (and to a lesser
  degree, to Washington DC and Northern Virginia),
  Alexandria visitors tend to be more
• Environmentally concerned
• Influential on others
• Concerned about company ethics
• Information savvy
• Willing to pay more or go to more trouble to
  achieve original, genuine, and authentic
  experiences and they like to be the first to
  find a great travel experience
• Community minded.

Psychographic Traits (Top Two Scores), Ranked by
Alexandria Visitors
Listed below are a few comments that other people
have made about themselves. For each one, please
indicate how well it describes you?
33
Purpose Alexandria Visitors Business vs.
Leisure
34
Purpose Source of Visitors

• Alexandria draws heavily from Eastern cities
• Overall, Alexandria attracts a quarter of its
  visitors from three cities NYC, DC, and
  Philadelphia
• Because they represent such a large share of
  visitors, leisure travelers to Alexandria follow
  the same pattern as overall travelers
• However, business travelers, in addition to local
  businesspeople from Washington DC and Norfolk,
  more often arrive from the larger cities where
  large businesses cluster with a
  disproportionate share arriving from NYC,
  Baltimore, Los Angeles, and Chicago

Origin of Visitors Top DMAs
41 39 45 These Markets of Total
Top Feeder Markets to Alexandria 5 for Either
Leisure or Business
35
Purpose All Purposes to Visit Alexandria

• Visitors usually come to Alexandria for leisure
• Overall, most travelers visit Alexandria for
  pleasure (73 leisure 32 business some travel
  for both reasons). Of those, most (70) visit
  family, friends, and relatives (VFR)
• Entertainment/sightseeing draws more than a third
  of the leisure visitors (38)
• Business people usually (53) come for general
  business purposes, but more than a third attend a
  convention, conference, or seminar (36)

Motivating Factors for Visit
Please select all purposes for trips . . . ?
36
Purpose Primary Mode of Transportation

• Travel mode varies by trip purposes
• Alexandria business visitors fly to the city
  twice as often as leisure (56 vs. 29) visitors
• Business flyers consistently arrive by air more
  often than leisure visitors in the other markets
  as well

Primary Mode to City
Total Air Leisure Air Business Air Washington
DC 51 36 70 Northern Virginia
28 22 47
Which of the following was the primary mode of
transportation for the month of ?
37
Purpose Travel Party and Children

• As expected
• Alexandria business travelers usually arrive solo
  (68) only a few (7) bring children
• Leisure travelers typically do not (25) travel
  alone
• Nearly a third of Alexandrias leisure visitors
  bring their children (30)

Number in Travel Party
Avg. in Travel Party 3.2 3.4 3.3
Percent with Children
Avg. Children (if Any) 3.3 2.3 2.6
Number of travel party members ages over 18. How
many were children under the age of 18 on your
most recent leisure trip to . . . INCLUDES ALL
TRAVEL PARTY MEMBERS whether in household or
not. Those on Personal Business not counted as
either Business or Leisure
38
Purpose Travel Party Spending
Impacted by longer stays and types of hotels
selected, business traveler spending exceeds
leisure traveler spending by more than a third.
Travel Party Spending (If Any)
Please indicate the total dollar amount spent by
your travel party?
39
Purpose Top Activities Pursued

• Alexandria leisure visitors pursue more
  activities than business travelers
• Leisure travelers engage in an average of 1.4
  more activities than business travelers (3.7 vs.
  2.3), enjoying each of the listed activities to a
  much greater degree than business travelers
• The one exception among these leading activities
  is fine dining enjoyed nearly as often by
  business as leisure visitors

Top Activities Pursued, Ranked by Total
Alexandria Visitors
Number of Activities Participated by Visitors
to Total Alexandria 3.2 Alexandria Leisure
3.7 Alexandria Business 2.3
Please select all activities/attractions you
visited?
40
Purpose Planning Horizon

• Business travelers to Alexandria have shorter
  planning horizons than leisure visitors
• Two out of five (41) business travelers plan
  their trip within a month vs. 30 percent of
  leisure visitors
• Conversely, nearly a third (30) of leisure
  travelers consider Alexandria for over six months
  vs. only 21 percent of business visitors

Trip Planning Cycles Consider Visiting . . .
Please indicate how far in advance you considered
traveling to ?
41
Purpose Information/Planning Sources

• Alexandria visitors use different information
  sources depending upon the purpose of their trip
• Both types of visitors go online to gather
  information
• Leisure visitors more frequently consult
  friends/relatives, their own experience, and most
  specific types of websites (official destination,
  full service travel websites such as Expedia, and
  travel provider websites) than business visitors
• In contrast, and logically, business travelers
  rely on their corporate travel departments

Information/Planning Sources Used (5), Ranked
by Alexandria
Which of the following information/planning
sources did you use for your trip to . . .?
42
Purpose Demographics

• Alexandria visitors differ by purpose
• Business travelers tend to fall in the 35-54 age
  range
• They are also much more affluent nearly half
  (47) live in households exceeding 100,000 in
  annual income

Age of Visitors
Average Age 43.7 44.4 42.9
Household Income
Average Income (000) 76.9 69.0 102.2
Please indicate your age. Which of the following
best describes your total annual household income
from all sources?
43
Purpose Demographics - continued
Somewhat more business than leisure visitors to
Alexandria graduated college (4 years).
Percent College Graduates
What was the last grade of school you
completed? Includes both male and female head of
household educational attainment
44
Purpose Travel Psychographics

• A few psychographic travel differences appear
  among Alexandria visitors by purpose
• Business travelers appear more influential on
  others, have more information awareness
  (magazines/websites), and seem more willing to
  pay more or take extra steps to obtain original
  or authentic experiences
• Leisure travelers indicate greater environmental
  concern.

Psychographic Traits (Top Two Scores), Ranked by
Alexandria Visitors
Listed below are a few comments that other people
have made about themselves. For each one, please
indicate how well it describes you?
45
Appendix
46
TNS is the worlds largest provider of custom
research and analysis
Ranked worlds largest provider of custom
research and analysis
Second largest global market intelligence company
2.1 billion in revenue worldwide (2007)
A leader in servicing over 50 of the worlds
largest multi-national companies
Over 13,000 full-time employees worldwide
47
with a global infrastructure that can reach
people and businesses anywhere

• Offices in more than 70 countries
• Research conducted in more than 110 countries

Toronto
48
From the largest Custom marketing research
company in the Country and the number one ranked
advertising and brand research company by Inside
Research--the bible of the Marketing Research
Industry