AmEx Launching Travel Guide for Cash-Strapped Consumers

American Express Publishing is bringing back a multiplatform travel guide program that it launched last year with Time Inc. and CNN. But while last year’s initiative covered nine U.S. cities, including New York, Boston and Los Angeles, this year’s will focus on short hauls, reflecting the economy’s dampening effect on consumer travel.
 
This year’s initiative will be called Weekend Getaways, with a focus on trips accessible from major cities in the Northeast, Southwest and West.
 
Last year’s City Guides represented the most extensive cross-sales collaboration by the three media companies.