• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, April 17, 2003

Nielsen//NetRatings reports that the approaching summer camp season is driving American campers to the Web. Traffic to the U.S. Department of the Interior jumped 60 percent in the week ending February 23, as surfers flocked to the Web to take advantage of online reservations and vacation planning.

Attracting 763,000 surfers from work, traffic to the site soared 60 percent as compared to 477,000 surfers during the week ending February 16, rising to the top as one of the fastest growing brands for the week. Traffic from home also increased 60 percent to 874,000 surfers compared to 545,000 the previous week. The top site from home and from work was the National Parks Services site, where surfers looking to plan summer camping trips could obtain information and make reservations.

"With campers allowed to book five months in advance, Americans planning their 4th of July vacations are turning to the Web for their planning and research," said Greg Bloom, senior Internet analyst, Nielsen//NetRatings. "Eager campers can now turn to the Web as their primary vacation planning tool."

Nielsen//NetRatings.