No matter how you look at it, 2009 is going to be a tough year for tourism.

According to estimates projected by the Travel Industry Association (TIA), leisure travel, business travel (including meetings and conventions) and international inbound travel will all be down. The decline could range anywhere from 2 to 6 percent compared to 2008 depending on the severity of our overall economic situation.

The travel community has not experienced this sort of decline since the days following 9/11. But, the situation is very different this time in comparison to the aftermath of 9/11. Travel declined following 9/11 due to fear and concerns over safety; today's decline is driven by economic realities and perceptions where travel may seem to some to be extravagant and/or unproductive. Whereas an appeal to patriotism and one#'s inalienable right to travel helped turn the tide in 2001, we are dealing with a completely different situation in 2008 and a similar appeal is not likely to have a the same effect today.

However, all is not doom and gloom.

According to the latest travelhorizonsTM survey co-authored by TIA and Ypartnership, seven out of ten (71 percent) respondents intend to take an overnight trip of 50 miles or more from home during the next six months.

Almost half (48 percent) of all respondents said that they were not planning any changes to their future travel plans as a result of the recent turmoil in the financial markets.

However, the survey also shows that these travelers are planning and purchasing their leisure trips differently, with finding “good value being of primary importance.

More than three quarters said that they would book a packaged vacation to save money, and 58 percent plan to comparison shop for prices and rates on the Internet.

Most of the visitors say they will spend fewer nights and spend less on food, beverage and entertainment when traveling, making that tourist dollar harder, but not impossible to capture.

It seems that American leisure travelers are trading down but not out.

One mode of thinking is that because the small business owner can change direction more quickly than their larger corporate rivals, they may actually be able to take advantage of the current economic situation if they keep their fingers on the pulse of the customer and are willing to do business differently. With Cayuga County's tourism community consisting largely of small businesses, we may weather this economic storm better than others if we can deliver the quality and value that visitors are looking and remember that the Internet is “King” when it comes to reaching potential visitors. Perhaps 2009 may be a happier new year that we anticipated.

Meg Vanek is the executive director at the Cayuga County Office of Tourism