The travel and tourism industry sees the emerging global economies as the biggest opportunity over the next five years.
The inaugural World Travel Market Industry Report, culled from a poll of 1,200 senior industry executives, reveals 28.6% of senior executives believe emerging markets – for both inbound and outbound travel – are the greatest single opportunity for their businesses until 2016.
This was the highest response to the question followed by technical advances and social media with 24.8% and 20.4% respectively.
The findings confirm a sea change in the way the travel and tourism industry operates on a global scale.
As the traditional markets of North American and Europe mature, the real growth opportunities can be found in the BRIC economies – Brazil, Russia, India and China – as well as the GCC nations such as the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
World Travel Market chairman Fiona Jeffery said, “The emerging middle classes in the BRIC economies with a desire to travel alongside the wealth of the GCC countries make these economies the future of the travel and tourism industry.â€
