Key Themes in Travel and Tourism for 2023 - Thematic Intelligence

Key Themes in Travel and Tourism for 2023 - Thematic Intelligence

Summary

This report covers the key technology, macroeconomic, and industry themes that will have a significant impact on travel and tourism in 2023. Whether you are looking to invest, gain competitive intelligence, or just become more familiar with one of these themes, this report provides comprehensive analysis on each one, while also outlining how these themes interlink, making this report highly unique.

This multi-theme thematic report covers the leading companies and organizations within the key themes in the travel and tourism industry, giving readers a strong sense of how different elements within the industry fit together and how conflicting themes might interact with one another. This report pinpoints the themes that are most likely to impact a company’s financial performance and position in the market. Written by an experienced travel and tourism analyst, each theme covered in this report is given: an in-depth description, an explanation as to why it is important in travel and tourism, data-led analysis, and case studies on how it is being used in different tourism sectors.

“The travel and tourism industry will be very different in 2023 to what it was in 2019. Prolonged movement restrictions imposed by COVID-19 pandemic brought about shifts in business operations and goals as well as traveler behavior and preferences. COVID-19 has undoubtedly brought challenges for the sector, but also opportunities to encourage innovation, drive new business models, explore new niches and markets, open up new destinations, and move to more sustainable and resilient tourism development models.

Nevertheless, even as global tourism continues along its recovery phase, the unprecedented shock to the tourism economy caused by COVID-19 has been compounded by the evolving geopolitical situation in Ukraine. This is having very tangible economic and social consequences for many people, places and businesses, and the wider economy. There are also major uncertainties regarding the outlook of China, which was once the world’s largest and one of the most valuable outbound source markets.

In these uncertain times, a strong online presence is vital for travel and tourism companies, and this needs to be bolstered by innovative apps and personalized offerings. Digital adoption has accelerated during COVID-19 which has prompted the adoption of more advanced technologies by leaders in the travel and tourism industry. Better understanding and utilization of artificial intelligence, cloud computing and cybersecurity are now key to staying ahead.

Key Highlights

• The prolonged war in Ukraine and additional travel restrictions for Russian tourists across Europe will impact key markets and slow tourism recovery. Russia and Ukraine account for a relatively large share of outbound tourism trips and expenditure. The absence of both of these markets, amid COVID-19 recovery could be detrimental for some countries, especially as the loss of these source markets is likely to be protracted. Greater challenges are apparent as a by-product of the conflict. The outlook for global growth continues to deteriorate as inflation continues to creep upwards, despite some easing in commodity and oil prices in recent months. Against this backdrop, consumers are exhibiting significant apprehension about their personal finances and specific concerns about rising levels of inflation, all of which will impact shopping habits and spending confidence. According to a GlobalData Survey, xx% of global respondents are extremely concerned about the impact of inflation on their household budget. A further xx% of respondents reported being quite concerned, while x% reported being slightly concerned.
• Travel and tourism are intrinsically linked to the environment, biodiversity and nature. It is important to accept that ESG (environmental, social, governance) is here to stay. Key players in the global tourism sector have already embarked on the journey to adjust strategy, business and operating models accordingly. Indicative of this, ESG was the most mentioned theme in travel and tourism company filings in 2021, with 101,062 mentions, following a 29% YoY growth in ESG mentions from 78,293 in 2020. Of the ESG pillars, environmental was the most mentioned pillar in 2021, having overtaken governance with 40,461 environmental mentions, according to GlobalData’s Company Filing Analytics. Further, growing consumer awareness on the impact of travel on nature and communities will increasingly influence travelers’ decision making when deciding how, where and when to travel. According to a GlobalData Consumer Survey, xx% of global respondents consider ‘sustainable/environmentally friendly features’ as essential or nice to have when making a purchase. Therefore, businesses and governments in tourism need to be aware of the chances and opportunities ESG policies offer to eventually cater to shifting consumer demands and help ensure long term success.
• Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, online travel retail sales were growing at a phenomenal rate driven by both consumers and companies migrating to online platforms. In the decade from 2009 to 2019, global online travel sales increased by xx% from $xx billion in 2009 to $xx trillion in 2019. By 2025, online travel retail sales are forecast to reach $xx trillion. As tourists more heavily rely on online channels to make their travel decisions and purchases, this has given travel and tourism companies greater customer data to collect, process and analyze in order to deliver personalized products and services. With more travelers using online resources and channels to make their travel decisions, this will continue the expansion of personalization as a major theme within the travel and tourism sector.

• This report provides an overview of the key themes in travel and tourism for 2023.
• This report clearly defines and explains what the key technology, macroeconomic and industry themes are in travel and tourism and how they often interlink.
• This report outlines the importance of specific themes within tourism and why it is vital that companies invest in the ones which are relevant to them.
• This report provides examples of what companies and organizations in the travel and tourism industry are doing in response to specific key themes, along with the outcome of these reactions.
• We highlight travel and tourism companies that are leading in these themes, such as Trip.com, Airbnb, Fraport Airport, American Airlines, Choice Hotels, Melia Hotels, Intrepid Travel and Marriott International.

• To understand the key themes in travel and tourism and their current and future impact on the industry.
• To recognize how the key themes in travel and tourism are often interlinked.
• To assess companies' level of engagement with the themes.
• To become aware of the strategies that tourism companies and organizations have adopted to tap into key themes, as well as the success of these strategies.
• GlobalData’s thematic research ecosystem is a single, integrated global research platform that provides an easy-to-use framework for tracking all themes across all companies in all sectors. It has a proven track record of identifying the important themes early, enabling companies to make the right investments ahead of the competition, and secure that all-important competitive advantage.