According to a research by PhoCusWright, Asia Pacific has become the world’s largest travel market and is expected to reach US$351.9 billion this year. Reflecting this growth, Gruettke, said that China and India’s large populations and growing middle classes make them key source markets for the global travel industry.
“With a vast number of potential travellers coming from both of these markets, it is essential that the global travel industry understands Chinese and Indian travellers and manages the shift in customer profiles to ensure that they take advantage of new opportunities that may emerge.”
Gruettke believes that, owing to this, the exhibitor demand from Europe, Asia and North America has been particularly strong at ITB Asia 2013 as tourism industries focus their attention on the Asian travel market. “This year, ITB Asia sold out on exhibitor space four months prior to the event, and this is a sign of the growing interest in Asia’s travel market,” he opined.
Elaborating on the India market Gruettke stated that India is a key market for the global travel industry. “With a fast growing middle class and a rapid rise in both inbound and outbound travel, it is one of the world’s fastest growing travel markets. In terms of outbound travel, World Tourism Organization has predicted 50 million outbound travellers from India by 2020. International tourism expenditure by Indians has grown from US$ 1.3 billion in 1997 to US$ 14 Billion in 2010. These statistics illustrate the tremendous opportunities in this market for the rest of the world.”
He also believes that, as more and more tourists worldwide look to India as a holiday destination, tourism players should also acknowledge the growing trend of hotel groups and travel services increasing their presence there.
This year, ITB Asia introduced the Medical Tourism Association. Speaking about this initiative Gruettke, said, “At ITB Asia, we recognise the importance of delivering the latest industry insights. With the health and medical tourism market currently worth over US$100 billion and still growing, this year we partnered with the Medical Tourism Association for their inaugural session to help delegates understand the opportunities in this sector. With such a timely and relevant topic, we received a very positive response from delegates on this session.”
ITB Asia took place in Singapore in October this year.
