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Show Spotlighting UTAH Tourists And Housing Utah is not getting its just share of tourist money, although 1946 will possibly go on record as the greatest of toruist years. Thousands of cars are racing through Utah to other tourist destinations, while we hope that some other year will provide a miracle. What we desperately need is augmented income for 1946. From somewhere has come the idea that Utah cannot cash ;in on the profitable tourist trade because of a lack of housing accomodations ac-comodations and facilities. Such an idea is a good excuse for doing do-ing nothing, but it is a philosophy philoso-phy that does not hold up under scrutiny. In the first place, very few tourists even inquire about accomodations before they leave home, so are willing to take a chance. Incidentally, this writer, in traveling up and down the state, has only failed once to get desirable sleeping accomodations. accomoda-tions. In the second place, most other western araes, that are attractive at-tractive to the tourist, are in worse condition than Utah. The fact will always hold true that any area will get along all right if it spends as much time in seeking seek-ing ways to surmount a difficulty diffi-culty as it does in sitting back with a complacent feeling that nothing can be done, dn- Compensating Values If accomodations are difficult, the challenge exists to offer other types of service that will make the traveler forget inconveniences. inconveni-ences. He can still be made to feel that Utah is essentially a hospitable place, where human beings are interested in his welfare. wel-fare. He and his friends will then return again and again when conditions may be more propitious. propiti-ous. There is simply no substitute substi-tute for attractive, ungrudging service. No reason exists why every effort should not be made to show the traveler that Utah people are interested in his wil-fare. wil-fare. Yet the fact remains that, in traveling around the state, one meets with little but apathy. The one bright spot, it should be added, add-ed, is found with the filling stations. sta-tions. Here one finds mainly returned re-turned veterans who are anxious to get a good start in civilian life and who have learned the hard way how to get on with people. Yet, they do not offer information that is of vital importance im-portance to the tourists. Accurate Information Vital In the field of giving accurate information, Utah people could render a really great service with but little effort. This covers two fields: (1) The ability to answer questions and give understandable understand-able directions; (2) The ability and willingness to make constructive con-structive recommendations. It is regrettable that toruists, after traveling hundreds of miles, are forced to miss the greatest wonders won-ders of nature just because no noe impresses them with the importance im-portance of a little side trip. That is one way to gain undying gratitude. Cedar Breaks is missed by tens of thousands of persons every year just because no one shows interest enough to sell the idea and give proper directions. The Sand Dunes, near Kanab, something unique in America, are seldom mentioned to any traveler. Timpanogos Cave and the Dinosaur National Monument Monu-ment would be worth millions of dollars of extra tourist business if they were in California. Information Bureaus An Answer One answer to this problem of letting the traveler know what to see and do in Utah will be supplied by the state in its development de-velopment of information bureaus bu-reaus at all ports of entry. It is absurb to think that Utah can be sold from its lareg cities outward. out-ward. It must be sold from the ports of entry and every highway city and town. Such a series of a half-dozen inexpensive bureaus of information can well mean tens of millions of dollars of new business to the state, particularly at a time when such additional income will be extremely welcome. wel-come. Utah must be intelligent- ! ly sold within the state if it is to become a great tourist destina-tion. destina-tion. Such bureaus of information informa-tion will be a long step forward, I but the final answer will rest w'ith every person who meets the ; public. i |