If not actually typing their credit card numbers into their computers, they are at least using the technology to shop for the right product at the right price, and doing so in growing numbers. In a state like Maine, heavily dependent on spending by outsiders, electronic commerce is having an enormous economic impact. Yesterday I sent a package to Guatemala from our Web site. It's impossible to do what the Web does, even through mail-order. Much of the e-commerce growth nationwide is being driven by tourism, with obvious ramifications for Maine.
Travel is one of the easiest and most convenient services to purchase on the Internet.
It's really the only way you can understand what a destination is like. More and more travelers now are like John and Sheila Scollan, a Maryland couple who used the Internet to plan their wedding in Kennebunkport last year. They made all the arrangements online, from plane tickets and lodging reservations to getting a wedding license from the town clerk. We were able to visit the coast and see the places we were going to stay. We could even see what was on the menu at a restaurant.