MINNEAPOLIS, Aug. 28, 2007 -- According to a survey conducted for travel agency Carlson Wagonlit Travel Associates, Med cruises are hot and vacation travel overall is up.

These trends are part of the comprehensive 2007 Carlson Wagonlit Travel Associates Fall Travel Trends Survey, which provided several surprises about the travel forecast for the remainder of the year. While the top overall domestic and international destinations -- Las Vegas and Caribbean cruising -- remain the same, the big news is that the number of experts reporting an increase in overall bookings for the year is up by nearly 4% to 59.5%. Also, despite the extremely strong euro, Rome and Mediterranean cruising continued to climb the annual fall list with Rome coming in at #3 while Mediterranean cruising jumps seven spots. The survey, conducted July 24 - August 17, 2007, includes information from 390 Carlson Wagonlit Travel Associate agents, owners and managers.

"Europe -- and more specifically, Italy -- continues its return among the hottest travel destinations for our customers, in part because our Carlson Wagonlit Travel Associates are finding innovative ways to make it more affordable despite the current value of the dollar," said Roger E. Block, CTC, executive vice president of the Carlson Wagonlit Travel Associate Division. "Their expert advice may also be having an impact on the length of vacation our customers are taking. Contrary to recent reports about how few vacation days the average American is using in a given year, over 85% of the survey respondents said the average trip they're booking for the remainder of the year is in the 6-10 day range."

Noteworthy Trends:

-- Passports -- The upward trend continues in the percentage of travel
experts who indicate a majority of their customers have a valid
passport. This fall that percentage is 46.3%, up from 44% in January
and 31.7% in August of 2006. Also, an astounding 77.9% indicated that
a majority of their cruise customers have a valid passport. That bodes
well for the next passport deadline which could affect cruise
passengers to Mexico, Caribbean, etc. as early as January 2008.

-- Biggest Winner/Loser -- Mediterranean cruising was the "big winner" in
the rankings, jumping from 12th to 5th place on the list of top ten
international destinations. The biggest drop was registered by Ft.
Myers, FL. Last year it ranked 8th in the fall survey, this year it
dropped eight spots to 16th place.

The following lists display the top ten domestic and international destinations for the fall, along with the overall outlook for the rest of the year (based on 390 completed surveys). Carlson Wagonlit Travel experts were asked to name their five top destinations in each category:

Top 10 Domestic Destinations -- FALL % of Agents '06 Ranking
1. Las Vegas, NV 77.7 1
2. Orlando, FL 67.4 2
3. Honolulu, HI 51.0 3
4. Kahului (Maui), HI 41.8 4
5. New York City, NY 33.1 5
6. San Francisco, CA 17.7 6
7. Phoenix/Scottsdale, AZ 16.9 7
8. Lihue (Kauai), HI 16.4 11
9. Miami/Miami Beach, FL 15.6 9
10. Anaheim/Orange County, CA 14.4 11

Top 10 International Destinations -- FALL % of Agents '06 Ranking
1. CRUISE -- Caribbean 63.1 1
2. Cancun, Mexico 61.0 2
3. Rome, Italy 36.9 4
4. Riviera Maya, Mexico 33.6 3
5. CRUISE -- Europe (Mediterranean) 25.6 12
6. London, England 20.5 6
7. Punta Cana, Dominican Republic 18.7 7
8. Montego Bay, Jamaica 17.2 5
8. Puerto Vallarta, Mexico 17.2 9
10. CRUISE -- Mexico 16.4 10

Top 3 FALL Cruise Destinations* % of Agents
1. Caribbean -- Western 38.6
2. Caribbean -- Eastern 20.8
3. Caribbean -- Southern 9.0

* Carlson Wagonlit Travel experts were asked to name the one most popular cruise itinerary they were booking this fall.

What is the average length of the vacations you've been booking for the remainder of 2007?

2007 Response -- FALL % of agents
6-7 days 71.0
8-10 days 14.4
4-5 days 12.8
10-14 days 1.0
Less than 4 days 0.5
Longer than 14 days 0.3

With new U.S. passport regulations that require those traveling to Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean to carry passports, which of the following statements describes your experience?

Fall 2007 Jan. 2007 Fall 2006
A majority of my customers carry
valid passports 46.3% 44.0% 31.7%

Please indicate how many of your CRUISE customers have a valid passport:

TOTAL: Majority of cruise customers with a valid passport 77.9%

Can be broken down further:
1. A majority of my cruise customers carry valid passports 36.8%
2. Nearly all of my cruise customers carry valid passports 32.6%
3. A minority of my cruise customers carry valid passports 20.0%
4. All of my cruise customers carry valid passports 8.5%
5. Very few of my cruise customers carry valid passports 2.1%

Comparing your overall 2007 travel bookings so far to your 2006 bookings at this time last year, which is true?

2007 Response % of agents 2006 %
They're higher 59.54 55.70
They're about even 26.55 22.75

Carlson Wagonlit describes itself as follows:

The Carlson Wagonlit Travel Associate network is part of the Carlson family of businesses, a global leader in the travel and hospitality industry that includes Regent (R) International Hotels, Regent Seven Seas Cruises(R), Radisson Hotels & Resorts(R), T.G.I. Friday's(R) and more. In 2007, for the eleventh consecutive year, a Carlson Travel Franchise Group brand was named the top travel business franchise by Entrepreneur's Franchise 500(R); Franchise Times ranked the Carlson Wagonlit Travel Associate Program as the 3rd top franchise overall in 2006 for the sixth year in a row.