Asia Pacific is a wonderfully diverse region. It is home to billions of people, creating an exciting mix of established, growing, and emerging outbound markets, where an increasingly digitally literate population are looking to travel, domestically, regionally, and internationally.
This market is a vital foundation for future success and Amadeus’ Traveler Tribes 2033 is essential reading for any seller or supplier looking to understand how travelers from the region will travel in the future.
Predicting trends using traditional segmentation techniques for travelers - age, income, education, and country of origin – are less relevant than how they “feel” about travel and life in general - their motivations for taking a trip, expectations, aspirations, and outlook.
Amadeus distilled more than 5.3 million data points from the major global markets and came up with four Traveler Tribes which it thinks cover the travelers of the future: Pioneering Pathfinders are positive about travel’s future, open to new technology; Memory Makers distrust new technology and eschew sustainability; Excited Experimentalists are excited about travel’s future but are concerned that AI will take over; Travel Tech-fluencers are excited about tech but concerned about cybersecurity and data privacy.
Nation states across a diverse region
The global study also looked specifically at Indonesia, Thailand, China, Singapore, India, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan. There was no dominant Tribe across the region – hardly surprising considering the differences between the nations. However, it found Pioneering Pathfinders dominated China, India, Indonesia, and Thailand while Memory Makers were prevalent in Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan.
Of the other Tribes, The Travel Tech-fluencers had little influence on any market (apart from Indonesia).
Meanwhile, Excited Experimentalists emerged as relevant in all markets, without being dominant in any.
Regional developments driven by tech
When looking at the general travel preferences data included in the study, some common themes across all markets were revealed. Cryptocurrency is the technology which most excites travelers in every APAC region (apart from New Zealand, where travelers are excited about data).
Data emerged as the next most exciting technology for all markets (apart from New Zealand, again, where VR came second and Japan with biometrics).
Other regionally consistent findings emerged when asked about their concerns around traveling in 2033, with cybersecurity causing the most headaches in all markets apart from Singapore – where the worry is specifically about data sharing – and Japan which is worried about political instability.
There was a wider range of responses to questions about what specific aspects of the travel experience in 2033 is the most exciting. Travelers from Singapore, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand were most excited at the prospect of being able to get to a destination more quickly. Artificial intelligence’s potential to improve the trip planning process enthused travelers from India and Indonesia while the Chinese are looking forward the most to virtual reality tours.
Big countries with some commonalities
By synching the Tribes segmentation with the general preferences, sellers and suppliers have the potential to identify strategies on which to double down on and – potentially - what to avoid.
India and China are among the biggest outbound markets in the world today and will remain so come 2033. With Pioneering Pathfinders, the dominant Tribe in both, there is a viable business case for sellers and suppliers to invest in specific technologies for this market, such as the Chinese preference for VR tours.
Similarly, market-specific digital channels for outbound travel – such as Fliggy in China, MakeMyTrip in India – can be engaged with today.
Sellers should however be wary of a lack of interest in apps which have everything needed to plan travel. Super-apps did not make the top five for China or India when travelers were asked to rank how interested they are in a range of technologies.
On the other hand, travelers from the other two markets led by Pioneering Pathfinders (Thailand and Indonesia) did include super-apps in their top five. Travelers in both these markets expressed concern around cyber-security and data sharing. These issues are – or should be – priorities for any business in any vertical in any market, so perhaps sellers targeting these markets should emphasize security in the design of their sites, or their marketing.
The Memory Makers, with their distrust of tech and disinterest in sustainability, offer a different challenge. First off, perhaps the travel industry should think about what it can do to change these travelers’ mindset on the environment because fighting the climate emergency is as much about education as it is about enforcement.
Travelers from this segment put a lot of emphasis on who they travel with. Any product which supports this preference – easier ways for groups to book and pay, configurable family rooms in hotels, whole house vacation rentals, child-friendly options – will suit this Traveler Tribe in these markets.
Key takeaways for Asia Pacific
Amadeus has never seen Asia Pacific as a homogenous region, and the Traveler Tribes data shows that there are material differences between the biggest markets. The conversations that the study can spark will be based on legitimate data, from a variety of sources. Traveler Tribes 2033 is a great conversational springboard for sellers or suppliers thinking about how to consolidate their presence in the market, or how to make their first steps.