An expected 300,000 students are heading to Panama City for Spring Break over the next few weeks. These students are booking later as the internet allows them to see the deals and opportunities, not to mention where the pack mentality will lead them. Who wants to be at Daytona when the sweet girl from Psych is in Panama City…

One of the interesting things I have seen is the use of Podcasts to reach the students. That is a sign the technology is taking off.

They’ve spent countless hours driving from up north, but now students from Canada and Michigan are here, ready for their week in the Sunshine State, even though the sunshine hasn’t been at its brightest.
Tim McDonald, a student from Canada, says, “I came from Ontario, and it’s like a snowstorm when I left, so I’m pretty happy about the weather.”
Sunny weather or not, these students are enjoying their vacation, and marketers say the numbers are only going to increase from here.
Phillip Colvin, Marketing Director for Paradise Hotels, says, “Trends are showing kids are booking later and later, waiting later and later, so it’s picked up a lot lately and we’re looking forward to a great spring break.”
New methods like podcasting were used this year to reach as many students as possible. The Tourist Development Council says that played a big roll in recruiting spring breakers.
Jana Leach, Director of Marketing in Panama City Beach, says, “You always have to keep up with technology and one of the new elements to the campaign is podcasts promoting PCB. I think that always helps when you can reach students in a different medium.”  via WJHG

If you are looking for more information on Panama City Spring Break 2006, here are some resources for you.

• Spring Break Dot Com
• PCB06.com
• About.com Panama City Spring Break Guide

If you are planning your Spring Break travel this year, you may want to reconsider Cancun, or at least be very selective in the  hotel you chose. Even though the prices are presently discounted in Cancun as it recovers from the Hurricane damage from last fall, they are not rolling out the welcome mat for College Spring Break visitors.

Several resort owners said Cancun should not make the same mistake that it did in 1988, when Hurricane Gilberto struck and hotels lowered rates to bring the tourists back. The bargain prices, combined with the drinking age of 18, combined to make Cancun the spring-break capital of North America.

Most resorts are offering deals as they come back on-line, but the welcome mat may not be out for spring breakers at the new, improved Cancun.

“I must admit, we don’t take spring breakers in our hotels,” Schmid said of Riu. “The spring breakers don’t match with our normal clients.”

Rodriguez, of Lomas Travel, said travel agents and big tour operators such as Funjet, Worry-Free and Apple Vacations know which hotels will accept spring-break groups. Traditionally, that had been the Oasis hotels, the Flamingo Cancun and the Barcelo Tucancun, among others.

But the past antics of kids-gone-crazy during spring break may cause some of the renovated hotels to rethink their open-door policy, Rodriguez said.

“I picked one group of 28 up at the airport at 10:30 in the morning, and they already had tequila bottles in their hands,” he recalled. “The hotel called me at 1 p.m. and said, `Come get these guys. We’re going to call the police.’ They were puking in the pool, some older guys were fighting, and one had fallen off the balcony.”

Mention spring break to Francisco Cordova and he rolls his eyes and says, “Oh my god - please!” via the Times Leader

When planning on traveling to a vacation destination, remember to check not just the discounted pricing for your vacation, but also what is happening in the area that might  cause the discounted pricing. The vacation destinations of  Treasure Island, Madeira Beach and St. Pete Beach are all having a terrible time due to bridge construction. So if you are planning on visiting these areas for spring break or your vacation, be prepared not to drive around much, because traffic is snarled with construction.

The south Pinellas County beach communities are busy entertaining tourists and residents. But getting there is hard, getting around once you arrive is is tougher - and it’s all going to get worse before it gets better.
Three bridge construction projects have squeezed traffic in and around Treasure Island, Madeira Beach and St. Pete Beach. Pressure is mounting as spring break, spring training and spring boating seasons loom.
“It’s nothing but traffic problems,” said Larry Hoffman, the president of the Treasure Island Chamber of Commerce, which sits between the closed Treasure Island Causeway and Gulf Boulevard, the beaches’ main drag in more ways than one.
“If I was going to do a plan to create a total disaster, this is what I’d do.”
In addition to the closure of the Treasure Island bridge, the John’s Pass bridge is half closed, choking seasonal traffic into one lane in each direction. For good measure, the Tom Stuart Causeway, the next mainland connection north of John’s Pass, is beginning a yearlong project that will limit its capacity. via the St. Petersburg Times.

I thought that this complete list of Spring Break 2006 Schedule for Colleges and Universities was helpful to those who are planning on hitting the beach in the next few weeks. Panama City, South Padre Island, the Bahamas, and Daytona are all gonna be hopping.

Sometimes it is awesome to have know what other schools are going to be out so you can plan accordingly. So here is the list.

Spring Break from 2/25/2006 -3/5/2006

• Northeastern University-Boston
• University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
• Western Michigan University

Spring Break from 3/4/2006 - 3/12/2006

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