Cultural Guidebook for Travelers Showcases Museums

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Tourism-focused Publication Will Drive Cultural Institution Attendance.

Denver, CO, January 17, 2009 --"(PressReleasePoint)"-- The U.S. Cultural & Heritage Tourism Marketing Council, which is affiliated with the U.S. Department of Commerce, the Shop America Alliance, and the Museum Store Association, have released a unique, new publication called The Cultural Traveler, a high-end tourism guidebook and corresponding Web site that showcases leading museum stores.

The Cultural Traveler is being distributed to thousands of consumers, tour operators, travel agents and travel media interested in museum store shopping. Museums and other cultural institutions provide travelers with rich experiences that are reflective of the art, history and unique qualities of the city or destination where they are located and therefore provide singular shopping experiences within the museum store. The United States is home to a treasure trove of cultural travel destinations and The Cultural Traveler is a required directory to many of these fine institutions.

Today’s traveling consumer is more discriminating than ever, seeking value and quality in every experience and every purchase. If the experiences and the purchases are somehow connected, the result is a blockbuster value proposition. Museum stores offer unique shopping opportunities that can’t be experienced anywhere else. The Museum Store Association represents more than 1,600 stores in every kind of cultural institution – from art museums and science centers to zoos and historic houses, and many of these institutions are highlighted in The Cultural Traveler.

Some of the prominent institutions and organizations featured in the publication include: the Anchorage Museum at Rasmuson Center, The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, Santa Fe, NM, Gray Line, Legion of Honor, San Francisco, CA, Pasadena Convention & Visitors Bureau, Saint Louis Art Museum, and de Young Museum, San Francisco, CA.

The print publication is complemented by an electronic version of the complete contents of The Cultural Traveler, along with direct links to participants’ Web sites, via a new Web site launched by MSA called www.Museum-Store.travel. For further information about The Cultural Traveler, please contact the Museum Store Association.

MSA is a nonprofit, international association organized to advance the success of museum retail professionals. By encouraging high standards of professionalism, MSA helps cultural commerce professionals better serve their organizations. MSA also is focused on helping increase awareness about museum stores as unique shopping destinations for tourists and cultural travelers. As part of a strategic alliance with the U.S. Cultural & Heritage Tourism Marketing Council (USCHT) and Shop America Alliance (SAA), MSA provides expertise in the cultural and heritage tourism arena to its members and the general public.