ForewordExecutive Summary1Trends Overview2Global Summary Foreword Introducing WTM Global Travel Report As the world’s most influential travel and tourism event, World TravelMarket London connects the global leisure travel community, providinginspiration, networking, and sourcing opportunities for professionals The rate of change in travel is accelerating, and it’s our mission tosupport industry professionals to navigate the evolution of the industryand prepare for the year ahead. The annual WTM Global Travel Reportunderscores our commitment to delivering authoritative insights and Introducing Tourism Economics Tourism Economics, an Oxford Economics company, is a leading globaleconomic forecaster and provider of quantitative analysis—built ondecades of experience and world-class datasets. We specialise in theintersection of tourism expertise and rigorous economics, and our work Data and insights are critical in helping travel businesses and destinationsnavigate an evolving landscape, especially amid increased price sensitivityand shifting perceptions of destinations driven by geopolitics and otherworld events. Rapid expansion continues over the next five years as more Our latest WTM Global Travel Report provides an important manual for theindustry to understand and capitalise on the ever-changing dynamics of Executive Summary Global travel landscape connectivity and increased visaliberalisation, making globaldestinations more accessible thanever before. Continued economicgrowth in emerging markets,especially in Asia Pacific and mostnotably China and India, will also The travel industry is set to growat a faster pace than the globaleconomy overall over the next 10years. Increasing international sharewill be an important feature of this Consumer behaviour is alsoshifting in ways which presentnew opportunities for travel. Thegrowth in the experience economymeans people are prioritisingexperiences over materialisticgoods, with a heightened demandto see and interact with peopleand places. Accordingly, today’s Longer-haul travel will spearheadmuch of this growth as inter-regional—travel to other globalregions rather than within aregion—should capture a greater More broadly, for consumers in bothadvanced economies and emergingmarkets, travel spend is prioritisedand remains a high share of overallspend, despite increasing living As travellers look for new, morememorable experiences, and areincreasingly swayed by value formoney, alternative destinations arealso gaining prominence, especiallyfor short-haul travel where value isincreasingly sought. This includescountries such as Albania and othersin Central and Eastern Europe, as as Augmented Reality (AR), VirtualReality (VR) and Mixed Reality (MR),help to provide localised and timelyinformation to guests in new and Attractions like Louvre Museum, Parisand Dubai’s Museum of the Futureare pioneering the use of new technologies,including AR and multisensory installations, While the outlook for travel isstrong, economic and geopoliticalheadwinds are an immediateconcern. New trade tariffs announcedby the Trump administration areadding to business costs and arenow passing through into higherconsumer inflation, which isundermining income and spendingpower. Ongoing uncertainty about However, bucket list destinationsare set to remain popular too asiconic and must-see places continueto benefit from powerful socialmedia exposure. This is evidentwhen looking at travel flows tomajor cities across the globe whichremain popular among first-timetravellers from emerging markets.The top 50 urban destinations are Cost pressures in general are thelargest challenge for the traveloutlook. While undertakingtravel remains a key priority formany households, thrifty modernconsumers are increasingly seekingways to minimise and optimise theirtravel spend, especially on short-haulinternational trips. Technology ishelping with this as new AI-poweredtools provide suggestions about Just over40% 56% Increasing businesscosts werementioned by nearly50%of tourism expertsas a key barrier of travellers are more interestedin visiting iconic destinations nowcompared to two years ago. of travellers are moreinterested in goingto new destinationscompared with twoyears ago, with Gen Another feature helping to propelinternational travel is growingaverage length of stay as manytravellers opt to extend their stays,reversing the prior trend of takingmore, but shorter, trips. Technologyis playing an increasingly importantrole, helping consumers curatemore memorable travel experiences.According to Tourism Economics’latest Travel Trends Survey (TTS),nearly 80% of travellers accesseddigital platforms when planning Among Chinese travellers, this iseven higher at nearly70% Source:Tourism Economics, 2025 Source:Tourism Economics, 2025 Regional Summary:Regional Travel Spend Growth Regional picture Although representing a relativelysmall share of global travel,the Middle East stands out asan