Shaping the Future of Travel – Part Four
Amadeus’ recently commissioned industry whitepaper report prepared from research conducted by Frost & Sullivan, “Shaping The Future of Travel: the big FOUR travel effects” is the most comprehensive study into travel behaviour across Asia Pacific between now and 2030.
Part three of the series talks about the ‘Barbell Effect‘ – Growth at the upper and lower ends of the travel market
The rise of the Asian middle class:
Did you know that the majority of travellers from emerging economies will be travelling on a low-end budget by 2030? This will stimulate rapid growth in the budget end of the travel scale, whether in low frill airlines or economy hotels. At the same time, enormous growth is expected among the very wealthy in the region, particularly in emerging economies such as China, India and Indonesia which could further inspire growth in the upper end of the travel spectrum.
In 2011, Asia Pacific’s middle class consisted of around 700 million people. By 2030, this will increase to 2.1 billion. That’s a change of 100 million people every year between now and 2030 – or the entire population of the Philippines added to the middle class! This increase will cause a sea change in middle-class expenditure, stimulating a rapid rise in what we term ‘the consuming class’, creating a significant increase in discretionary spending and a huge opportunity for the travel industry.
The Amadeus and Frost & Sullivan whitepaper, “Shaping The Future of Travel: the big FOUR travel effects”* states that by 2030, China and India will dominate both in terms of traveller numbers in the region and in total expenditure. To catch the potential of these markets, travel providers will need to adapt their offerings for these growing sources of travellers – for example by making hotels “Indian and Chinese-friendly”.
Budget airlines will form an important part of the travel mix by 2030, indeed it already does. While, the market share for budget airlines in Asia Pacific currently lags behind the rest of the world, accounting for around 18% of airline seats sold, compared with a global average of almost 25%. In contrast, we anticipate that Asia Pacific will develop to match, if not outpace, the global average by 2030.
While the economic growth of the region offers enormous potential for travel, industry players will need to significantly improve many facets of infrastructure to leverage the opportunities.
Find out more about The Barbell Effect and dominant themes impacting Asia Pacific by downloading our free whitepaper at www.apacwhitepapers.amadeus.com.
*The Amadeus and Frost & Sullivan whitepaper, “Shaping The Future of Travel: the big FOUR travel effects” is the most comprehensive study into travel behaviour across Asia Pacific between now and 2030.