Visa Study Estimates Australian Households to Spend AU$8,430 Annually on Overseas Travel by 2025
07/12/2016
• Australians part of a growing trend in Asia Pacific to take at least one international trip per year
• International trips taken by older Australians are expected to increase by 80 percent
Sydney – More households in Australia and around the world will be packing their luggage and heading to overseas destinations for annual holidays in the next decade. According to a new Visa report, some 109 million Asia Pacific households are expected to take at least one international trip per year by 2025, up 65 percent from 2015. In Australia, the number of households taking an international trip is expected to rise to five million households, up 12 percent from today.
Visa’s report “Mapping the Future of Global Travel and Tourism in Asia Pacific” forecasts travel and tourism trends in the next 10 years (2015 to 2025). Among those households most likely to travel internationally, the report finds that average household spending on international travel is likely to rise eight percent to US$5,230* per year by 2025. In Australia, average spend on international trips is expected to rise from AU$7,069 (US$5,315) per household in 2015 to AU $8,430 (US$6,339) in 2025.
The report also identified key drivers expected to impact global travel, including a growing middle class, greater internet connectivity, improved transportation infrastructure across many countries and an aging global population with more time for leisure travel.
“Travelling internationally will become more common and attainable in the future thanks to changing demographics, combined with technology advances that make travelling abroad easier and less expensive,” said Wayne Best, Chief Economist, Visa Inc. “What will emerge is an expanding “travelling class” that will spend a growing portion of their household income on cross-border travel. Tomorrow’s travelling class will likely be older and hail from emerging markets – looking very different from today’s typical international traveller.”
Total Australian travel spend to increase by more than a third
The total amount spent by Australians on outbound travel is likely to rise from AU$30.2 billion to $40.3 billion by 2025, an increase of 34 percent.
Rank |
Market |
2015 (bn) |
2025 (bn) |
% increase |
1 |
Mainland China |
US$137.0 |
US$255.4 |
86% |
2 |
Hong Kong |
US$26.7 |
US$47.4 |
78% |
3 |
Singapore |
US$22.5 |
US$44.9 |
99% |
4 |
South Korea |
US$21.1 |
US$34.3 |
63% |
5 |
Australia |
AU$30.2 |
AU$40.3 |
34% |
Asia Pacific total |
US$319.6 |
US$568.2 |
78% |
|
Travel spend among top five Asia Pacific markets (according to 2025 values) with households earning US$20,000 or more annually by projected 2025 spend. Figures are based on constant 2015 prices.
Highlights of the global report include:
The Rise of a new Global Travelling Class:
Growing income levels around the world are creating a new “travelling class.” The study uncovered that worldwide, households that make at least US$20,000 per year account for more than 90 percent of spending on international travel today. By 2025, it is estimated that nearly half of all global households (945 million) will be within this income range, spurring greater international travel and spending, particularly by households from emerging markets.
Global Aging:
In Australia, trips taken per annum by travellers aged 65 and above will increase by 80 percent over the coming decade.
Globally, by 2025, travellers aged 65 and above will more than double their international travel to an estimated 180 million trips, accounting for one in eight international trips globally. The study estimates that older travellers will be able to afford longer trips that provide greater comfort at higher prices. Trends such as “medical tourism,” whereby aging populations undertake international travel for medical purposes, will also take hold in the future.
Rank |
Market |
2015 |
2025 |
% increase |
1 |
Mainland China |
1,862 |
7,077 |
280% |
2 |
Singapore |
852 |
3,451 |
305% |
3 |
Japan |
1,318 |
2,930 |
122% |
4 |
Australia |
1,073 |
1,931 |
80% |
5 |
Taiwan |
460 |
1,599 |
247% |
Top five Asia Pacific markets with the highest number of international trips by 65+ year olds (thousands).
An executive summary along with country and region-specific data as well as interactive tools can be found on www.visa.com/travelinsights.
About Visa Inc.
Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is a global payments technology company that connects consumers, businesses, financial institutions and governments in more than 200 countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable electronic payments. We operate one of the world's most advanced processing networks — VisaNet — that is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second, with fraud protection for consumers and assured payment for merchants. Visa is not a bank and does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers. Visa's innovations, however, enable its financial institution customers to offer consumers more choices: pay now with debit, pay ahead of time with prepaid or pay later with credit products. For more information visit www.visa.com.au and @VisaNewsAU.
Methodology
Visa estimates the number of households travelling internationally by comparing Visa-branded cardholders in a given country who have made at least one face-to-face transaction abroad versus the population of all active cardholders in the source country. Over seven million Australian cards were included in the analysis. The figures were adjusted to be representative of the source country’s population regardless of payment methods used by households. The propensities were then used as an input in the forecasts developed by Oxford Economics for the study.
Oxford Economics used survey data on the age and income of the international travellers from a sample of 10 countries to calculate international travel frequencies and share of travel by age bracket and income class. The results were extrapolated to a broader set of countries based on their classification as developed or emerging markets and key variables such as GDP per capita and total international arrivals per capita. The estimated travel shares were then compared with each country’s household income distribution and age distribution to develop a historical relationship from which to project international travel shares and volumes by income class and age bracket from 2005 to 2025.
Media contact:
Jillian Friant
Visa Inc.
02 9253 8811
[email protected]
* The estimate includes typical spending during the trip, such as food and hotel, but not prior to the trip, such as buying an airline ticket.