Yet another study has warned that tourism is stagnating or even declining. Rather than waiting another season to see if the prediction is true, the state and its lucrative tourism industry must take action now to draw more visitors to Maine and get them to stay here longer.

Last week, economist Charles Colgan warned that Maine could see a sluggish tourism season next summer because of slow national economic growth, weather and turnpike traffic. The solution, according to the associate director of the Center for Tourism Research and Outreach, is to draw more visitors to Maine and ensure they stay multiple nights. To succeed at this, the state must offer the types of attractions and accommodations sought by visitors, especially those whose expenditures aren’t tied to general economic conditions.

Overnight visitors now account for 20 percent of the state’s travel market, but are responsible for 44 percent of travel expenditures. Visitors to Maine now spend more on shopping and food than they do on accommodations and recreational activities. If tourism officials want to increase tourism spending, they need to give visitors something to spend their money on. Increasingly, tourists – especially the baby boom generation which finds itself with time and money on its hands – want to do something outdoors and then retreat to a well-appointed lodge or hotel. They don’t want to backpack for a week, but a guided hike to a scenic vista or a guided kayak trip to an island followed by a gourmet meal would be very appealing to these travelers.

Several developing African countries are taking this model to the extreme. Namibia, Botswana and the Seychelles are going directly for travelers with a lot of money to spend by building big, expensive hotels. A $1,000-a-night resort opened two years ago in Namibia and the only accommodations on one island in the Seychelles, a string of islands off East Africa, have rooms costing $3,000 a night.

These countries are going this route for two reasons: to protect natural and cultural attractions from a crush of travelers and to hang on to the notion that they are exclusive, and therefore attractive, places to visit.

According to a Canadian consulting firm that does an annual evaluation of Maine’s tourism industry, travel in Maine is stagnating, remaining at 2000 levels. The most recent study by Longwoods International shows that Maine surpasses the national average in attracting visitors for rafting, kayaking, hiking, hunting and fishing. But the state is lacking in first-class hotels and sophisticated restaurants.

As a result, Maine lags behind the national average in attracting visitors with annual incomes over $75,000. The study also found that affordability was low on travelers’ priority lists, bolstering the suggestion from the Brookings Institution to raise the state’s meals and lodging tax to support land conservation and economic development efforts.

Maine has a lot to offer. Upgrading and repackaging it to draw more visitors here is crucial to the health of the state’s tourism industry.