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It is with pleasure that I touch base with you and introduce myself as the representative for the Tour Operator membership segment of ABA for the next two years. Recently I had the opportunity to take part in the Marketplace Advisory Committee Meeting and would like to share some of the enhancements and additional opportunities discussed and outlined at this event. I'm extremely excited regarding all the positive enhancements to our 2010 Marketplace.

During our two day session we reviewed and discussed the following areas: Marketplace 2009 Evaluations; ABA Overview; Marketplace 2010 Overview; Appointment Sessions; 2010 Host Committee; and Marketplace Travel Representatives. Needless to say this was a jammed packed two days of top priorities.

Based on these two days of meetings and their agenda items, I want to share what I consider to be some of the most important enhancements for the "Operator' segment during our 2010 Marketplace in Washington, DC.

The Marketplace 2010 scheduled is shorter and more compact that ever before, saving you time and money. The new schedule means less time out of office; fewer hotel nights on your expense report; and the Friday to Tuesday schedule means less time out of the office. View the complete schedule at www.buses.org/marketplace and see how it works for you!

ABA has combined the Lodging and Attraction delegates into one grouping therefore eleminating an appointment session. Though seller delegates will now have 58 prescheduled appointment slots instead of 52, buyers will have 174 slots over 3 days instead of 182.

ABA has combined the Attraction and Lodging appointment sessions into one grouping so you will have variety of the floor on Monday and Tuesday. This will also allow you more flexibility in scheduling appointments onsite.

Marketplace 2010 is being held in our Nation's Capitol at the new Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center. The east coast location offers the convenience of three airports, train stations, easy motorocoach and driving access. Additionally, having the convention and hotel under one roof means more networking opportunities for you!

I am excited about these improvements and look forward to updating you after our next meeting in late September. Discussions are also underway for the further development of the Product Pavilion, new professional development seminars, as well as the fantastic Marketplace Gives Back event - so stay tuned for more information from ABA. In the meantime, please don't forget to keep your company profiles as up to date as possible!

In the interim, I am here to be your voice, so please let me know if you have comments, questions or concerns.

PS. Registration opens on Wednesday, April 15 for Operators. To access online registration you will need to have Internet Explorer 7 or Internet Explorer 8 or use Firefox which can be downloaded here. All three options are free.