Tapping Into International Markets 101
The Greater Birmingham Convention & Visitors Bureau (GBCVB) recently hosted two experts in the world of international travel and tourism to share the industry’s latest trends during a lunchtime seminar, Global Bites and Insights: How to Work Effectively with the International Market. The session served as a learning tool for local travel and tourism service providers seeking to attract international tourism to Birmingham, Alabama.
Featured speakers were Andy Facer, founder of 5F Marketing, a specialist agency focused on travel, tourism, and destination marketing, and Gisa Kusserow-Hanson, VP of Contracting and Product Partnership at AlliedNewWorld, a joint venture of AlliedTPro and New World Travel.
The UK Market
Facer, who has spent over 30 years in the industry, represents the GBCVB and Alabama Tourism in the UK and Ireland.
“My key role is making sure we tell your stories in the best possible way,” he said. “We’re talking about the hotels, the attractions, and why people absolutely should be visiting Birmingham, Alabama.”
According to Facer, the UK is currently Alabama’s top international market, excluding Canada. However, during and immediately following the pandemic, travel from the UK was down, and the market struggled due to high inflation and rising interest rates.
But, he said, “What we have seen in the last couple of years is our inflation rates have gone down, and we’re still starting to see that interest rates are dropping as well, meaning cheap credit, which is good for tourism.”
And as far as “that thing called COVID”, he said, “We’ve started to really rebound from that now, so 2024 was a strong year, and it’s continued to pick up. So it looks like 2025 will be an incredible year.”
Notably, Facer is seeing a greater demand for experiences, which for Birmingham means more visitors to attractions like Barber Motorsports Park and Museum and the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. For hotels, it means the opportunity to serve an international clientele whose vacations average 14 to 18 nights.
“What you will find is visitors from the international markets generally stay a little bit longer, and they probably will spend dollars in your bars and restaurants as well,” he said. “So, it’s a really, really profitable experience.”
Expanding Markets
Kusserow-Hanson, a 20-year veteran in the industry, is also seeing upticks in UK travelers to Alabama as well as from other European markets, including Germany, France, Belgium, Italy, and others. Outside of Europe, visitors from Japan and India are on the rise.
“The South has really made a giant step forward in the last few years among a lot of the international markets and also in what they come here to see,” she said. “They go not just to New Orleans, not just to Atlanta, but they’re really traveling, building interesting itineraries that give them access to more areas in Alabama.”
And the beauty of it is, Kusserow-Hanson noted, one visit often leads to another.
“You have people coming back,” she said, “because they can’t see everything they want to see in one trip.”
But expanding one’s own business horizons to take advantage of this influx of international visitors, Kusserow-Hanson said, requires thinking and preparing ahead.
“Those markets make their decisions incredibly early,” she explained. “We’re now contracting for 2026, ‘27, and ‘28, if we have the rates already. If you want to work with international markets, you need to have a product and pricing strategy ready at least 18 months in advance.”
But for her, tapping into new markets begins with a phone call to what she considers the essential resource for travel and tourism-related information.
“Connect with the GBCVB,” she said. “They know all the things in your market, and they’re going to all the trade shows. They can guide you to the person or company that might be the starting point for you to open up to more international business.”
The GBCVB’s Role in International Tourism
Partners from across the Greater Birmingham Region, representing local hotels, attractions, restaurants and event planners, joined the GBCVB for this special event, held at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens.
As the official destination marketing organization for the Greater Birmingham Region, the GBCVB plays a key role in attracting international visitors to Jefferson County. Through strategic partnerships, representation at trade shows, and targeted marketing campaigns, the GBCVB connects local hotels, attractions, and tour operators with travelers from the UK, Europe, Asia, and beyond. By providing resources, guidance, and market insights, the GBCVB helps ensure that Birmingham is on the radar of international travelers, supporting longer stays, higher visitor spending, and meaningful experiences for guests from around the world.
“International visitors are a vital part of Birmingham’s tourism economy, staying longer and spending more across our hotels, restaurants, and attractions,” said Dan Williams, President & CEO of the Greater Birmingham Convention & Visitors Bureau. “Hosting this event allowed us to connect local partners with industry experts, share insights on emerging markets, and reinforce our commitment to growing Birmingham’s global presence. Every visitor from abroad represents an opportunity to showcase our city, our culture, and the unique experiences only Birmingham can offer.”
