We begin the new fiscal year riding the momentum of the many accomplishments that made the last year so successful. After a few hard years following 9/11, Illinois tourism is once again seeing record numbers—an exciting and satisfying turn of events for us all.

In 2004 Illinois welcomed 90.61 million domestic visitors, a record high, due mostly to the dramatic increase in leisure travel, which rose 8.6 percent. This significant increase pushed Illinois’ market share up to 2.9 percent. Business travel remains lower than its previous highs in 2000 and 2001, though it still saw an increase and, better yet, Chicago recaptured the title of top U.S. city for business travel. Illinois now ranks 9th in the nation for leisure domestic travel. For overseas visitors, Illinois is tied as the 6th most popular state and Chicago is the 9th most popular city.

As far as traveler spending goes, Illinois is 5th in the U.S. Thanks to the continued popularity of so many of our great attractions, travelers spent more than $23 billion on transportation, lodging, food, entertainment, recreation and incidentals during 2004. These domestic traveler expenditures generated more than $1.6 billion in state and local taxes, a $73 million increase over the 2003 tax revenues. On average, visitors spent $116 per person per day. In 2004, the hotel tax revenue was $158,902,785, a 4% increase over 2003. Considering that our our budget is totally funded out of these hotel tax revenues, that's a key figure for us. Continued >

Industry Insider: George San Jose

To help you get to know who’s who in Illinois tourism, ITN profiles an industry leader each month. This month we introduce George San Jose, president and chief operating officer of The San Jose Group, IBOT’s Hispanic marketing agency of record.

A true pioneer in the industry, George San Jose began his career over two decades ago in New York as vice president/executive creative director for Spanish Advertising and Marketing Services––the first and, ultimately, the largest agency cited for launching the U.S. Hispanic "Madison Avenue" advertising era.

San Jose has been recognized by Crain’s "Who’s Who," Advertising Age and The Wall Street Journal as a true industry visionary. He is a frequent guest speaker on Hispanic marketing techniques, has published numerous industry-wide articles, and has authored a book on the standards and practices of Hispanic Advertising. He is a co-founder of the Association of Hispanic Advertising Agencies (AHAA) and continues to shape the industry by serving as an AHAA board director and as chairman of the organization’s Code of Ethics and Standards and Practices Committee.

Recognized for his commitment to community service at many levels, in 1999 San Jose was appointed by President Bill Clinton to serve as director and chairman of the Selected Services System Board of Appeals. Continued >