Sun is shining on Asian tourism trade

The sun is shining on the tourism trade in Asia-Pacific, with double-digit growth notched up in 2010, spurred largely by Chinese and Indian middle classes packing their bags for a break abroad.

There was an 11 per cent rise in arrivals in the region overall last year, according to preliminary data from the Pacific Asia Travel Association. And 2011 is also expected to be a strong year.

“Asia will receive international arrivals at close to double that of the world average growth rates,” PATA’s deputy chief executive officer John Koldowski said.

“It’s Asians travelling to Asia, that’s the key to all these numbers and the big shift we are seeing globally in the tourism market. It’s all happening in Asia now.”

South Asia reported the strongest arrivals growth with a gain of 14 per cent, highlighting a record year for India which posted 5.6 million foreign inbound visits for the year, a nine per cent increase.

Over 70 million people went to Southeast Asia, 12 per cent up on 2009, with Vietnam, Singapore and the Philippines all registering record growth.

Australia and New Zealand and the Pacific islands also had a record year for tourist arrivals.

Chinese travellers spent almost $44 billion in 2009 while travelling overseas, according to data from the World Trade Organisation – and that’s excluding the cost of getting there. “For some markets Chinese and Indian tourists are extremely important,” said Mr Koldowski.

“Indian travellers to Singapore, for example, travel in an average group size of four against an overall average of 2.9 people, spending on average 5.8 days there against a total average of four days.”

People from Europe and North America are also heading to Asia and the Pacific in their droves – arrivals from Europe were up 11 per cent to 24 million, PATA says, while arrivals from North America grew by over 10 per cent to 13 million.

“For developing nations, which make up a large portion of Asia-Pacific, short vacations to neighbouring countries will continue to be most popular. As nations grow, so does their exposure and disposable income, leading to trips farther afield.

“Social media and user-generated content will continue to be an important factor in the travel decision-making process, with more travellers than ever relying on reviews, photos and videos, and recommendations from peers.”