Declining Tourism to the US
#76
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Timely news.
Here is some timely news fresh off the press in support of item # 3 above.
Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan 'detained' in US
Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan 'detained' in US
#77
Join Date: Nov 2011
Posts: 185
Here is some timely news fresh off the press in support of item # 3 above.
Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan 'detained' in US
Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan 'detained' in US
#78
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You mean like when Sylvester Stallone was detained in Australia by customs and immigration..............and no one cared. I can go on. Hell I had to deal with a certain celebrity getting hassled and detained in Dubai not so long ago and quite frankly no one cared to make anything of it.
Or maybe it was because the last time SRK had "customs trouble" in the US he intentionally brought it upon himself as part of a PR plot aimed at promoting his soon upcoming film 'My name is Khan" maybe just maybe after that the CBP did in fact put him in the computer due to the hassle and bad publicity that he caused the agency.
Or maybe it was because the last time SRK had "customs trouble" in the US he intentionally brought it upon himself as part of a PR plot aimed at promoting his soon upcoming film 'My name is Khan" maybe just maybe after that the CBP did in fact put him in the computer due to the hassle and bad publicity that he caused the agency.
#79
Join Date: Nov 2011
Posts: 185
And yet here we are five years later and I find someone still whining on FT about Sylvester Stallone being busted for importing drugs into Australia
Last edited by Moineau; Apr 13, 2012 at 5:09 am Reason: typo
#80
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I think the point is that US is free to hassle anyone it wants at border control, to implement the strictest measures and impose as much collective punishment as it thinks necessary. Just like any other country.
The question is whether this is hurting their tourist industry. My anecdotal evidence (not just from Saudis) is that yes it is. I know very many people who used to travel to the US regularly for vacation and now they don't. at the same time destinations such as Malaysia and Vietnam have upped their game.
I am not judging whether the current measures by the US are right or wrong. It's up to the US authorities and more widely through pressure from the US public to determine the best balance for them.
The question is whether this is hurting their tourist industry. My anecdotal evidence (not just from Saudis) is that yes it is. I know very many people who used to travel to the US regularly for vacation and now they don't. at the same time destinations such as Malaysia and Vietnam have upped their game.
I am not judging whether the current measures by the US are right or wrong. It's up to the US authorities and more widely through pressure from the US public to determine the best balance for them.
Last edited by jahason; Apr 13, 2012 at 9:08 am Reason: spelling error
#81
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DHS sets the rules and doesn't care what the public think.
I love coming home to Australia, insert passport get a ticket, relocate & look at a camera, accepted, gates open, walk to customs, Welcome back, out the side door.
Some of US immigration staff are ok, but when you get one that just bugs on, it's like Whatever, and I've said that to one guy, was stamped & out.
I can do SYD-LAX on United and be outside in 15mins from aircraft door opening
Still think my best run was back to back weekends, MEL-LAX, same guy, he remembered me, was stamped and done in 60seconds. Mileage run I told him on my first trip.
If customs wants to search my bag, feel free to do, most times they ask, Why were you sent here? NFI, they walk away with my passport, come back with a clear to go. The TSA searches my bag more than customs.
#82
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You mean like when Sylvester Stallone was detained in Australia by customs and immigration..............and no one cared. I can go on. Hell I had to deal with a certain celebrity getting hassled and detained in Dubai not so long ago and quite frankly no one cared to make anything of it.
Or maybe it was because the last time SRK had "customs trouble" in the US he intentionally brought it upon himself as part of a PR plot aimed at promoting his soon upcoming film 'My name is Khan" maybe just maybe after that the CBP did in fact put him in the computer due to the hassle and bad publicity that he caused the agency.
Or maybe it was because the last time SRK had "customs trouble" in the US he intentionally brought it upon himself as part of a PR plot aimed at promoting his soon upcoming film 'My name is Khan" maybe just maybe after that the CBP did in fact put him in the computer due to the hassle and bad publicity that he caused the agency.
#83
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You mean like when Sylvester Stallone was detained in Australia by customs and immigration..............and no one cared. I can go on. Hell I had to deal with a certain celebrity getting hassled and detained in Dubai not so long ago and quite frankly no one cared to make anything of it.
Or maybe it was because the last time SRK had "customs trouble" in the US he intentionally brought it upon himself as part of a PR plot aimed at promoting his soon upcoming film 'My name is Khan" maybe just maybe after that the CBP did in fact put him in the computer due to the hassle and bad publicity that he caused the agency.
Or maybe it was because the last time SRK had "customs trouble" in the US he intentionally brought it upon himself as part of a PR plot aimed at promoting his soon upcoming film 'My name is Khan" maybe just maybe after that the CBP did in fact put him in the computer due to the hassle and bad publicity that he caused the agency.
Are you saying it's retaliation? Government retaliating against? Why would people travel to a country where they expect massive retaliation from the most powerful Govt machinery in the world?
Back to the point, which is---harassment of travellers, famous and ordinary, middle eastern or not, in various ways is a major contributor to declining share of U.S. travel, but sluggish economy and globalisation have also left our country out of travelling plans of many.
#84
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No what I am saying, and I know this to be a fact, is that he intentionally caused problems at immigration upon his arrival, specifically so that he could be detained and questioned more solely for the purpose of promoting his upcoming movie, my Name Is Khan, which "coincidentally" dealt with some of the exact same issues. So if after he and his people arranged this publicity stunt two years ago DHS might have now put something in their computer that is IS in fact a troublemaker (not Muslim, not terrorist, not Indian, but just an a88hole) it might be understandable, Much like how Snoop can now travel to the Uk again, but undergoes at least an hour of scrutiny each time (and not based on what charges he may have had filed against him, but because he and his possee acted as such troublesome a88holes once upon a time).
As for Saudis traveling to the US, the upper middle class and above Saudis that traveled to the US pre 9/11 still travel to the US in the same numbers and percentages (although I am sure that many of the Bin laden clan now avoid it). Malaysia has gotten a huge number of cheap Saudi package tourists, witness the hoards of them descending on Langkawi over the last ten years..........these people never were travelers to the US in the first place. Furthermore among the slightly more wealthy packs of male Saudi youth looking for hookers and drugs, their destination was rarely if ever the US.
As for Saudis traveling to the US, the upper middle class and above Saudis that traveled to the US pre 9/11 still travel to the US in the same numbers and percentages (although I am sure that many of the Bin laden clan now avoid it). Malaysia has gotten a huge number of cheap Saudi package tourists, witness the hoards of them descending on Langkawi over the last ten years..........these people never were travelers to the US in the first place. Furthermore among the slightly more wealthy packs of male Saudi youth looking for hookers and drugs, their destination was rarely if ever the US.
#85
Join Date: Jan 2012
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When you've bought your ESTA, had your eye scanned, fingerprints checked
you begin to wonder if you're really welcome anyway.
you begin to wonder if you're really welcome anyway.
#86
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I would be more annoyed if I were detained for further questioning and then no one turned up to question me for some time.
I don't mind how many questions officials ask as long as they can get through the process as quickly as possible. Not detain me for long periods, just because they can.
#87
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No what I am saying, and I know this to be a fact, is that he intentionally caused problems at immigration upon his arrival, specifically so that he could be detained and questioned more solely for the purpose of promoting his upcoming movie, my Name Is Khan, which "coincidentally" dealt with some of the exact same issues. So if after he and his people arranged this publicity stunt two years ago DHS might have now put something in their computer that is IS in fact a troublemaker (not Muslim, not terrorist, not Indian, but just an a88hole) it might be understandable, Much like how Snoop can now travel to the Uk again, but undergoes at least an hour of scrutiny each time (and not based on what charges he may have had filed against him, but because he and his possee acted as such troublesome a88holes once upon a time).
As for Saudis traveling to the US, the upper middle class and above Saudis that traveled to the US pre 9/11 still travel to the US in the same numbers and percentages (although I am sure that many of the Bin laden clan now avoid it). Malaysia has gotten a huge number of cheap Saudi package tourists, witness the hoards of them descending on Langkawi over the last ten years..........these people never were travelers to the US in the first place. Furthermore among the slightly more wealthy packs of male Saudi youth looking for hookers and drugs, their destination was rarely if ever the US.
As for Saudis traveling to the US, the upper middle class and above Saudis that traveled to the US pre 9/11 still travel to the US in the same numbers and percentages (although I am sure that many of the Bin laden clan now avoid it). Malaysia has gotten a huge number of cheap Saudi package tourists, witness the hoards of them descending on Langkawi over the last ten years..........these people never were travelers to the US in the first place. Furthermore among the slightly more wealthy packs of male Saudi youth looking for hookers and drugs, their destination was rarely if ever the US.
Last edited by Yaatri; Apr 13, 2012 at 11:36 am
#88
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No what I am saying, and I know this to be a fact, is that he intentionally caused problems at immigration upon his arrival, specifically so that he could be detained and questioned more solely for the purpose of promoting his upcoming movie, my Name Is Khan, which "coincidentally" dealt with some of the exact same issues.
I've met him repeatedly in the presence of past PMs and Presidents of India and in the the presence of the current Prime Minister and President of India; and from what I have seen he has not made a fuss when he and/or his wife are being screened the way I am. ... and that is in India where he is far more used to people -- officials and otherwise -- fawning over him.
His fingerprints were in our systems when he came -- even before his movie was released -- and so his identity then and more recently shouldn't have been an issue, if the expensive systems work and if the CBP employees aren't harassing individuals.
Originally Posted by hfly
So if after he and his people arranged this publicity stunt two years ago DHS might have now put something in their computer that is IS in fact a troublemaker (not Muslim, not terrorist, not Indian, but just an a88hole) it might be understandable, Much like how Snoop can now travel to the Uk again, but undergoes at least an hour of scrutiny each time (and not based on what charges he may have had filed against him, but because he and his possee acted as such troublesome a88holes once upon a time).
Originally Posted by hfly
As for Saudis traveling to the US, the upper middle class and above Saudis that traveled to the US pre 9/11 still travel to the US in the same numbers and percentages (although I am sure that many of the Bin laden clan now avoid it). Malaysia has gotten a huge number of cheap Saudi package tourists, witness the hoards of them descending on Langkawi over the last ten years..........these people never were travelers to the US in the first place. Furthermore among the slightly more wealthy packs of male Saudi youth looking for hookers and drugs, their destination was rarely if ever the US.
The upper middle class from the GCC countries haven't come to the US as frequently as they used to come to the US. Even many of those (non-Bin Ladens) who used to come before 9/11 either no longer came or no longer came as frequently during the past ten years.
Last edited by GUWonder; Apr 13, 2012 at 11:49 am
#89
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I don't believe the decline in "market share" has ANYTHING to do with "hostility," whatever that means. It is simply a fact that the world is getting smaller, and it is cheaper and easier to travel to destinations that would once be truly expensive or difficult to reach. Many travelers seek the new, and so they seek out these newly open destinations. There's nothing you can do about that. We have to share the market with everybody else. The more tourist infrastructure there is throughout the world, the more people feel confident about traveling to a destination they might have once feared. Also, there's a "me too" mentality that probably dilutes market share for non unique destinations. Do you really need to go to California to visit Disneyland, if you can go to the one in Paris? Does anyone care that you went to Vegas like everybody else, or should you consider Macau? Not to mention all the little countries with no $ who figure they'll just make their fortune having all inclusive beach resorts. That kind of tourist doesn't care where they go as long as it's cheap. Should the USA compete with them on price? I don't think so!
#90
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I don't believe the decline in "market share" has ANYTHING to do with "hostility," whatever that means. It is simply a fact that the world is getting smaller, and it is cheaper and easier to travel to destinations that would once be truly expensive or difficult to reach.