Shaping the Future of Travel – Part Six
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 six of the series continues to talk about the ‘ME Effect‘ – the fragmentation of the travel market into ever-increasing niches: Generation ‘S’
The ME Effect, part 2:
Is 65 the new 45?
An ageing population! What’s that? Today it’s all about good health, longevity of life, increase in spending power and eagerness to see the world. That’s what ‘Gen S(enior) is all about. Truly today’s 65s are the new 45s.Over the next 20 years, Asia Pacific will see a significant increase in older people, or what we term as Gen ‘S’, with the most dramatic changes in Singapore, China and Korea. Even today, Gen ‘S’ are accounting for a significant portion of leisure travel – especially in Australia and Japan – where they account for over 20% of all leisure travellers.
These demographic developments will create significant changes in the travel market.
In Japan, for example, the working age population (20-65) will decline by 12% between now and 2030, which will drive a decrease in the number of business travellers. Conversely, the number of over 65s will increase by 34%, creating a significant increase in senior leisure travellers.
Overall, we expect an increase of 250 million over 65s by 2030 across Asia Pacific , with most of the increase coming from China and India. We estimate that this will create double the amount of over 65 leisure travellers to Asia Pacific destinations by 2030.
So, by 2030, Gen ‘S’ will be travelling more often, with more money and time on their hands. This is particularly relevant for China and India where they choose comfort and longer holidays over convenience and price.
Unsurprisingly, mobile technology is not widely being used by today’s Gen ‘S’ as they typically rely on traditional travel agents to book travel. However by 2030, we could see the broad adoption of mobile as a booking tool, which is seeing strong uptake among 18-30 year olds today.
While the seniors market represents a large and growing opportunity for travel providers, the challenge will be in successfully monetising it.
Find out more about The ME 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.