Friday Travel Ticker: 1 billion tourists in 2012?

The U.N.’s World Trade Organization says 1 billion people will cross international borders as tourists this year for the first time. That’s about 4% higher than last year. The top three destinations? The U.S., France and China . . . . United has moved its John Wayne Airport ticket counter operations to Terminal C. The temporary move (eight weeks) is necessary to allow the TSA to make security upgrades to the baggage-handling system in Terminal B . . . . Grand Canyon National Park celebrates endangered species and wildlife May 18-19, a Friday and Saturday. For info, click here . . . . San Francisco’s North Beach Festival returns to historic “Little Italy” June 16-17, with live music, street painting and more than 150 vendor booths . . . . . The 18th Annual E Hula Mau, a celebration of Hawaiian culture, returns to the Long Beach Terrace Theatre on, Aug. 31-Sept. 2. The Polynesian festivities will feature performances, arts and crafts, workshops, and island-style cuisine. Info, click here . . . . Take free fly-fishing lessons from the San Diego Fly Fishers club on Sunday mornings, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Lake Murray in La Mesa. Info: www.sandiegoflyfishers.com . . . . . Hikers can experience the early settlers’ journey across the Sierra Nevada mountains in the 20^th Annual Donner Party Hike Oct. 13-14 in Truckee . . . . Starting off Moab, Utah’s busy summer: the Moab Arts Festival, May 26-27, featuring jewelry, pottery, sculpture, fine art and photography, plus entertainment, food and activities for the kids. Admission is free. Info, click here . . . . Two new police recruits have joined the Los Angeles Airport Police. The L.A. Airport Police Division is the fourth-largest law enforcement agency in the county, with more than 1,100 law enforcement, security and staff personnel . . . . The Globe Corner travel bookstore, which closed its Harvard Square location last summer, is getting a second life with an independent bookseller in Brookline, Mass., a suburb of Boston. Info, click here . . . . Travel quote of the day: “A traveler without observation is a bird without wings.” (Moslih Eddin Saadi)