Deep South Vacation 2009

Need to know whats happening in the Deep south.How has the recession effected the areas outside of the bigger cities.We normally stay off the Interstates and travel the smaller roads to see the real America.We have been over for the past 4 years but as its so expensive to get there we want to know if its a good or bad time to go to the States.

Deep South Vacation 2009

Not at all; surely many have been hurt by the downturn in the form of foreclosures and the closing of the occasional business, but on the most part it%26#39;s no big deal for a good part of the population and certainly not for tourists. From my personal experiences, things are the same now as they were last year. What kinds of changes did you expect?

Money-wise I%26#39;d guess it%26#39;s a good time for you to come, what with the dollar being so low.

Kristian

Deep South Vacation 2009

Thanks for your reply.Dont know what to expect really as last year in Daytona and other areas where very quiet

and a lot of shops and resturants had closed it seemed that the only ones moving around were Tourists and americans were saying at home.

You have heard a younger person%26#39;s views...not sure if employed or still in school or both. I can tell you as a teacher in my 26th year of teaching that times are very different. The teacher next to me was told she would not be back next year due to cuts unless the economy improved. Others have been laid off at my school and in the districts around mine. I would say tourism overall is way down, Many of the smaller places in my town have closed. My family is taking a small vacation for spring break thanks to a tax refund but it will more than likely be our last for a few years. Prices at hotels are down overall where I was looking ( Myrtle Beach) . You will do fine if you have the money. Major places are still open as well as many smaller ones. You will notice a difference but I would think not to the point of having a bad time.

Daytona is quiet because there is little to do there when the race is not going on, and most americans prefer the beaches on the gulf side or far south florida. But I believe most folks are scaling back on travel in the US, as we dont know where the ';bottom'; is yet. Both previous posters are probably right in their views: Unemployment is the highest it has ever been, and it is almost impossible to find anyone who is ';hiring'; but at the same time, unemployment has just crested 8%, so over 90% of americans still have a job this week.

I didn%26#39;t mean to imply that people aren%26#39;t hurting financially or tourism isn%26#39;t down in general, but I haven%26#39;t seen any tourism industry shutdown in any sort of a scale that might make it a ';bad time to go to the States.';

Can you give more specifics in what you%26#39;re asking? Are you concerned that restaurants or hotels will be closed?

My experience is that a downturn in an economy is a great time to travel for 2 reasons:

1. you%26#39;re helping revive that economy no matter how small or large you travel and

2. you find incredible deals.

So I think it%26#39;s the perfect time to come to the US. I%26#39;ve just booked $119/night deal at a prime NYC hotel over a holiday weekend. That%26#39;s 1/3 what I%26#39;ve paid in the past. You should be able to find deals like that any place you want to go.

Thanks for all the replys.As I said earlier we Love the USA and would gladly support the econemy as we have done for the last 4 years and as over here am glad to hear the cities are doing resonably well.Its outside of the big cities in the smaller towns and cities and the Hotel/Motels on the Interstates we are concerned about.

Example we were looking at Flying into Chicago and driving to New Orleans Taking in all of interest on the way.

Another route was Fly into Houston/Dallas Drive to New Orleans on to Daytona again taking in all along the Way.Also be glad of any Suggestions on Routes or Drives.But Last year doing a Drive From Nashville to Atlanta and onto Jacksonville we were shocked to drive into Towns and see Resturants empty.One being Sticky Fingers Chattanooga (Great food by the way).

I guess as I said as the Flights alone cost 2500 Euro

We dont want to pay a fortune and end up being disapointed as we have to save a year for these holidays I would perfer to wait a year than go and spoil our Love of American Holidays.

You shouldn%26#39;t have to pay 2500 euros for a flight unless you are flying business class. A friend just paid that for business class to and from Paris in high season which was a great deal for business class. There are astonishing flight deals all over now.

For every Sticky Fingers you see closed, you%26#39;ll see plenty of restaurants that are still open. To a certain extent, restaurants are cyclical no matter what the economy looks like. In my mom%26#39;s town, there%26#39;s a closed Sticky Fingers across the street from around 7 new restaurants. I chalk that up to the fact that customers now have better food choices and Sticky Fingers just couldn%26#39;t sustain the same business with competition around.

So my answer is that no matter how bad the economy gets, you%26#39;ll find plenty of rewarding things for your trip if you decide to come.

I travel a lot, and have not really observed many effects of the economic downturn, in Atlanta or across the country. Other than in Vegas, hotel and restaurant prices remain fairly steady. Restaurants seem just as full - we had to wait weeks to get a decent reservation at Craft recently. I%26#39;ve flown about 6-7 times in 2009, and with one exception every plane has been at capacity. To my chagrin, I have not seen any dramatic dips in airfare. I don%26#39;t know specifically what you%26#39;re looking for that you think you may not find, but I definitely think you should keep your travel plans.

Perhaps you can find a more enjoyable beach area than Daytona, which in my mind is more associated with racing than as a vacation destination. Have you considered Destin, Miami, Naples, Panama City, Key West, Gulf Shores?

You mentioned a driving tour, and I don%26#39;t want to discourage that, but do realize how large the US is and how much mind-numbingly boring territory you will have to cover to get in between the interesting places. Chicago and New Orleans are both wonderful places to visit, but you%26#39;d be better off flying between the two.

';One being Sticky Fingers Chattanooga (Great food by the way).'; That must have been an anomaly; from every report I%26#39;ve heard restaurants are doing all right; ones that were all ready not doing well may have more trouble, but I know that both Sticky Fingers in Chattanooga are very popular. A Sunday school group at my church recently went to the Sticky Fingers at Hamilton Place and had to wait 45 minutes for their food just because there were so many people there and the staff wasn%26#39;t used to it.

By the way, depending on your route I%26#39;d highly recommend that you revisit Chattanooga and spend some more time there. (Assuming, of course, that you liked what you saw when you drove through or detoured over to downtown at all.) Lots and lots of off the beaten path nature preserves and historic sites, as well as a variety or more marketed attractions.