Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) - Tourism Source Market Insight, 2022 Update

Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) - Tourism Source Market Insight, 2022 Update

Summary

GlobalData’s Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) -Tourism Source Market Insight, 2022 Update report provides a thorough insight into the GCC’s domestic and outbound tourism market. The report looks at the profiles of GCC tourists and summarizes the key reasons that they travel. The report offers an in-depth analysis of traveler flows, spending patterns, main destination markets and current and future opportunities for tourism businesses seeking to tap into the GCC outbound travel market.

Key Highlights

• Domestic travel leads overall travel purpose among the six GCC countries with GlobalData projections showing that 61.6% of total trips taken in 2021 were domestic. Leisure drives domestic tourism for GCC travelers with GlobalData projections revealing that leisure accounted for 37.4% of total trips in 2021, representing 18.9 million trips.
• GCC travelers travel for long periods of time and are amongst the highest spenders globally. The average international trip length by travelers from Saudi Arabia was 15.6 days. This was followed by the UAE with 10.6 days. Travelers from Qatar spent an average of $2,608 spent per international trip in 2021, according to GlobalData projections. This is expected to rise to $2,759 by 2024.
• Aligned with the global travel trends, affordability and accessibility are the two most influential factors when GCC holidaymakers are deciding where to go on holiday. According to GlobalData’s Q4 2021 Consumer Survey, 25% of UAE and 23% of Saudi Arabian respondents booked directly with an airline the last time they booked a holiday. This far exceeds the global average of 12%.
• COVID-19 interrupted overall growth in outbound travel, causing international departures from the GCC to decline by 66.8% YoY in 2020 to 13.4 million. According to GlobalData forecasts, outbound travel from the GCC region will reach pre-pandemic levels by 2023 with projections showing that international departures will reach 42.8 million in 2023 and by 2024, international departures are forecast to reach 44.4 million (CAGR 2022-24: 6.5%).

• This report is part of GlobalData's Source Market Insights Series. This report provides an in-depth analysis of traveler flows, spending patterns, main destination markets, as well as current and future opportunities for tourism businesses seeking to tap into the GCC outbound travel market.

• This report provides clear insight into developments in the GCC's regional and outbound tourism markets.
• The report uses data and analysis to discuss future trends related to domestic trips, international departures, traveler spending, and main destination markets.
• The report explores the different profiles of GCC tourists and the reasons that they travel, hence providing an insight into the trends in different segments of the market.
• The reader gains a strong understanding of the opportunities in the country, as well as the risks, to support better business decisions
• This report examines the impact of COVID-19 on GCC outbound and domestic tourism

Companies Mentioned

Emirates
Etihad Airlines
Qatar Airways
Airbnb
Cleartrip
Wego
flydubai
Tajawal
Rehlat