domestic tourism business

What is domestic tourism and why is it so important?

Domestic tourism is BIG business in some countries, bringing in a significant revenue for the economy of the local area and nationwide. But what is domestic tourism?

In this article I will explain what domestic tourism is and why it is important. I will also give some examples of some of the biggest domestic tourism destinations worldwide.

What is domestic tourism?

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As I described in my tourism glossary , domestic tourism is the act of travelling for business or leisure within one’s home country. According to the UNWTO , a person must be away from their usual place of residence (but still in their home country) for at least one night to qualify as a domestic tourist.

Popular destinations for domestic tourism include the USA, India and China . This is because they are big countries with a variety of tourist experiences to offer.

Ever seen the film ‘ Into the Wild? ‘ This is a great example of domestic tourism! It’s a story of a young guy who sold all of his belongings and hitch hiked through America to Alaska . Here is the trailer-

Travelling a few miles away from your home, you don’t expect to be classed as a ‘tourist’ right? But in fact, you often will be classed as a tourist- a domestic tourist!

In general, domestic tourists are anyone who undertakes travel activities in their own country of residence, i.e. living in London and travelling to Glasgow for the day or for an overnight stay.

Unlike other definitions in the tourism ‘vocabulary’, the term ‘domestic tourism’ has not changed in its years. In 2005, Gillian Gale, in her text book designed for BTEC National Travel and Tourism students , defined domestic tourists as;

“People who are travelling in their own country for tourism purposes”

Further to this, Arjun Kumar Bhatia, in his text on International Tourism Management states that;

“In domestic tourism, people travel outside their normal domicile to certain other areas within the country as contrasted with travelling outside the boundaries of the country as in international tourism .”

According to a recent report published by the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), domestic tourism accounts for 73% of total Travel and Tourism spending globally in 2018; thus it is a key driver of the tourism sector.

Countries rely on domestic tourism as a tool to reduce poverty, improve infrastructure, generate employment and most importantly to drive economic growth.

The activities of domestic tourists create economic importance as the money spent on domestic tourism feeds back into that particular country’s economy; providing itself with a more viable and prosperous economy.

Popular domestic tourism destinations

According to the WTTC report published in 2018, there has been a slight shift in the countries’ positions in domestic visitor spending between 2008 and 2017.

Below I have listed a few examples of domestic tourism.

According to Visit Britain and its annual review, in 2017/2018, 100.6 million domestic overnight trips were taken and 1.5 billion domestic day visits were taken in England in 2017.

The UK’s domestic overnight trips reached £19 billion, whilst the 1.5 billion domestic day visits reached £50.1 billion. All of which feeds back into the UK economy.

The most popular travel attractions for domestic tourism in the UK are:

• The Tower of London
• Westminster Abbey
• Kew Gardens
• St Paul’s Cathedral
• Chester Zoo
• Windermere Boat Cruises, Bowness
• Flamingo Land Theme Park and Zoo, Yorkshire
• Drayton Manor Theme Park

As you can see from the list above, the majority of the locations are based in London, the Capital city of the UK. Most domestic tourism activities in the UK are either centred around the conservation of either natural or heritage sights or theme parks.

Despite living on the outskirts of London for most of my life, I am ashamed to say that I have only actually ever visited a few of these attractions! I guess I will add these to my bucket list and take the kids on a day trip soon…

In 2018, domestic tourists spent $933 billion dollars in the United States of America – representing 86% of total tourism expenditures. In 2018, domestic tourism supported 7.7 million jobs.

To me, it is no surprise that the domestic tourism industry in the USA is worth so much. Not only is it a HUGE country with an incredible range of diversity in tourism areas, from the snows of Alaska to the heat of Miami, but it is also true that most Americans do not have a passport !

According to the World Atlas , the most popular destinations for domestic tourism in the United States are;

• Alaskan Cruise, Alaska
• Orlando, Florida
• Las Vegas , Nevada
• Maui, Hawaii
• New York City, New York
• Honolulu, Hawaii
• Hawaiian Cruise, Hawaii
• Miami Beach, Florida
• Washington, DC
• Los Angeles, California

The table below shows you the percentage of domestic tourism which took place in each of these locations in 2018.

India is home to some of the most beautiful natural and cultural heritage sites in the world, not only making it a popular destination for international tourists, but also for domestic tourists.

According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, domestic spending in India is at 87.2%, compared to foreign spending at 12.8%. Therefore, domestic tourism in India contributes to 9.4% of its overall GDP.

According to Treebo the top 7 visited states by domestic tourists are;

• Uttar Pradesh
• Madhya Pradesh
• Andhra Pradesh
• Maharashtra

India is a beautiful country, with so much to offer! It has certainly been one of my favourite countries to travel and I hope to return with my children someday soon. It is no surprise to see that the domestic tourism industry in India is so significant, given the diversity of attractions and the sheer size of the country, not to mention that many people living in India cannot afford to travel internationally.

One of our recent travel destinations is South Africa , which is a growing destination for domestic tourism. The Minister of SA has fostered The National Tourism Sector Strategy (NTSS), which is a strategy that focuses on domestic tourism and its contribution to a sustainable tourism economy.

You can read more on The National Tourism Sector Strategy here .

According to a report by Statistics South Africa , the number of day trips increased from 39.4 million in 2016 to 48.0 million in 2017. Overnight trips also increased to 44.4 million in 2017.

Unlike the other destinations listed above, South Africa is home to abundant wildlife and nature reserves sites that attracts domestic tourism. According to the South African Tourism Board, the top destinations in South Africa are;

• The Winelands
• Garden Route
• Johannesburg
• Kruger National Park
• Durban beachfront
• Robben Island
• Blyde River Canyon Nature Reserve
•  Wild Coast

I can certainly say that we loved South Africa. You can see a taste of what the country has to offer in our video below.

According to the Chinese Ministry at a press conference, domestic tourism generated 5.13 trillion yuan ($764 billion U.S dollars) in revenue last year and this figure was climbing steeply each year prior to the pandemic, in fact the Chinese market (both domestically and internationally has been the fastest growing tourism industry in the world in recent years!). In comparison, Chinese tourists spent a total of $115.29 (U.S dollars) on outbound tourism .

According to research by the WTTC , China has been extremely successful in fostering domestic tourism, and is now one of the leading domestic tourism markets in the world.

There is a lot of hidden cultural heritage in China that is often overlooked or ignored with its commercialised industry and giant sky scrapers. Here is a video demonstrating some of China’s most popular tourist attractions.

We have all most likely been a domestic tourist in our life at one point or another, whether we realised it at the time or not! As this post has demonstrated, the domestic tourism industry is a huge economic contributor in many destinations, especially in countries that are large or where the local people do not often have the cash to travel internationally.

Do you want to learn more about the tourism industry? Take a look at my types of tourism glossary to see which areas are covered in the blog. You can also refer to some of the texts named below, which are particularly useful if you are a travel and tourism student! Oh, and why not subscribe to the blog for updates on new posts, travel discounts and deals? You can subscribe to the blog using the form below.

• BTEC National Travel and Tourism – a textbook for BTEC Level 3 Travel and Tourism students
• The Business of Tourism – an essential text for students of tourism management or travel and tourism
• Tourism: Principles and Practice – the ultimate one-stop text for any student studying Tourism
• An Introduction to Tourism – a comprehensive and authoritative introduction to all facets of tourism including: the history of tourism; factors influencing the tourism industry; tourism in developing countries; sustainable tourism; forecasting future trends

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How to Attract Domestic Tourists: 6 Strategies to Know

Domestic tourism has presented, and will continue to present, significant business opportunities for hotels and destinations alike.  With keyword phrases such as “day trips near me” and “weekend getaways” reaching 18K and 33K searches per month, respectively, it’s no wonder why hotel marketers are looking for strategic ways to reach this audience segment. Want to learn how to attract domestic tourists to your property using expert tips and proven strategies? Keep reading!

In this post, we explore what domestic tourism is, provide some real-world examples, and show you how to gain an edge over the competition with tips on how to boost your domestic tourism marketing efforts. 

What is domestic tourism?

At its highest level, domestic tourism involves residents of a country traveling within that same country. Road trips, weekend getaways, and staycations are all great examples. One of the biggest advantages of domestic tourism is that it includes local travel, which means easier and cheaper commuting. It's also a great way to fit a break into one’s daily life without having to rearrange work and family schedules. 

Some interesting examples of domestic tourism marketing include: 

• Travel Iowa. The Iowa State Park Passport provided guides and maps for all 61 of their park locations. This campaign received 12,000 sign-ups and 17,000 location check-ins within two months. 
• Los Angeles Tourism. The Los Angeles Tourism board launched LALove , a staycation offer hub for locals that includes some of the most famous and desirable hotels in the city. Their 3x3x3 campaign encouraged domestic travelers to stay three nights in a hotel, eat at three restaurants, and enjoy three attractions. 

Learn how to attract domestic tourists with these 6 tips and strategies:

Knowing about domestic tourism is one thing. Knowing how to attract domestic tourists to your property is something entirely different. Being so, we interviewed a handful of expert travel marketers to get their take on attracting more domestic travelers. Their advice is tried and true — most experts reported increased bookings for this target audience over the past year thanks to what they’ve shared below. Here are their secrets to domestic travel success: 

1. Use local SEO.

We interviewed Mohamed Nawaz Muallim, the Managing Director of travel guide platform Trift ,  to get his take on hotel marketing for domestic travel. Muallim and his team “were able to grow 10X on website traffic in 2020 and 3X in the past 3 months just by investing in search engine optimization." His advice? Focus on how you reach your audience. 

“I see brands spending a lot on TikTok and Instagram, while a great opportunity in their own way, customers with intention go to Google,” points out Muallim. Based on their recent marketing experience, he learned firsthand that “the likeliness of a customer remembering a hotel from Instagram or TikTok is on a lower probability, especially when they're looking to plan their travel.” Instead, he and his team invested heavily in search engine optimization for local audiences and geography-based keywords. 

Want to become an expert on search engine optimization? Check out our guide to hotel SEO , which features 14 need-to-know tips to maximize your exposure. 

2. Promote local attractions.

“Local travel is the hottest topic at the moment, which is still alive,” said travel content marketer Tatiana Gavrilina .  “That's why domestic hotels are benefiting so far —  the pandemic, on the contrary, has increased demand for domestic hotel offerings.” 

In other words, the problem isn’t how to attract more domestic tourists. It's how to get them to choose your property over the competition. One answer? Local attractions. 

“Before the pandemic, your countrymen (may have) had little interest in exploring their (home) land, but now they are interested in any lake, any abandoned factory, and just a field of sunflowers,” says Gavrilina. And she means that literally: “They are used, for example, as a place for photo shoots, for writers to work together on a book, etc.” 

What spots near your hotel aren’t considered local attractions yet but should be? Align your brand with both established and underrepresented local attractions. Not only will doing so improve your search engine rankings, but it will also bolster your domestic tourism branding so that your site becomes a go-to resource for the whole community. 

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3. Work with local influencers.

It’s an understatement to say that Instagram and social media advertising have changed over the past few years. Instead of leaning on influencers with followers in the millions, hotel brands are finding success with locally-based micro-influencers. Thanks to a surge in online searches for local travel blogs, these thought leaders are more valuable than ever, and working with them can cause overall engagement to soar. 

But how do you go about finding these local influencers ? Bright Local has an article on the topic, and their advice includes scanning your own social media followers, performing local hashtag research (i.e. #chicagofoodblogger), and using influencer marketing platforms such as Reelio and BuzzStream.

4. Make it homey.

Martina Rosado of Happy Travel Mag spoke to Cvent recently about what her readers really want when it comes to hotels and domestic travel. Rosado said this audience is a “large number of individuals who are ready for more than just a place to stay, they are looking for more of a staycation out-of-town experience.” She also says the main question on their minds when they view hotel marketing nowadays is, “How does it feel to live here?” 

The good news is that you probably don’t need to change much to achieve this marketing angle. Instead, use what you have at your disposal and promote anything that fits under the two key selling points Rosado recommends: transient chic and vacationer lifestyle.

HOTEL INTERIOR DESIGN: Everything you need to know

In her own words, transient chic is all about “being chic and staying chic.” Think of home interior magazines that offer practicality without compromising style in their designs. What cozy spaces or decor does your property already have that can serve as a great photo opp? Even an empty corner can transform with a yoga mat, decorative cushion, and lantern or two — a perfect aesthetic for advertising your spa services while evoking that feeling of being at a chic home. 

The other major angle for making your hotel marketing feel homier to domestic travelers is the vacationer lifestyle. As Rosado says, “traveling in the US is about experiencing the location's culture, atmosphere, urban areas, and people.”

Just because they can get there by car doesn’t mean it’s not every bit as interesting and exciting as somewhere overseas. Create messaging with this sentiment in mind to attract even more guests. 

5. Stay flexible.

Hotel copywriter Jennifer Zajac of Five Star Content told Cvent that “flexibility remains the most important thing hoteliers need to be mindful of.” Although brands in other travel verticals such as airlines are taking away their flexible policies, keeping or expanding yours will be a big draw.

Zajac goes on to give two key tips: “Have a clear cancellation policy in place (and honor it), and offer last-minute staycation getaways that are easy to book short-notice.” She also shares, “TripAdvisor's late 2020 consumer survey showed that travelers want to stay within driving distance of home, and they want to be able to book less than 30 days out —  or even within the same week.” 

To streamline your campaign creation process and snag those same-week bookings, create a promotion template with sample messaging, cohesive photo sets, and CTAs. That way, your marketing team is ready to go for those Tuesdays when occupancy is lookng low for the weekend ahead. 

Bana Bissat of travel discount search engine CuddlyNest agrees with Zajac’s advice to stay flexible, adding that properties should start to include hairier family members in their offerings. “Properties might want to reconsider their pet policies because while those who travel internationally tend to set a budget or time for pet-sitters, domestic travelers are likely going to want to grab their pet along — especially when traveling by car.” 

6. Try print marketing.

Abby Herman of Snap Agency , a digital marketing company,  recommends good old-fashioned print marketing as a way to stand out from the crowd. Herman advises hotel marketers to “invest in postcards as marketing strategy, as it contains the visual and the info you need to remind your neighbors you are up and running, ready to host them.” 

Not sure what to include? Hermans says “a QR code would maybe provide free breakfast for two, or some other type of travel certificate they can use for some extra perks.” Not only is this a great method for tracking the ROI of a campaign, but it’s also a unique way to reach audiences that other local hotels may not be.

Now you know how to attract domestic tourists!

Now that you know more about domestic tourism and some tactics to help you tap into the market, you’re ready to create higher ROI campaigns. Follow these other hotel marketing trends to capture this moment and increase your bookings even more. 

Cvent is a leading meetings, events, and hospitality technology provider with more than 4,500 employees and nearly 21,000 customers worldwide.

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The collision of world events offers a compelling reason to travel close to home. | Photo by James Lee on Unsplash

Rethinking Tourism

August 24, 2021

4 Ways to Promote Domestic Tourism + Destinations Leading the Way

The tourism industry is fighting through all a myriad of challenges to reopen borders, kickstart tours again, and get back to business. If ever there’s been a scrappy industry that refuses to die, the tourism industry would be it.

In all seriousness, though, the collision of countless factors recently convinced a lot of folks to embrace local travel — a trend lots of analysts predicted in spring 2020 when COVID-19 swept around the globe . It’s nearly 2022 now and many people in high-income countries are vaccinated .

Yet, given the current state of affairs, I wouldn’t be surprised if people continued to cut back on international travel and prioritized domestic travel.

Today, we face COVID-19 variants, a looming climate crisis , civil unrest, and violent weather events. People were signing flight-free pledges prior to 2020, and now even more climate-conscious consumers are questioning whether it’s ethical to fly. Though COVID-19 vaccines offer a buffer of protection and peace of mind, ongoing restrictions, unpredictable closures and cancellations, and expensive tests add increased stress and financial limitations. Additionally, many people have spent the past year broadening their understanding about inequities and racism, and travels that were at one time carefree and comfortable now might seem particularly privileged, frivolous, and wasteful.

It’s safe to say we live in a volatile world — but also one that is more hyper-aware and tuned in to reality. And though people are eager to travel, staying home looks awfully appealing.

If the domestic tourism trend is here to stay, it’s time for destinations to rethink their long-term domestic tourism marketing strategies. It’s also time to appreciate the value of local travelers and help them fully embrace their backyards.

Here are several tourism campaigns leading the way.

Embrace Space

One of the tourism industry’s biggest challenges going into 2020 was overtourism . Too many people were heavily clustered in just a few select places, creating bottlenecks, unpleasant spaces for local residents , and conditions for inappropriate behavior. 

But this city-centric problem isn’t just a tourism issue. We are creatures of habit, and nearly 60% of people live in cities . Think of your own neighborhood and routine: How far from home do you travel every day? How much of your life is built into a routine? And, how much is there to explore if you step beyond those daily, urban boundaries?

Gothenburg, Sweden, isn’t an unusually large city, but its tourism board has actively encouraged people to move beyond the city center with its Next to Gothenburg campaign since April 2019. I interviewed a representative from the tourism board in early 2021, and she told me this strategy was intended to disperse travelers across a wider geographical area throughout the entire year and promote activities beyond the city center, but it’s also meant to encourage more domestic travel.

Similarly, the Azerbaijan Tourism Board’s Adventure is Near campaign targeted domestic travelers. Recognizing people weren’t interested in being in enclosed places and longed for nature, the campaign encouraged “Azerbaijanis themselves to discover the rich and diverse offerings of their own country, from the prehistoric petroglyphs of Gobustan and the Sheki Khans’ Palace, to hiking in the Caucasus mountains and the ever-burning patches of Yanardag,” according to an article in Skift .

Embrace a Sense of Wonder

There’s something about international travel that beckons to people. Perhaps it’s the total and complete unknown in comparison to that daily routine toward which we tend to gravitate. The good news is that domestic tourism can seed that sense of awe and surprise that people seek. 

With strictly closed borders, New Zealand still has to rely on domestic tourism. A survey early in the pandemic indicated 84% of Kiwis said there was somewhere in New Zealand they wanted to go but had never visited. With this information in mind, the tourism board launched its Do Something New campaign to help locals experience their country with a renewed sense of discovery. 

The key message — that now is the perfect time for people to tick off their close-to-home bucket lists — resonated with travelers. A March 2021 survey indicated 75% of Kiwis traveled domestically over the past year, and respondents rated their experience an average of 8.7 on a 10-point scale.

Embrace Local Pride

Despite DMC’s best intentions to position their destinations as perfect and ideal in comparison to others, the truth is that every place is flawed. That’s not a bad thing. It’s simply the reality of the complex world we live in. But instead of shying away from the complicated intersections of people, culture, and place that have helped shape a destination’s uniqueness, lean into this. Using domestic tourism as an opportunity to unravel these quirky and messy bits is an opportunity to seed a sense of pride.

Australia’s Holiday Here This Year campaign emphasized “unexpected adventures” and a chance to “explore somewhere new.” However, it also unscored the value of supporting local tourism businesses with special discounts and activity guides for families.

Canada took a different approach with its recently launched, two-pronged domestic tourism campaign focused on people rather than places. The Heartbeat of Canada video featured 10 Canadians working in the tourism industry and reflected an optimistic vibe set against a harmonious “heartbeat” of sound. Additionally, a postcard campaign encouraged residents to download, write, and mail a message to someone they love on the back of a beautifully branded Canadian postcard. Nothing seeds a warm, squishy feeling quite like a handwritten note to someone you love.

Embrace a New Story

One of the good things to come out of the recent past is the recognition by people of privilege that they need to learn about and reckon with the structures of racism and colonialism from which they’ve benefited. Tangentially, that also means this is the perfect time for destinations around the world to surface and amplify the often silenced stories that shaped them. 

It’s been a breath of fresh air to see lots of socially focused tours receiving more exposure and getting more traction. The Meaningful Map from Tourism Cares is the most recent example of a tool available for independent travelers interested in planning more interesting and honest trips that embrace a new story.

Unsurprisingly, I haven’t found a destination campaign specifically focused on sharing oppressed, untold, and unheard perspectives. Top-down financed campaigns aren’t likely to expose and promote the violent, ugly parts of its history or the dark, cast-aside corners of its community. 

Yet, there is a huge opportunity for destinations to acknowledge their complexity and invite domestic travelers to embrace a new story. The question is, which will be first to do it?

JoAnna Haugen is an award-winning writer, speaker, consultant, and solutions advocate. She is also the founder of Rooted, a solutions platform at the intersection of sustainability, storytelling, and social impact. Hire her as a consultant or to speak at your next event . Find JoAnna on LinkedIn , and stay inspired by following Rooted on Instagram .

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Domestic tourism: Marketing your way to success

No matter what country they are from, travellers from around the world have sought variation, change and something a little different from the norm when they go on holiday. With limited annual leave, international exploration was once typically high on the list of priorities with local travel put on the back burner. Fast forward to the end of 2020 and we are now all too aware of how a worldwide pandemic can turn individual thinking on its head, radically alter the fabric of society and instill a deeper desire to participate in domestic travel.

With the temptation to holiday internationally now largely put on hold in the wake of COVID-19, the idea of exploring your backyard, loving local and supporting your people has surged in popularity. Not only is this a unique opportunity for locals to spend quality time experiencing their own country, but it also means that they can do so (for the most part) without the company of international travellers. The tourism industry will undoubtedly revive and regrow, starting with those that are close to home.

As if there is a golden ticket being waved in front of them, tour operators worldwide are now frantically scrambling to dive for the prize and pick up traction with the domestic travel market. While this surge in local holidays can only be seen as beneficial, the way in which operators choose to market themselves in this domestic-heavy world, should be carefully considered. With an oversaturated market and a handful of domestic tourists, marketing that stands out from the crowd is the way to go.

To lend a helping hand, this blog challenges tour operators to think tactfully on how to market themselves domestically and also offers some insightful advice that will set tourism businesses up for marketing success.

Right off the bat, let’s talk about how you are going to position your brand and tourism offering to the domestic travel space. It is important to consider whether or not your present offering will truly appeal to the domestic traveller. Perhaps you need to refine and reshape your offering to grab their attention?

If a slight alteration of your itineraries is needed to shift towards a domestic focus, then sub-brand marketing may be a great fit for your business. According to Brogan & Partners , “sub-branding is when a main brand creates a subsidiary or secondary brand.” The idea behind this is that by creating an extension brand off your parent brand, you can tap into a new audience and create a distinctive look and feel for that product, while leveraging off the success, brand loyalty and trust of your original name.

Diversifying your offering in such a way because of COVID-19, is beneficial for those that need to go domestic to survive but are worried about the negative effects that may come about from this when international travel returns. Sub-branding is an opportunity to do something fresh, creative and new with your brand and marketing.

Online, outdoor or print media; the options for marketing promotions are endless, but choosing the most effective channel for each campaign and your product, can be a nightmare. From placement, target market and reach to building awareness, the decision making process and objectives for each marketing strategy is unique to each business. However, the common thread that ties all tour operators together in the current climate, regardless of their marketing intentions, is the desire to resonate with a domestic-centric market and do it while getting the most bang for your buck. For this reason, we truly believe it is time to think outside the box to get ahead of your competition.

It may sound old-school but using outdoor media could be the key to grabbing the attention of the domestic market. Although people are spending much of their day online, the brain craves variety and is drawn to points of contrast such as billboards and large scale advertisements. By shifting the conversation slightly away from social media, marketers will have less pressure to make waves online where it is near impossible to stand out on countless social media feeds. We are not saying ‘deactivate your social accounts’, we are simply floating the idea of complimenting your online activity with something striking and bold that is in highly trafficked areas for your target market.

With a study showing that there has been a dramatic decrease in the use of outdoor advertising since the outbreak of COVID-19, businesses attempting to tap into the domestic market, should be taking full advantage of this. With less outdoor media presence from other businesses, and presumably a lower price tag for the prime space, campaigns targeting domestic tourists through this channel will undoubtedly be noticed. While it can be nerve-wracking to blow your campaign up onto the side of a building, bus or bus shelter, the brand recognition and awareness you build from it can then flow over to social media engagement and online activity.

Employing the use of traditional media channels such as outdoor advertising, also extends to print. During lockdown, many of us were reminded of the simple things such as baking, knitting and reading. This was so true that over the past few months, subscriptions to travel and lifestyle magazines in the United States of America and the United Kingdom rose by up to 56% . With readers questioning the credibility of online content, the placement of tourism marketing ads in selected print copies, could be all the more powerful in bouncing back from COVID-19. A strong example of this would be purchasing space in an in-flight magazine for your national carrier.

As with any marketing decision, whether you decide to campaign through outdoor or print media, be smart about your selection. Consider the highest trafficked touchpoints of the domestic tourist in your country, think about their primary demographics and how you can capitalise on these, and finally, craft content that will relate and resonate with these individuals.

Tourism is a community; a community that wholeheartedly believes in the power of travel and the beauty of new experiences. While you may feel that you are one business in a sea of many, there is a host of suppliers, fellow business owners and destination management organisations that are also trying to piggyback on the resurgence of domestic travel – so why not collaborate, online or in-person?

From policy makers to local businesses, the United Nations has declared that “the future of tourism depends on building partnerships at all levels.” With this in mind, tourism professionals need to find strength as a community to harness the domestic travel market and get locals genuinely excited about this type of travel. The interactions and connections built within the industry are bound to gain invaluable reach for all tourism offerings.

We know that it is all well and good saying that collaboration is a helpful approach, but if you are new to the industry or don’t have a number of connections within tourism, it can be hard to know where to start building these networks. Firstly, we recommend looking to your supply chain; who are the suppliers that you work with, what influence do they have in the industry and do you think collaborative input would create an even more impressive offering to present to your travellers? By initiating a free-flowing conversation with suppliers, tour operators can ensure that all touchpoints of the domestic travellers’ holiday offer the same level of assistance and standard of service.

Leading on from this, finding other local businesses that share similar values and offerings to your business can boost the appeal of your offering in the eyes of travellers. With the chaos of COVID-19 still lingering, now could be the perfect time to craft beautifully packaged itineraries for travellers that showcase the best of your region. This consideration to showcase your tourism offering alongside other tourism products, will give you an added edge as collaborative itineraries are made which local travellers will be hard pushed to say no to.

Building out your tourism community even further, Destination Management Organisations or Regional Tourism Organisations are going to be your biggest advocate and helping hand in pushing your product out to the domestic market. With invested interest in injecting cash into the local economy and drawing greater numbers of visitors to the region, Destination Management Organisations not only have ample connections but an almighty knowledge of their region’s tourism opportunities.

Tuning in with the power of Destination Management Organisations (DMOs) can be as simple as subscribing to their regular newsletters. Filled with handy tips and insider know-how, Destination Management Organisations’ newsletters are known to advertise upcoming events, media/marketing opportunities and seminars for tour operators to establish industry connections.

If you thought that newsletters were all that Destination Management Organisations were good for, think again! These organisations can help to generate a significant amount of free advertising for your business if you take advantage of opportunities to feature in their marketing promotions. There is no harm in reaching out to the media team at your local Destination Management Organisation to see if they would be willing to collaborate or generate traction for your business through their marketing material. Contact details for these teams should be easily found on their website and a quick email with an expression of interest from your end could create huge demand for your product.

If you don’t ask, you don’t get – isn’t that how the saying goes? We know that it can be daunting to seek out opportunities and put yourself or your business out there but if 2020 has taught us anything it is to be a proud ambassador of your product. With many governments and national or regional tourism organisations providing funding to businesses that have been the hardest hit by the worldwide pandemic, you could be well placed to receive a little extra help. Although putting in an application for additional funding can take up time and energy, approved requests will pay back tenfold if your business is able to invest more heavily in products, resources and ultimately, marketing, to boost your presence in the domestic travel space.

Giving you more food for thought, joining a local association or leveraging a tourism membership is a clever way to open up additional marketing opportunities for your business. Bringing businesses together with similar interests, such as tourism or specific niche markets, associations and memberships offer great advice to their networks and also provide businesses with access to a large pool of tourists.

Just as you do when baking a cake, it is important to think about all of the ingredients that go into presenting a beautiful, mouth-watering itinerary for the local travel market. By leaving out one essential ingredient, may it be sub-branding, a valuable partnership with a fellow business or standout imagery, you could have an itinerary that remains untouched and completely misses the needs and appetites of travellers.

That’s why we feel compelled to stress the importance of shaping your itineraries towards the domestic market. While they still call themselves travellers, the domestic traveller is a completely different breed to international travellers who often lap up luxury and culture and are willing to pay top dollar for once in a lifetime experiences. It would be worth your while to research your local audience and ensure you understand what their preferences, style of travel and expectations are in order to negate any chance of wasted time, money and energy on your part.

When crafting your itineraries, think about the tone and personality you are going to infuse into your text and images to best communicate to these local travellers. While you might have shied away from it when working in an international context, slang or local lingo might be well placed in your domestic focussed itineraries to establish a deeper level of connection with travellers.

With such well thought-out, stunning itineraries that truly capture the travel desires of the domestic tourism market, your goal should be to maximise the number of locals that see your offerings. As seems to be the running theme with this blog, often collaborative projects and team work goes a lot further when gaining traction with these travellers, than if your business was to ride solo. In today’s online world there are new online marketplaces popping up that are great for matching your itineraries with enthusiastic travellers.

For those not in the know, a marketplace, according to Idea Motive , is “accessed by users or end-customers from around the world who use it for browsing offers from a variety of providers. Providers reach hundreds of thousands of customers and the latter can freely browse through the great number of bids.” The idea of grouping together the offerings of different businesses has been around for a while with the likes of AirBnB, Booking.com and Expedia being great examples of thriving online marketplaces. The point here though is that marketplaces are especially successful for niches, such as domestic travel.

Marketplaces for domestic tourism will of course be specific to your country and more local area, so take a look around online, talk to other businesses about what marketplaces have worked for them and what hasn’t, find out information from your local RTO and get yourself front and centre on a range of national and regional marketplaces.

With this in mind, our team at Tourwriter has recently launched a New Zealand based marketplace for local tour operators to showcase their beautiful itineraries to the hungry domestic market. If you want to see how a marketplace can work for your business, check out loveyournz.com .

How does the travel industry actually work?

Who are the key players in the industry, where do they all fit together and how does the industry actually work?! There’s no doubt that the travel industry is a confusing space to wrap your head around so we’ve broken it down for you in this easy new resource.

Travel designers- meet the influencers you should work with.

Understand the role travel influencers play in the industry and why tour operators should be following, interacting and collaborating with them. Explore eight global travel influencers who are inspiring travellers daily.

Tourism news websites you can trust

In the tourism industry it can be hard to differentiate the reliable travel news sources from the not-so-trustworthy ones. In this blog we summarise the top travel news websites that tour operators, travel agencies and DMC’s should pay attention to.

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Fact sheet: 2022 national travel and tourism strategy, office of public affairs.

The 2022 National Travel and Tourism Strategy was released on June 6, 2022, by U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo on behalf of the Tourism Policy Council (TPC). The new strategy focuses the full efforts of the federal government to promote the United States as a premier destination grounded in the breadth and diversity of our communities, and to foster a sector that drives economic growth, creates good jobs, and bolsters conservation and sustainability. Drawing on engagement and capabilities from across the federal government, the strategy aims to support broad-based economic growth in travel and tourism across the United States, its territories, and the District of Columbia.

The federal government will work to implement the strategy under the leadership of the TPC and in partnership with the private sector, aiming toward an ambitious five-year goal of increasing American jobs by attracting and welcoming 90 million international visitors, who we estimate will spend $279 billion, annually by 2027.

The new National Travel and Tourism Strategy supports growth and competitiveness for an industry that, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, generated $1.9 trillion in economic output and supported 9.5 million American jobs. Also, in 2019, nearly 80 million international travelers visited the United States and contributed nearly $240 billion to the U.S. economy, making the United States the global leader in revenue from international travel and tourism. As the top services export for the United States that year, travel and tourism generated a $53.4 billion trade surplus and supported 1 million jobs in the United States.

The strategy follows a four-point approach:

• Promoting the United States as a Travel Destination Goal : Leverage existing programs and assets to promote the United States to international visitors and broaden marketing efforts to encourage visitation to underserved communities.
• Facilitating Travel to and Within the United States Goal : Reduce barriers to trade in travel services and make it safer and more efficient for visitors to enter and travel within the United States.
• Ensuring Diverse, Inclusive, and Accessible Tourism Experiences Goal : Extend the benefits of travel and tourism by supporting the development of diverse tourism products, focusing on under-served communities and populations. Address the financial and workplace needs of travel and tourism businesses, supporting destination communities as they grow their tourism economies. Deliver world-class experiences and customer service at federal lands and waters that showcase the nation’s assets while protecting them for future generations.
• Fostering Resilient and Sustainable Travel and Tourism Goal : Reduce travel and tourism’s contributions to climate change and build a travel and tourism sector that is resilient to natural disasters, public health threats, and the impacts of climate change. Build a sustainable sector that integrates protecting natural resources, supporting the tourism economy, and ensuring equitable development.

Travel and Tourism Fast Facts

• The travel and tourism industry supported 9.5 million American jobs through $1.9 trillion of economic activity in 2019. In fact, 1 in every 20 jobs in the United States was either directly or indirectly supported by travel and tourism. These jobs can be found in industries like lodging, food services, arts, entertainment, recreation, transportation, and education.
• Travel and tourism was the top services export for the United States in 2019, generating a $53.4 billion trade surplus.
• The travel and tourism industry was one of the U.S. business sectors hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent health and travel restrictions, with travel exports decreasing nearly 65% from 2019 to 2020. 
• The decline in travel and tourism contributed heavily to unemployment; leisure and hospitality lost 8.2 million jobs between February and April 2020 alone, accounting for 37% of the decline in overall nonfarm employment during that time. 
• By 2021, the rollout of vaccines and lifting of international and domestic restrictions allowed travel and tourism to begin its recovery. International arrivals to the United States grew to 22.1 million in 2021, up from 19.2 million in 2020. Spending by international visitors also grew, reaching $81.0 billion, or 34 percent of 2019’s total.

More about the Tourism Policy Council and the 2022 National Travel and Tourism Strategy

Created by Congress and chaired by Secretary Raimondo, the Tourism Policy Council (TPC) is the interagency council charged with coordinating national policies and programs relating to travel and tourism. At the direction of Secretary Raimondo, the TPC created a new five-year strategy to focus U.S. government efforts in support of the travel and tourism sector which has been deeply and disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read the full strategy here

7 Tips to Attract Domestic Tourists in 2024

December 20, 2023

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Posted on december 20, 2023.

Domestic tourism refers to the travel and exploration activities undertaken by residents within their own country. It is a vital component of the tourism industry, contributing significantly to the local economy. Understanding the dynamics of domestic tourism is crucial for businesses and destinations alike.

Domestic tourism offers numerous benefits, such as boosting the local economy, creating employment opportunities, and promoting cultural exchange. By attracting domestic tourists, businesses can experience increased revenue and growth. Additionally, domestic tourism can help in spreading awareness about lesser-known destinations within a country, encouraging residents to explore their own backyard.

Table of Contents

The Importance of Attracting Domestic Tourists

Attracting domestic tourists holds immense importance for businesses and destinations. Domestic tourists tend to spend more time and money on their trips compared to international tourists. Moreover, they are more likely to revisit a destination and recommend it to others, thereby increasing the potential for word-of-mouth marketing.

To tap into the potential of domestic tourism, businesses and destinations must adapt to the changing tourism marketing trends. By doing so, they can effectively reach and engage with the domestic audience, ultimately leading to increased visitation.

Key Tourism Marketing Trends

Keeping up with the latest tourism marketing trends is essential for attracting domestic tourists. One such trend is the use of personalized marketing strategies. By tailoring marketing campaigns to the interests and preferences of domestic tourists, businesses can create a connection and increase the likelihood of them choosing a particular destination.

Another trend is the utilization of technology, such as event management platforms , to provide immersive and interactive experiences. By incorporating these technologies into their marketing efforts, businesses can capture the attention of domestic tourists and entice them to visit.

1. Developing a Domestic Tourism Marketing Strategy

To attract domestic tourists, it is crucial to develop a comprehensive marketing strategy with the right event marketing platform . Start by identifying your target audience and understanding their needs and preferences. Conduct market research to gain insights into their travel behavior and interests.

Next, create compelling and unique marketing messages that highlight the unique selling points of your destination or business. Use storytelling techniques to engage with your audience and create an emotional connection.

Leverage various marketing channels, such as social media, email marketing, and content marketing, to reach and engage with domestic tourists. Collaborate with influencers and industry partners to expand your reach and tap into their existing audience.

2. Creating Engaging Content for Domestic Tourists

Engaging content plays a vital role in attracting domestic tourists. Create visually appealing and informative content that showcases the attractions, activities, and experiences available in your destination. Utilize high-quality images and videos to captivate the audience and give them a glimpse of what they can expect.

Incorporate storytelling into your content to create a connection with domestic tourists. Share stories of locals, their traditions, and their experiences to make the destination come alive. Encourage user-generated content by running contests and campaigns that encourage visitors to share their experiences on social media.

3. Utilizing Social Media for Tourism Marketing

Social media platforms provide an excellent opportunity for tourism marketing. Create a strong presence on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Share engaging and visually appealing content regularly to keep your audience interested and informed.

Utilize targeted advertising on social media platforms to reach your desired audience. Use demographic and interest-based targeting to ensure your marketing messages are seen by those most likely to be interested in your destination.

Engage with your audience by responding to comments, messages, and reviews. Encourage user-generated content by featuring the best user posts on your social media profiles. This not only increases engagement but also provides social proof and encourages others to visit.

4. Collaborating with Local Businesses and Organizations

Collaborating with local businesses and organizations can help in attracting domestic tourists. Partner with hotels, restaurants, and tour operators to create attractive packages that offer a comprehensive experience. Cross-promote each other’s businesses to increase visibility and reach.

Additionally, collaborate with local tourism boards and organizations to tap into their resources and networks. Participate in local events and festivals to showcase your destination and build relationships with the community.

5. Optimizing Your Website for Domestic Tourists

An optimized website is crucial for attracting domestic tourists. Ensure that your website is mobile-friendly and loads quickly. Create user-friendly navigation that allows visitors to easily find the information they need.

Optimize your website for search engines by incorporating relevant keywords and meta tags. Regularly update your content to keep it fresh and relevant. Provide detailed information about your destination, including attractions, accommodations, and activities.

Include a booking and reservation system on your website to make it easy for domestic tourists to plan their visit. Offer special discounts and promotions to encourage direct bookings.

Check-out the best event website builder tool .

6. Utilizing Online Travel Platforms

Online travel platforms offer a convenient way for domestic tourists to plan and book their trips. Partner with popular platforms such as TripAdvisor, Expedia, and Booking.com to increase your visibility and reach a wider audience.

Optimize your listings on these platforms by providing accurate and up-to-date information about your destination or business. Include high-quality images, detailed descriptions, and positive reviews to entice domestic tourists.

7. Tracking and Measuring the Success of Your Tourism Marketing Efforts

Tracking and measuring the success of your tourism marketing efforts is essential for continuous improvement. Utilize analytics tools to monitor website traffic, engagement on social media, and bookings. Analyze the data to identify trends and patterns.

Conduct surveys and collect feedback from domestic tourists to understand their satisfaction levels and areas for improvement. Use customer relationship management systems to track customer interactions and personalize marketing messages.

Attracting domestic tourists requires a comprehensive and targeted approach. By understanding the dynamics of domestic tourism, keeping up with tourism marketing trends, and developing a robust marketing strategy, businesses and destinations can successfully attract more visitors. Creating engaging content, utilizing social media, collaborating with local businesses, optimizing websites, and utilizing online travel platforms are proven methods to attract domestic tourists. By tracking and measuring the success of marketing efforts, businesses can continuously improve and enhance their offerings. So, start implementing these strategies and witness the growth in domestic tourism to your location.

About the Author / Faisal Mohammed

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Travel and Tourism: What Businesses Need to Know Now

The pandemic has had a significant impact on both business travel and leisure travel. Here’s what businesses need to know about travel beyond COVID-19.

September 13, 2021

Key Takeaways

• Business and leisure travelers are indicating a willingness to begin traveling again.
• The delta variant has slowed growth and created uncertainty around when travel and tourism will return to pre-pandemic levels.
• Businesses must adjust to the 'new normal' of travel to stay competitive and better serve their employees and customers.

COVID-19 hit the travel industry hard. Business travel, one of the industry’s primary sources of revenue, came to an abrupt halt. On the leisure travel side, vacations and special events were put on hold, damaging the tourism sector as well.

While the travel and tourism industries are slowly starting to recover, the emergence of the Delta variant has slowed growth and created uncertainty around when business and leisure travel will return to pre-pandemic levels. Here’s what businesses need to know to make informed decisions about traveling for their employees and customers amid this changing landscape.

Business travel during COVID-19

After a challenging year and a half, there is cause for optimism in the business travel industry, with companies indicating a willingness to return their employees to the road—or air as the case may be. According to a recent report from The Global Business Travel Association (GBTA), over half of travel buyers and procurement professionals reported that their company’s travel spending increased “somewhat” to “a lot.” Additionally, participants reported a slight increase from the previous month in restarting domestic and international travel for business.

Despite the relative safety of air travel, companies are still being cautious. The survey found that only 40% of companies planned to restart domestic trips within the next one to three months, while a mere 18% of companies planned to restart international trips. Their caution is owed to concerns over the presence of COVID-19 variants. Among survey participants, 78% were “concerned” or “very concerned” about the effects of the delta variant, as well as the possibility of further variants, on the safety of business travel.

The economic impact of pandemic travel restrictions

Amid the pandemic, both domestic and international destinations have placed varying restrictions on travel. In addition to public health concerns, logistical factors like required COVID-19 testing and quarantine periods have significantly reduced where and how often people are traveling. Moreover, many airports and other transportation hubs have been operating with fewer staff, limiting both the efficiency of traveling and options for doing so. The reduction in both business travel and leisure travel cost the airline industry more than $100 billion in lost revenue in 2020, and estimates project a further loss of nearly $50 billion this year.

The loss in air travel has also negatively impacted the tourism sector. Reduced demand for travel has similarly reduced demand for hotels, restaurants and food service, local retail, entertainment, and events. In 2020, international tourism and its related sectors saw a loss of $2.4 trillion due to the effects of the pandemic.

Recovery in travel and tourism will largely depend on global vaccine distribution and the suppression of COVID-19 variants. According to the GBTA survey, approximately 1 in 5 participants reported their company required employees to be vaccinated before traveling domestically. With different countries and even states having their own set of restrictions and vaccination status guidelines, organizations may hold off on business travel until these requirements can be streamlined or more easily understood.

The impact of vaccine inequity on the tourism sector

While most developed countries have seen a successful vaccine rollout, many developing nations are still struggling with limited vaccine access and administration. Depending on the country, vaccination rates range from less than 1% to more than 60%.

As developing countries work to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 without the support of widespread vaccines, they continue to experience greater losses in the tourism sector. This is especially critical, as many less-developed countries are heavily reliant on tourism for jobs and economic growth.

Countries with higher vaccination rates, such as the United States and the United Kingdom, have experienced less severe losses in tourism and are likely to have a more swift recovery. Still, the U.S. tourism industry has taken a hit, with many businesses struggling to find enough workers to keep them open during seasonal tourist peaks.

The long-term outlook for travel and tourism

The “new normal” of a post-pandemic world is expected to have long-term impacts on the travel and tourism industries.

With respect to corporate travel, many businesses have capitalized on new technologies to conduct remote meetings and large-scale conferences. With this, the frequency of business travel is likely to decrease, though it is unlikely to be replaced by virtual meetings altogether.

On the leisure travel side, people will likely continue to explore their own backyards more frequently than pre-pandemic. The summer of 2020 saw an uptick in road trips across America, with people choosing destinations within driving distance and further away from crowded metropolitan cities.

Travelers will continue to use touch-free technology

Contactless technology has seen a rise in recent years, but it has become more widespread than ever amid the pandemic. According to a survey by the U.S. Travel Association , 41% of global transactions are currently carried out through contact-free means, and 74% of Americans plan to continue using touch-free tech even post-pandemic. Apps that allow for contactless check-ins, direct payments, and even mobile hotel keys are expected to increase in popularity over the next several years.

As countries look toward fiscal and public health recovery, business travel and leisure travel are also beginning to recover. However, it is unlikely that things will return to the way they were before COVID-19. Rather, businesses must adjust to the “new normal” of travel to stay competitive and best support their employees and customers.

Traveling during COVID-19? Review the latest CDC guidance for domestic travel and international travel .

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What is the future of travel?

All aboard! After the pandemic upended life and leisure as we know it, travel is roaring back. The industry is set to make a full recovery by the end of 2024, after losing 75 percent of its value in 2020. Much of this has been so-called “revenge travel,” or people embarking on international or bucket list trips that were delayed by the pandemic. But domestic travel is recovering quickly too and is set to represent 70 percent of travel spending by 2030.

Get to know and directly engage with senior McKinsey experts on travel and tourism

Margaux Constantin is a partner in McKinsey’s Dubai office, Matteo Pacca is a senior partner in the Paris office, and Vik Krishnan is a senior partner in the Bay Area office.

We’ve done a deep dive into the latest travel trends and how industry players can adjust accordingly in The state of travel and hospitality 2024 report. Check out the highlights below, as well as McKinsey’s insights on AI in travel, mass tourism, and much more.

Learn more about McKinsey’s Travel, Logistics, and Infrastructure Practice .

Who are today’s travelers, and what do they want?

In February and March 2024, McKinsey surveyed  more than 5,000 people in China, Germany, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the United Kingdom, and the United States who had taken at least one leisure trip in the past two years. Here are six highlights from the results of that survey:

• Travel is a top priority, especially for younger generations. Sixty-six percent of travelers we surveyed said they are more interested in travel now than before the COVID-19 pandemic. And millennials and Gen Zers  are traveling more and spending a higher share of their income on travel than their older counterparts.
• Younger travelers are keen to travel abroad. Gen Zers and millennials who responded to our survey are planning nearly an equal number of international and domestic trips in 2024. Older generations are planning to take twice as many domestic trips.
• Baby boomers are willing to spend if they see value. Baby boomers still account for 20 percent of overall travel spending. They are willing to spend on comforts such as nonstop flights. On the other hand, they are more willing to forego experiences to save money while traveling, unlike Gen Zers who will cut all other expense categories before they trim experiences.
• Travel is a collective story, with destinations as the backdrop. Travelers both want to hear other travelers’ stories and share their own. Ninety-two percent of younger travelers were inspired by social media in some shape or form for their last trip.
• What travelers want depends on where they’re from. Sixty-nine percent of Chinese respondents said they plan to visit a famous sight on their next trip, versus the 20 percent of European and North American travelers who said the same. Respondents living in the UAE also favor iconic destinations, as well as shopping and outdoor activities.

Learn more about McKinsey’s  Travel, Logistics, and Infrastructure Practice .

What are the top three travel industry trends today?

Travel is back, but traveler flows are shifting. McKinsey has isolated three major themes for industry stakeholders to consider as they look ahead.

• The bulk of travel spending is close to home. Seventy-five percent of travel spend is domestic. The United States is currently the world’s largest domestic travel market, but China is set to overtake it in the coming years. Stakeholders should make sure they capture the full potential of domestic travelers before turning their attention abroad.
• New markets such as India, Southeast Asia, and Eastern Europe are growing sources of outbound tourism. Indians’ travel spending is expected to grow 9 percent per year between now and 2030; annual growth projections for Southeast Asians and Eastern Europeans are both around 7 percent.
• Unexpected destinations are finding new ways to lure travelers and establish themselves alongside enduring favorites. Rwanda, for example, has capitalized on sustainable tourism by limiting gorilla trekking permits and directing revenue toward conservation.

Introducing McKinsey Explainers : Direct answers to complex questions

For a more in-depth look at these trends, check out McKinsey’s State of travel and hospitality 2024   report .

How will AI change how people travel?

In the 1950s, the introduction of the jet engine dramatically reduced travel times, changing the way people traveled forever. Now AI is upending the industry  in a similarly fundamental way. Industry players down to individual travelers are using advances in generative AI (gen AI) , machine learning , and deep learning  to reimagine what it means to plan, book, and experience travel. “It’s quite clear,” says McKinsey partner Vik Krishnan , “that gen AI significantly eases  the process of travel discovery.”

For travel companies, the task now is to rethink how they interact with customers, develop products and services, and manage operations in the age of AI. According to estimates by McKinsey Digital, companies that holistically address digital and analytics opportunities have the potential to see an earnings improvement of up to 25 percent .

McKinsey and Skift Research interviewed executives from 17 companies across five types of travel business. Here are three key findings on how travel companies can reckon with emerging technologies, drawn from the resulting report The promise of travel in the age of AI :

• Segmentation. Companies can use AI to create hyperspecific customer segments to guide how they interact with and serve customers. Segmentation can be based on a single macro characteristic (such as business versus leisure), or it can be so specific as to relate to just one customer.
• Surprise and delight. In the travel context, gen AI could take the form of digital assistants that interact with customers throughout their journeys, providing personalized trip itineraries and tailored recommendations and helping to resolve unexpected disruptions.
• Equipping workers better. AI tools can free up frontline workers’ time, allowing them to focus more on personal customer interactions. These tools can also shorten the training time for new hires and quickly upskill  the existing workforce.

AI is important, yes. But, according to Ella Alkalay Schreiber, general manager (GM) of fintech at Hopper, “The actual challenge is to understand the data, ask the right questions, read prediction versus actual, and do this in a timely manner. The actual challenge is the human thinking, the common sense .”

How is mass tourism changing travel?

More people are traveling than ever before. The most visited destinations are experiencing more concentrated flows of tourists ; 80 percent of travelers visit just 10 percent of the world’s tourist destinations. Mass tourism can encumber infrastructure, frustrate locals, and even harm the attractions that visitors came to see in the first place.

Tourism stakeholders can collectively look for better ways to handle visitor flows before they become overwhelming. Destinations should remain alert to early warning signs about high tourism concentration and work to maximize the benefits of tourism, while minimizing its negative impacts.

Destinations should remain alert to early warning signs about high tourism concentration and work to maximize the benefits of tourism, while minimizing its negative impacts.

For one thing, destinations should understand their carrying capacity of tourists—that means the specific number of visitors a destination can accommodate before harm is caused to its physical, economic, or sociocultural environment. Shutting down tourism once the carrying capacity is reached isn’t always possible—or advisable. Rather, destinations should focus on increasing carrying capacity to enable more growth.

Next, destinations should assess their readiness to handle mass tourism and choose funding sources and mechanisms that can address its impacts. Implementing permitting systems for individual attractions can help manage capacity and mitigate harm. Proceeds from tourism can be reinvested into local communities to ensure that residents are not solely responsible for repairing the wear and tear caused by visitors.

After risks and funding sources have been identified, destinations can prepare for growing tourist volumes in the following ways:

• Build and equip a tourism-ready workforce to deliver positive tourism experiences.
• Use data (gathered from governments, businesses, social media platforms, and other sources) to manage visitor flows.
• Be deliberate about which tourist segments to attract (business travelers, sports fans, party groups, et cetera), and tailor offerings and communications accordingly.
• Distribute visitor footfall across different areas, nudging tourists to visit less-trafficked locations, and during different times, promoting off-season travel.
• Be prepared for sudden, unexpected fluctuations triggered by viral social media and cultural trends.
• Preserve cultural and natural heritage. Engage locals, especially indigenous people, to find the balance between preservation and tourism.

How can the travel sector accelerate the net-zero transition?

Global warming is getting worse, and the travel sector contributes up to 11 percent of total carbon emissions. Many consumers are aware that travel is part of the problem, but they’re reticent to give up their trips: travel activity is expected to soar by 85 percent  from 2016 to 2030. Instead, they’re increasing pressure on companies in the travel sector to achieve net zero . It’s a tall order: the range of decarbonization technologies in the market is limited, and what’s available is expensive.

But decarbonization doesn’t have to be a loss-leading proposition. Here are four steps  travel companies can take toward decarbonization that can potentially create value:

• Identify and sequence decarbonization initiatives. Awareness of decarbonization levers is one thing; implementation is quite another. One useful tool to help develop an implementation plan is the marginal abatement cost curve pathway framework, which provides a cost-benefit analysis of individual decarbonization levers and phasing plans.
• Partner to accelerate decarbonization of business travel. Many organizations will reduce their business travel, which accounts for 30 percent of all travel spend. This represents an opportunity for travel companies to partner with corporate clients on decarbonization. Travel companies can support their partners in achieving their decarbonization goals by nudging corporate users to make more sustainable choices, while making reservations and providing data to help partners track their emissions.
• Close the ‘say–do’ gap among leisure travelers. One McKinsey survey indicates that 40 percent of travelers globally say they are willing to pay at least 2 percent more for carbon-neutral flights. But Skift’s latest consumer survey reveals that only 14 percent  of travelers said they actually paid more for sustainable travel options. Travel companies can help close this gap by making sustainable options more visible during booking and using behavioral science to encourage travelers to make sustainable purchases.
• Build new sustainable travel options for the future. The travel sector can proactively pioneer sustainable new products and services. Green business building will require companies to create special initiatives, led by teams empowered to experiment without the pressure of being immediately profitable.

What’s the future of air travel?

Air travel is becoming more seasonal, as leisure travel’s increasing share of the market creates more pronounced summer peaks. Airlines have responded by shifting their schedules to operate more routes at greater frequency during peak periods. But airlines have run into turbulence when adjusting to the new reality. Meeting summer demand means buying more aircraft and hiring more crew; come winter, these resources go unutilized, which lowers productivity . But when airlines don’t run more flights in the summer, they leave a lot of money on the table.

How can airlines respond to seasonality? Here are three approaches :

• Mitigate winter weakness by employing conventional pricing and revenue management techniques, as well as creative pricing approaches (including, for example, monitoring and quickly seizing on sudden travel demand spikes, such as those created by a period of unexpectedly sunny weather).
• Adapt to seasonality by moving crew training sessions to off-peak periods, encouraging employee holiday taking during trough months, and offering workers seasonal contracts. Airlines can also explore outsourcing of crew, aircraft, maintenance, and even insurance.
• Leverage summer strengths, ensuring that commercial contracts reflect summer’s higher margins.

How is the luxury travel space evolving?

Quickly. Luxury travelers are not who you might expect: many are under the age of 60 and not necessarily from Europe or the United States. Perhaps even more surprisingly, they are not all millionaires: 35 percent of luxury-travel spending is by travelers with net worths between $100,000 and $1 million. Members of this group are known as aspirational luxury travelers, and they have their own set of preferences. They might be willing to spend big on one aspect of their trip—a special meal or a single flight upgrade—but not on every travel component. They prefer visibly branded luxury and pay close attention to loyalty program points and benefits .

The luxury-hospitality space is projected to grow faster than any other segment, at 6 percent per year  through 2025. And competition for luxury hotels is intensifying too: customers now have the option of renting luxurious villas with staff, or booking nonluxury hotels with luxury accoutrements such as rainfall showerheads and mattress toppers.

Another critical evolution is that the modern consumer, in the luxury space and elsewhere, values experiences over tangible things (exhibit).

Luxury properties may see more return from investing in a culture of excellence—powered by staff who anticipate customer needs, exceed expectations, create cherished memories, and make it all feel seamless—than in marble floors and gold-plated bath fixtures. Here are a few ways luxury properties can foster a culture of excellence :

• Leaders should assume the role of chief culture officer. GMs of luxury properties should lead by example to help nurture a healthy and happy staff culture and listen and respond to staff concerns.
• Hire for personalities, not resumes. “You can teach someone how to set a table,” said one GM we interviewed, “but you can’t teach a positive disposition.”
• Celebrate and reward employees. Best-in-class service is about treating customers with generosity and care. Leaders in the service sector can model this behavior by treating employees similarly.
• Create a truly distinctive customer experience . McKinsey research has shown that the top factor influencing customer loyalty in the lodging sector is “an experience worth paying more for”—not the product. Train staff to focus on tiny details as well as major needs to deliver true personalization.

What’s the latest in travel loyalty programs?

Loyalty programs are big business . They’ve evolved past being simply ways to boost sales or strengthen customer relationships; now, for many travel companies, they are profit centers in their own right. One major development was that travel companies realized they could sell loyalty points in bulk to corporate partners, who in turn offered the points to their customers as rewards. In 2019, United’s MileagePlus loyalty program sold $3.8 billion worth of miles to third parties, which accounted for 12 percent of the airline’s total revenue for that year. In 2022, American Airlines’ loyalty program brought in $3.1 billion in revenue, and Marriott’s brought in $2.7 billion.

But as this transition has happened, travel players have shifted focus away from the original purpose of these programs. Travel companies are seeing these loyalty programs primarily as revenue generators, rather than ways to improve customer experiences . As a result, loyalty program members have become increasingly disloyal. Recent loyalty surveys conducted by McKinsey revealed a steep decline in the likelihood that a customer would recommend airline, hotel, and cruise line loyalty programs to a friend. The same surveys also found that airline loyalty programs are driving fewer customer behavior changes than they used to.

So how can travel brands win customers’ loyalty back? Here are three steps to consider:

• Put experience at the core of loyalty programs. According to our 2023 McKinsey Travel Loyalty Survey , American respondents said they feel more loyal to Amazon than to the top six travel players combined, despite the absence of any traditional loyalty program. One of the reasons for Amazon’s success may be the frictionless experience it provides customers. Companies should strive to design loyalty programs around experiential benefits that make travelers feel special and seamlessly integrate customer experiences between desktop, mobile, and physical locations.
• Use data to offer personalization  to members. Travel brands have had access to customer data for a long time. But many have yet to deploy it for maximum value. Companies can use personalization to tailor both experiences and offers for loyalty members; our research has shown that 78 percent  of consumers are more likely to make a repeat purchase when offered a personalized experience.
• Rethink partnerships. Traditionally, travel companies have partnered with banks to offer cobranded credit cards. But many credit card brands now offer their own, self-branded travel rewards ecosystems. These types of partnerships may have diminishing returns in the future. When rethinking partnerships, travel brands should seek to build richer connections with customers, while boosting engagement. Uber’s partnership with Marriott, for example, gives users the option to link the brands’ loyalty programs, tapping into two large customer bases and providing more convenient travel experiences.

In a changing travel ecosystem, travel brands will need to ask themselves some hard questions if they want to earn back their customers’ loyalty.

Learn more about McKinsey’s Travel, Logistics, and Infrastructure Practice . And check out travel-related job opportunities if you’re interested in working at McKinsey.

Articles referenced include:

• “ Updating perceptions about today’s luxury traveler ,” May 29, 2024, Caroline Tufft , Margaux Constantin , Matteo Pacca , and Ryan Mann
• “ The way we travel now ,” May 29, 2024, Caroline Tufft , Margaux Constantin , Matteo Pacca , and Ryan Mann
• “ Destination readiness: Preparing for the tourist flows of tomorrow ,” May 29, 2024, Caroline Tufft , Margaux Constantin , Matteo Pacca , and Ryan Mann
• “ How the world’s best hotels deliver exceptional customer experience ,” March 18, 2024, Ryan Mann , Ellen Scully, Matthew Straus, and Jillian Tellez Holub
• “ How airlines can handle busier summers—and comparatively quiet winters ,” January 8, 2024, Jaap Bouwer, Ludwig Hausmann , Nina Lind , Christophe Verstreken, and Stavros Xanthopoulos
• “ Travel invented loyalty as we know it. Now it’s time for reinvention. ,” November 15, 2023, Lidiya Chapple, Clay Cowan, Ellen Scully, and Jillian Tellez Holub
• “ What AI means for travel—now and in the future ,” November 2, 2023, Alex Cosmas  and Vik Krishnan
• “ The promise of travel in the age of AI ,” September 27, 2023, Susann Almasi, Alex Cosmas , Sam Cowan, and Ben Ellencweig
• “ The future of tourism: Bridging the labor gap enhancing customer experience ,” August 1, 2023, Urs Binggeli, Zi Chen, Steffen Köpke, and Jackey Yu
• “ Hotels in the 2030s: Perspectives from Accor’s C-suite ,” July 27, 2023, Aurélia Bettati
• “ Tourism in the metaverse: Can travel go virtual? ,” May 4, 2023, Margaux Constantin , Giuseppe Genovese, Kashiff Munawar, and Rebecca Stone
• “ Three innovations to solve hotel staffing shortages ,” April 3, 2023, Ryan Mann , Esteban Ramirez, and Matthew Straus
• “ Accelerating the transition to net-zero travel ,” September 20, 2022, Danielle Bozarth , Olivier Cheret, Vik Krishnan , Mackenzie Murphy, and Jules Seeley
• “ The six secrets of profitable airlines ,” June 28, 2022, Jaap Bouwer, Alex Dichter , Vik Krishnan , and Steve Saxon
• “ How to ‘ACE’ hospitality recruitment ,” June 23, 2022, Margaux Constantin , Steffen Köpke, and Joost Krämer
• “ Opportunities for industry leaders as new travelers take to the skies ,” April 5, 2022, Mishal Ahmad, Frederik Franz, Tomas Nauclér, and Daniel Riefer
• “ Rebooting customer experience to bring back the magic of travel ,” September 21, 2021, Vik Krishnan , Kevin Neher, Maurice Obeid , Ellen Scully, and Jules Seeley

Want to know more about the future of travel?

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What Is Domestic Tourism and Example?

By Robert Palmer

Domestic tourism refers to traveling within one’s own country for leisure or business purposes. It is a growing trend among people who are looking for affordable and convenient ways to explore their own culture, history, and natural beauty without having to leave their country.

While international travel is often glamorized in popular media, domestic tourism offers its own unique benefits. It allows travelers to experience the diversity of their own country’s culture and geography while supporting local businesses and economies.

One example of domestic tourism is exploring the national parks of the United States. With over 84 million acres of protected land, there are plenty of opportunities for adventure and exploration. Visitors can hike through stunning landscapes like Yosemite Valley or Grand Canyon National Park, spot wildlife like bison or elk in Yellowstone National Park, or relax on beaches in places like Acadia National Park.

Another example is taking a road trip across the United Kingdom. From London’s bustling streets to the Scottish Highlands’ remote wilderness, there’s something for everyone. Travelers can visit historic sites like Stonehenge or Edinburgh Castle, enjoy scenic drives along the coastlines of Cornwall or Wales, or indulge in traditional British cuisine at local pubs.

In addition to these examples, there are countless other destinations that make domestic tourism an attractive option. Whether it’s visiting small towns, attending festivals and events, or exploring lesser-known natural wonders, there’s always something new to discover close to home.

9 Related Question Answers Found

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UN Tourism | Bringing the world closer

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Glossary of tourism terms

Tourism is a social, cultural and economic phenomenon which entails the movement of people to countries or places outside their usual environment for personal or business/professional purposes. These people are called visitors (which may be either tourists or excursionists; residents or non-residents) and tourism has to do with their activities, some of which involve tourism expenditure.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z

Activity/activities : In tourism statistics, the term activities represent the actions and behaviors of people in preparation for and during a trip in their capacity as consumers ( IRTS 2008, 1.2 ).

Activity (principal): The principal activity of a producer unit is the activity whose value added exceeds that of any other activity carried out within the same unit ( SNA 2008, 5.8 ).

Activity (productive): The (productive) activity carried out by a statistical unit is the type of production in which it engages. It has to be understood as a process, i.e. the combination of actions that result in a certain set of products. The classification of productive activities is determined by their principal output.

Administrative data : Administrative data is the set of units and data derived from an administrative source. This is a data holding information collected and maintained for the purpose of implementing one or more administrative regulations.

Adventure tourism : Adventure tourism is a type of tourism which usually takes place in destinations with specific geographic features and landscape and tends to be associated with a physical activity, cultural exchange, interaction and engagement with nature. This experience may involve some kind of real or perceived risk and may require significant physical and/or mental effort. Adventure tourism generally includes outdoor activities such as mountaineering, trekking, bungee jumping, rock climbing, rafting, canoeing, kayaking, canyoning, mountain biking, bush walking, scuba diving. Likewise, some indoor adventure tourism activities may also be practiced.

Aggregated data : The result of transforming unit level data into quantitative measures for a set of characteristics of a population.

Aggregation : A process that transforms microdata into aggregate-level information by using an aggregation function such as count, sum average, standard deviation, etc.

Analytical unit : Entity created by statisticians, by splitting or combining observation units with the help of estimations and imputations.

Balance of payments : The balance of payments is a statistical statement that summarizes transactions between residents and non-residents during a period. It consists of the goods and services account, the primary income account, the secondary income account, the capital account, and the financial account ( BPM6, 2.12 ).

Bias : An effect which deprives a statistical result of representativeness by systematically distorting it, as distinct from a random error which may distort on any one occasion but balances out on the average.

Business and professional purpose (of a tourism trip): The business and professional purpose of a tourism trip includes the activities of the self-employed and employees, as long as they do not correspond to an implicit or explicit employer-employee relationship with a resident producer in the country or place visited, those of investors, businessmen, etc. ( IRTS 2008, 3.17.2 ).

Business tourism : Business tourism is a type of tourism activity in which visitors travel for a specific professional and/or business purpose to a place outside their workplace and residence with the aim of attending a meeting, an activity or an event. The key components of business tourism are meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions. The term "meetings industry" within the context of business tourism recognizes the industrial nature of such activities. Business tourism can be combined with any other tourism type during the same trip.

Business visitor : A business visitor is a visitor whose main purpose for a tourism trip corresponds to the business and professional category of purpose ( IRTS 2008, 3.17.2 ).

Central Product Classification : The Central Product Classification (CPC) constitutes a complete product classification covering goods and services. It is intended to serve as an international standard for assembling and tabulating all kinds of data requiring product detail, including industrial production, national accounts, service industries, domestic and foreign commodity trade, international trade in services, balance of payments, consumption and price statistics. Other basic aims are to provide a framework for international comparison and promote harmonization of various types of statistics dealing with goods and services.

Census : A census is the complete enumeration of a population or groups at a point in time with respect to well defined characteristics: for example, Population, Production, Traffic on particular roads.

Coastal, maritime and inland water tourism : Coastal tourism refers to land-based tourism activities such as swimming, surfing, sunbathing and other coastal leisure, recreation and sports activities which take place on the shore of a sea, lake or river. Proximity to the coast is also a condition for services and facilities that support coastal tourism. Maritime tourism refers to sea-based activities such as cruising, yachting, boating and nautical sports and includes their respective land-based services and infrastructure. Inland water tourism refers to tourism activities such as cruising, yachting, boating and nautical sports which take place in aquatic- influenced environments located within land boundaries and include lakes, rivers, ponds, streams, groundwater, springs, cave waters and others traditionally grouped as inland wetlands.

Coherence : Adequacy of statistics to be combined in different ways and for various uses.

Competitiveness of a tourism destination : The competitiveness of a tourism destination is the ability of the destination to use its natural, cultural, human, man-made and capital resources efficiently to develop and deliver quality, innovative, ethical and attractive tourism products and services in order to achieve a sustainable growth within its overall vision and strategic goals, increase the added value of the tourism sector, improve and diversify its market components and optimize its attractiveness and benefits both for visitors and the local community in a sustainable perspective.

Consistency : Logical and numerical coherence.

Country of reference : The country of reference refers to the country for which the measurement is done. ( IRTS 2008, 2.15 ).

Country of residence : The country of residence of a household is determined according to the centre of predominant economic interest of its members. If a person resides (or intends to reside) for more than one year in a given country and has there his/her centre of economic interest (for example, where the predominant amount of time is spent), he/she is considered as a resident of this country.

Country-specific tourism characteristic products and activities : To be determined by each country by applying the criteria of IRTS 2008, 5.10 in their own context; for these products, the activities producing them will be considered as tourism characteristic, and the industries in which the principal activity is tourism-characteristic will be called tourism industries ( IRTS 2008, 5.16 ).

Cultural tourism : Cultural tourism is a type of tourism activity in which the visitor's essential motivation is to learn, discover, experience and consume the tangible and intangible cultural attractions/products in a tourism destination. These attractions/products relate to a set of distinctive material, intellectual, spiritual and emotional features of a society that encompasses arts and architecture, historical and cultural heritage, culinary heritage, literature, music, creative industries and the living cultures with their lifestyles, value systems, beliefs and traditions.

Data checking : Activity whereby the correctness conditions of the data are verified. It also includes the specification of the type of error or of the condition not met, and the qualification of the data and their division into "error-free data" and "erroneous data".

Data collection : Systematic process of gathering data for official statistics.

Data compilation : Operations performed on data to derive new information according to a given set of rules.

Data confrontation : The process of comparing data that has generally been derived from different surveys or other sources, especially those of different frequencies, in order to assess and possibly improve their coherency, and identify the reasons for any differences.

Data processing : Data processing is the operation performed on data by the organization, institute, agency, etc., responsible for undertaking the collection, tabulation, manipulation and preparation of data and metadata output.

Data reconciliation : The process of adjusting data derived from two different sources to remove, or at least reduce, the impact of differences identified.

Destination (main destination of a trip): The main destination of a tourism trip is defined as the place visited that is central to the decision to take the trip. See also purpose of a tourism trip ( IRTS 2008, 2.31 ).

Destination management / marketing organization (DMO) : A destination management/marketing organization (DMO) is the leading organizational entity which may encompass the various authorities, stakeholders and professionals and facilitates tourism sector partnerships towards a collective destination vision. The governance structures of DMOs vary from a single public authority to a public/ private partnership model with the key role of initiating, coordinating and managing certain activities such as implementation of tourism policies, strategic planning, product development, promotion and marketing and convention bureau activities. The functions of the DMOs may vary from national to regional and local levels depending on the current and potential needs as well as on the decentralization level of public administration. Not every tourism destination has a DMO.

Documentation: Processes and procedures for imputation,  weighting,  confidentiality  and suppression rules, outlier treatment and data capture should be fully documented by the  survey provider.  Such documentation should be made available to at least  the body financing the survey.

Domestic tourism : Domestic tourism comprises the activities of a resident visitor within the country of reference, either as part of a domestic tourism trip or part of an outbound tourism trip ( IRTS 2008, 2.39 ).

Domestic tourism consumption : Domestic tourism consumption is the tourism consumption of a resident visitor within the economy of reference ( TSA:RMF 2008, figure 2.1 ).

Domestic tourism expenditure : Domestic tourism expenditure is the tourism expenditure of a resident visitor within the economy of reference, (IRTS 2008, 4.15(a)).

Domestic tourism trip : A domestic tourism trip is one with a main destination within the country of residence of the visitor (IRTS 2008, 2.32).

Domestic visitor : As a visitor travels within his/her country of residence, he/she is a domestic visitor and his/her activities are part of domestic tourism.

Durable consumer goods : Durable consumer goods are goods that may be used repeatedly or continuously over a period of a year or more, assuming a normal or average rate of physical usage. When acquired by producers, these are considered to be capital goods used for production processes, as is the case of vehicles, computers, etc. When acquired by households, they are considered to be consumer durable goods ( TSA:RMF 2008, 2.39 ). This definition is identical to the definition of SNA 2008, 9.42 : A consumer durable is a goodthat may be used for purposes of consumption repeatedly or continuously over a period of a year or more.

Dwellings : Each household has a principal dwelling (sometimes also designated as main or primary home), usually defined with reference to time spent there, whose location defines the country of residence and place of usual residence of this household and of all its members. All other dwellings (owned or leased by the household) are considered secondary dwellings ( IRTS 2008, 2.26 ).

Ecotourism : Ecotourism is a type of nature-based tourism activity in which the visitor's essential motivation is to observe, learn, discover, experience and appreciate biological and cultural diversity with a responsible attitude to protect the integrity of the ecosystem and enhance the well-being of the local community. Ecotourism increases awareness towards the conservation of biodiversity, natural environment and cultural assets both among locals and the visitors and requires special management processes to minimize the negative impact on the ecosystem.

Economic analysis : Tourism generates directly and indirectly an increase in economic activity in the places visited (and beyond), mainly due to demand for goods and services thatneed to be produced and provided. In the economic analysis of tourism, one may distinguish between tourism's 'economic contribution' which refers to the direct effect of tourism and is measurable by means of the TSA, and tourism's 'economic impact' which is a much broader concept encapsulating the direct, indirect and induced effects of tourism and which must be estimated by applying models. Economic impact studies aim to quantify economic benefits, that is, the net increase in the wealth of residents resulting from tourism, measured in monetary terms, over and above the levels that would prevail in its absence.

Economic territory : The term "economic territory" is a geographical reference and points to the country for which the measurement is done (country of reference) ( IRTS 2008, 2.15 ).

Economically active population : The economically active population or labour force comprises all persons of either sex who furnish the supply of labour for the production of goods and services as defined by the system of national accounts during a specified time-reference period (ILO, Thirteenth ICLS, 6.18).

Economy (of reference): "Economy" (or "economy of reference") is an economic reference defined in the same way as in the balance of payments and in the system of national accounts: it refers to the economic agents that are resident in the country of reference ( IRTS 2008, 2.15 ).

Education tourism : Education tourism covers those types of tourism which have as a primary motivation the tourist's engagement and experience in learning, self-improvement, intellectual growth and skills development. Education Tourism represents a broad range of products and services related to academic studies, skill enhancement holidays, school trips, sports training, career development courses and language courses, among others.

Employees : Employees are all those workers who hold the type of job defined as "paid employment" (ILO, Fifteenth ICLS, pp. 20-22).

Employer-employee relationship : An employer-employee relationship exists when there is an agreement, which may be formal or informal, between an entity and an individual, normally entered into voluntarily by both parties, whereby the individual works for the entity in return for remuneration in cash or in kind ( BPM6, 11.11 ).

Employers : Employers are those workers who, working on their own account with one or more partners, hold the type of job defined as a "self-employment job" and, in this capacity, on a continuous basis (including the reference period) have engaged one or more persons to work for them in their business as "employee(s)" (ILO, Fifteenth ICLS, pp. 20-22).

Employment : Persons in employment are all persons above a specified age who, during a specified brief period, either one week or one day, were in paid employment or self-employment (OECD GST, p. 170).

Employment in tourism industries : Employment in tourism industries may be measured as a count of the persons employed in tourism industries in any of their jobs, as a count of the persons employed in tourism industries in their main job, or as a count of the jobs in tourism industries ( IRTS 2008, 7.9 ).

Enterprise : An enterprise is an institutional unit engaged in production of goods and/or services. It may be a corporation, a non-profit institution, or an unincorporated enterprise. Corporate enterprises and non-profit institutions are complete institutional units. An unincorporated enterprise, however, refers to an institutional unit —a household or government unit —only in its capacity as a producer of goods and services (OECD BD4, p. 232)

Establishment : An establishment is an enterprise, or part of an enterprise, that is situated in a single location and in which only a single productive activity is carried out or in which the principal productive activity accounts for most of the value added ( SNA 2008, 5.14 ).

Estimation : Estimation is concerned with inference about the numerical value of unknown population values from incomplete data such as a sample. If a single figure is calculated for each unknown parameter the process is called "point estimation". If an interval is calculated within which the parameter is likely, in some sense, to lie, the process is called "interval estimation".

Exports of goods and services : Exports of goods and services consist of sales, barter, or gifts or grants, of goods and services from residents to non-residents (OECD GST, p. 194)

Frame : A list, map or other specification of the units which define a population to be completely enumerated or sampled.

Forms of tourism : There are three basic forms of tourism: domestic tourism, inbound tourism, and outbound tourism. These can be combined in various ways to derive the following additional forms of tourism: internal tourism, national tourism and international tourism.

Gastronomy tourism :  Gastronomy tourism is a type of tourism activity which is characterized by the visitor's experience linked with food and related products and activities while travelling. Along with authentic, traditional, and/or innovative culinary experiences, Gastronomy Tourism may also involve other related activities such as visiting the local producers, participating in food festivals and attending cooking classes. Eno-tourism (wine tourism), as a sub-type of gastronomy tourism, refers to tourism whose purpose is visiting vineyards, wineries, tasting, consuming and/or purchasing wine, often at or near the source.

Goods : Goods are physical, produced objects for which a demand exists, over which ownership rights can be established and whose ownership can be transferred from one institutional unit to another by engaging in transactions on markets ( SNA 2008, p. 623 ).

Gross fixed capital formation : Gross fixed capital formation is defined as the value of institutional units' acquisitions less disposals of fixed assets. Fixed assets are produced assets (such as machinery, equipment, buildings or other structures) that are used repeatedly or continuously in production over several accounting periods (more than one year) ( SNA 2008, 1.52 ).

Gross margin : The gross margin of a provider of reservation services is the difference between the value at which the intermediated service is sold and the value accrued to the provider of reservation services for this intermediated service.

Gross value added : Gross value added is the value of output less the value of intermediate consumption ( TSA:RMF 2008, 3.32 ).

Gross value added of tourism industries : Gross value added of tourism industries (GVATI) is the total gross value added of all establishments belonging to tourism industries, regardless of whether all their output is provided to visitors and the degree of specialization of their production process ( TSA:RMF 2008, 4.86 ).

Grossing up : Activity aimed at transforming, based on statistical methodology, micro-data from samples into aggregate-level information representative of the target population.

Health tourism : Health tourism covers those types of tourism which have as a primary motivation, the contribution to physical, mental and/or spiritual health through medical and wellness-based activities which increase the capacity of individuals to satisfy their own needs and function better as individuals in their environment and society. Health tourism is the umbrella term for the subtypes wellness tourism and medical tourism.

Imputation : Procedure for entering a value for a specific data item where the response is missing or unusable.

Inbound tourism : Inbound tourism comprises the activities of a non-resident visitor within the country of reference on an inbound tourism trip ( IRTS 2008, 2.39 ).

Inbound tourism consumption : Inbound tourism consumption is the tourism consumption of a non-resident visitor within the economy of reference ( TSA:RMF 2008, figure 2.1 ).

Inbound tourism expenditure : Inbound tourism expenditure is the tourism expenditure of a non-resident visitor within the economy of reference ( IRTS 2008, 4.15(b) ).

Innovation in tourism : Innovation in tourism is the introduction of a new or improved component which intends to bring tangible and intangible benefits to tourism stakeholders and the local community, improve the value of the tourism experience and the core competencies of the tourism sector and hence enhance tourism competitiveness and /or sustainability. Innovation in tourism may cover potential areas, such as tourism destinations, tourism products, technology, processes, organizations and business models, skills, architecture, services, tools and/or practices for management, marketing, communication, operation, quality assurance and pricing.

Institutional sector : An aggregation of institutional units on the basis of the type of producer and depending on their principal activity and function, which are considered to be indicative of their economic behaviour.

Institutional unit : The elementary economic decision-making centre characterised by uniformity of behaviour and decision-making autonomy in the exercise of its principal function.

Intermediate consumption : Intermediate consumption consists of the value of the goods and services consumed as inputs by a process of production, excluding fixed assets whose consumption is recorded as consumption of fixed capital ( SNA 2008, 6.213 ).

Internal tourism : Internal tourism comprises domestic tourism and inbound tourism, that is to say, the activities of resident and non-resident visitors within the country of reference as part of domestic or international tourism trips ( IRTS 2008, 2.40(a) ).

Internal tourism consumption : Internal tourism consumption is the tourism consumption of both resident and non-resident visitors within the economy of reference. It is the sum of domestic tourism consumption and inbound tourism consumption ( TSA:RMF 2008, figure 2.1 ).

Internal tourism expenditure : Internal tourism expenditure comprises all tourism expenditure of visitors, both resident and non-resident, within the economy of reference. It is the sum of domestic tourism expenditure and inbound tourism expenditure. It includes acquisition of goods and services imported into the country of reference and sold to visitors. This indicator provides the most comprehensive measurement of tourism expenditure in the economy of reference ( IRTS 2008, 4.20(a) ).

International Standard Industrial Classification of All Economic Activities : The International Standard Industrial Classification of All Economic Activities (ISIC) consists of a coherent and consistent classification structure of economic activities based on a set of internationally agreed concepts, definitions, principles and classification rules. It provides a comprehensive framework within which economic data can be collected and reported in a format that is designed for purposes of economic analysis, decision-taking and policymaking. The classification structure represents a standard format to organize detailed information about the state of an economy according to economic principles and perceptions (ISIC, Rev.4, 1).

International tourism : International tourism comprises inbound tourism and outbound tourism, that is to say, the activities of resident visitors outside the country of reference, either as part of domestic or outbound tourism trips and the activities of non-resident visitors within the country of reference on inbound tourism trips ( IRTS 2008, 2.40(c) ).

International visitor : An international traveller qualifies as an international visitor with respect to the country of reference if: (a) he/she is on a tourism trip and (b) he/she is a non-resident travelling in the country of reference or a resident travelling outside of it ( IRTS 2008, 2.42 ).

Job : The agreement between an employee and the employer defines a job and each self-employed person has a job ( SNA 2008, 19.30 ).

Measurement error : Error in reading, calculating or recording numerical value.

Medical tourism : Medical tourism is a type of tourism activity which involves the use of evidence-based medical healing resources and services (both invasive and non-invasive). This may include diagnosis, treatment, cure, prevention and rehabilitation.

Meetings industry : To highlight purposes relevant to the meetings industry, if a trip's main purpose is business/professional, it can be further subdivided into "attending meetings, conferences or congresses, trade fairs and exhibitions" and "other business and professional purposes". The term meetings industry is preferred by the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA), Meeting Professionals International (MPI) and Reed Travel over the acronym MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) which does not recognize the industrial nature of such activities.

Metadata : Data that defines and describes other data and processes.

MICE : See meetings industry.

Microdata : Non-aggregated observations, or measurements of characteristics of individual units.

Mirror statistics : Mirror statistics are used to conduct bilateral comparisons of two basic measures of a trade flow and are a traditional tool for detecting the causes of asymmetries in statistics (OECD GST, p. 335).

Mountain tourism : Mountain tourism is a type of tourism activity which takes place in a defined and limited geographical space such as hills or mountains with distinctive characteristics and attributes that are inherent to a specific landscape, topography, climate, biodiversity (flora and fauna) and local community. It encompasses a broad range of outdoor leisure and sports activities.

National tourism : National tourism comprises domestic tourism and outbound tourism, that is to say, the activities of resident visitors within and outside the country of reference, either as part of domestic or outbound tourism trips ( IRTS 2008, 2.40(b) ).

National tourism consumption : National tourism consumption is the tourism consumption of resident visitors, within and outside the economy of reference. It is the sum of domestic tourism consumption and outbound tourism consumption ( TSA:RMF 2008, figure 2.1 ).

National tourism expenditure : National tourism expenditure comprises all tourism expenditure of resident visitors within and outside the economy of reference. It is the sum of domestic tourism expenditure and outbound tourism expenditure ( IRTS 2008, 4.20(b) ).

Nationality : The concept of "country of residence" of a traveller is different from that of his/her nationality or citizenship ( IRTS 2008, 2.19 ).

Non-monetary indicators : Data measured in physical or other non-monetary units should not be considered a secondary part of a satellite account. They are essential components, both for the information they provide directly and in order to analyse the monetary data adequately ( SNA 2008, 29.84 ).

Observation unit : entity on which information is received and statistics are compiled.

Outbound tourism : Outbound tourism comprises the activities of a resident visitor outside the country of reference, either as part of an outbound tourism trip or as part of a domestic tourism trip ( IRTS 2008, 2.39(c) ).

Outbound tourism consumption : Outbound tourism consumption is the tourism consumption of a resident visitor outside the economy of reference ( TSA:RMF 2008, figure 2.1 ).

Outbound tourism expenditure : Outbound tourism expenditure is the tourism expenditure of a resident visitor outside the economy of reference ( IRTS 2008, 4.15(c) ).

Output : Output is defined as the goods and services produced by an establishment, a) excluding the value of any goods and services used in an activity for which the establishment does not assume the risk of using the products in production, and b) excluding the value of goods and services consumed by the same establishment except for goods and services used for capital formation (fixed capital or changes in inventories) or own final consumption ( SNA 2008, 6.89 ).

Output (main): The main output of a (productive) activity should be determined by reference to the value added of the goods sold or services rendered (ISIC rev.4, 114).

Pilot survey : The aim of a pilot survey is to test the questionnaire (pertinence of the questions, understanding of questions by those being interviewed, duration of the interview) and to check various potential sources for sampling and non-sampling errors: for instance, the place in which the surveys are carried out and the method used, the identification of any omitted answers and the reason for the omission, problems of communicating in various languages, translation, the mechanics of data collection, the organization of field work, etc.

Place of usual residence : The place of usual residence is the geographical place where the enumerated person usually resides, and is defined by the location of his/her principal dwelling (Principles and recommendations for population and housing censuses of the United Nations, 2.20 to 2.24).

Probability sample : A sample selected by a method based on the theory of probability (random process), that is, by a method involving knowledge of the likelihood of any unit being selected.

Production account : The production account records the activity of producing goods and services as defined within the SNA. Its balancing item, gross value added, is defined as the value of output less the value of intermediate consumption and is a measure of the contribution to GDP made by an individual producer, industry or sector. Gross value added is the source from which the primary incomes of the SNA are generated and is therefore carried forward into the primary distribution of income account. Value added and GDP may also be measured net by deducting consumption of fixed capital, a figure representing the decline in value during the period of the fixed capital used in a production process ( SNA 2008, 1.17 ).

Production : Economic production may be defined as an activity carried out under the control and responsibility of an institutional unit that uses inputs of labour, capital, and goods and services to produce outputs of goods or services ( SNA 2008, 6.24. ).

Purpose of a tourism trip (main): The main purpose of a tourism trip is defined as the purpose in the absence of which the trip would not have taken place ( IRTS 2008, 3.10. ). Classification of tourism trips according to the main purpose refers to nine categories: this typology allows the identification of different subsets of visitors (business visitors, transit visitors, etc.) See also destination of a tourism trip ( IRTS 2008, 3.14 ).

Quality of a tourism destination : Quality of a tourism destination is the result of a process which implies the satisfaction of all tourism product and service needs, requirements and expectations of the consumer at an acceptable price, in conformity with mutually accepted contractual conditions and the implicit underlying factors such as safety and security, hygiene, accessibility, communication, infrastructure and public amenities and services. It also involves aspects of ethics, transparency and respect towards the human, natural and cultural environment. Quality, as one of the key drivers of tourism competitiveness, is also a professional tool for organizational, operational and perception purposes for tourism suppliers.

Questionnaire and Questionnaire design : Questionnaire is a group or sequence of questions designed to elicit information on a subject, or sequence of subjects, from a reporting unit or from another producer of official statistics. Questionnaire design is the design (text, order, and conditions for skipping) of the questions used to obtain the data needed for the survey.

Reference period : The period of time or point in time to which the measured observation is intended to refer.

Relevance : The degree to which statistics meet current and potential users' needs.

Reliability : Closeness of the initial estimated value to the subsequent estimated value.

Reporting unit : Unit that supplies the data for a given survey instance, like a questionnaire or interview. Reporting units may, or may not, be the same as the observation unit.

Residents/non-residents : The residents of a country are individuals whose centre of predominant economic interest is located in its economic territory. For a country, the non-residents are individuals whose centre of predominant economic interest is located outside its economic territory.

Response and non-response : Response and non-response to various elements of a survey entail potential errors.

Response error : Response errors may be defined as those arising from the interviewing process. Such errors may be due to a number of circumstances, such as inadequate concepts or questions; inadequate training; interviewer failures; respondent failures.

Rural tourism : Rural tourism is a type of tourism activity in which the visitor's experience is related to a wide range of products generally linked to nature-based activities, agriculture, rural lifestyle / culture, angling and sightseeing. Rural tourism activities take place in non-urban (rural) areas with the following characteristics:

• Low population density;
• Landscape and land-use dominated by agriculture and forestry; and
• Traditional social structure and lifestyle

Same-day visitor (or excursionist): A visitor (domestic, inbound or outbound) is classified as a tourist (or overnight visitor), if his/her trip includes an overnight stay, or as a same-day visitor (or excursionist) otherwise ( IRTS 2008, 2.13 ).

Sample : A subset of a frame where elements are selected based on a process with a known probability of selection.

Sample survey : A survey which is carried out using a sampling method.

Sampling error : That part of the difference between a population value and an estimate thereof, derived from a random sample, which is due to the fact that only a subset of the population is enumerated.

Satellite accounts : There are two types of satellite accounts, serving two different functions. The first type, sometimes called an internal satellite, takes the full set of accounting rules and conventions of the SNA but focuses on a particular aspect of interest by moving away from the standard classifications and hierarchies. Examples are tourism, coffee production and environmental protection expenditure. The second type, called an external satellite, may add non-economic data or vary some of the accounting conventions or both. It is a particularly suitable way to explore new areas in a research context. An example may be the role of volunteer labour in the economy ( SNA 2008, 29.85 ).

SDMX, Statistical Data and Metadata Exchange : Set of technical standards and content-oriented guidelines, together with an IT architecture and tools, to be used for the efficient exchange and sharing of statistical data and metadata (SDMX).

Seasonal adjustment : Seasonal adjustment is a statistical technique to remove the effects of seasonal calendar influences on a series. Seasonal effects usually reflect the influence of the seasons themselves, either directly or through production series related to them, or social conventions. Other types of calendar variation occur as a result of influences such as number of days in the calendar period, the accounting or recording practices adopted or the incidence of moving holidays.

Self-employment job : Self-employment jobs are those jobs where remuneration is directly dependent upon the profits (or the potential of profits) derived from the goods or services produced.

Self-employed with paid employees : Self-employed with paid employees are classified as employers.

Self-employed without employees : Self-employed without employees are classified as own-account workers.

Services : Services are the result of a production activity that changes the conditions of the consuming units, or facilitates the exchange of products or financial assets. They cannot be traded separately from their production. By the time their production is completed, they must have been provided to the consumers ( SNA 2008, 6.17 ).

Social transfers in kind : A special case of transfers in kind is that of social transfers in kind. These consist of goods and services provided by general government and non-profit institutions serving households (NPISHs) that are delivered to individual households. Health and education services are the prime examples. Rather than provide a specified amount of money to be used to purchase medical and educational services, the services are often provided in kind to make sure that the need for the services is met. (Sometimes the recipient purchases the service and is reimbursed by the insurance or assistance scheme. Such a transaction is still treated as being in kind because the recipient is merely acting as the agent of the insurance scheme) (SNA 2008, 3.83).

Sports tourism : Sports tourism is a type of tourism activity which refers to the travel experience of the tourist who either observes as a spectator or actively participates in a sporting event generally involving commercial and non-commercial activities of a competitive nature.

Standard classification : Classifications that follow prescribed rules and are generally recommended and accepted.

Statistical error : The unknown difference between the retained value and the true value.

Statistical indicator : A data element that represents statistical data for a specified time, place, and other characteristics, and is corrected for at least one dimension (usually size) to allow for meaningful comparisons.

Statistical metadata : Data about statistical data.

Statistical unit : Entity about which information is sought and about which statistics are compiled. Statistical units may be identifiable legal or physical entities or statistical constructs.

Survey : An investigation about the characteristics of a given population by means of collecting data from a sample of that population and estimating their characteristics through the systematic use of statistical methodology.

System of National Accounts : The System of National Accounts (SNA) is the internationally agreed standard set of recommendations on how to compile measures of economic activity in accordance with strict accounting conventions based on economic principles. The recommendations are expressed in terms of a set of concepts, definitions, classifications and accounting rules that comprise the internationally agreed standard for measuring indicators of economic performance. The accounting framework of the SNA allows economic data to be compiled and presented in a format that is designed for purposes of economic analysis, decision-taking and policymaking ( SNA 2008, 1.1 ).

Total tourism internal demand : Total tourism internal demand, is the sum of internal tourism consumption, tourism gross fixed capital formation and tourism collective consumption ( TSA:RMF 2008, 4.114 ). It does not include outbound tourism consumption.

Tourism : Tourism refers to the activity of visitors ( IRTS 2008, 2.9 ).

Tourism characteristic activities : Tourism characteristic activities are the activities that typically produce tourism characteristic products. As the industrial origin of a product (the ISIC industry that produces it) is not a criterion for the aggregation of products within a similar CPC category, there is no strict one-to-one relationship between products and the industries producing them as their principal outputs ( IRTS 2008, 5.11 ).

Tourism characteristic products : Tourism characteristic products are those that satisfy one or both of the following criteria: a) Tourism expenditure on the product should represent a significant share total tourism expenditure (share-of-expenditure/demand condition); b) Tourism expenditure on the product should represent a significant share of the supply of the product in the economy (share-of-supply condition). This criterion implies that the supply of a tourism characteristic product would cease to exist in meaningful quantity in the absence of visitors ( IRTS 2008, 5.10 ).

Tourism connected products : Their significance within tourism analysis for the economy of reference is recognized although their link to tourism is very limited worldwide. Consequently, lists of such products will be country-specific ( IRTS 2008, 5.12 ).

Tourism consumption : Tourism consumption has the same formal definition as tourism expenditure. Nevertheless, the concept of tourism consumption used in the Tourism Satellite Account goes beyond that of tourism expenditure. Besides the amount paid for the acquisition of consumption goods and services, as well as valuables for own use or to give away, for and during tourism trips, which corresponds to monetary transactions (the focus of tourism expenditure), it also includes services associated with vacation accommodation on own account, tourism social transfers in kind and other imputed consumption. These transactions need to be estimated using sources different from information collected directly from the visitors, such as reports on home exchanges, estimations of rents associated with vacation homes, calculations of financial intermediation services indirectly measured (FISIM), etc. ( TSA:RMF 2008, 2.25 ).

Tourism destination : A tourism destination is a physical space with or without administrative and/or analytical boundaries in which a visitor can spend an overnight. It is the cluster (co-location) of products and services, and of activities and experiences along the tourism value chain and a basic unit of analysis of tourism. A destination incorporates various stakeholders and can network to form larger destinations. It is also intangible with its image and identity which may influence its market competitiveness.

Tourism direct gross domestic product : Tourism direct gross domestic product (TDGDP) is the sum of the part of gross value added (at basic prices) generated by all industries in response to internal tourism consumption plus the amount of net taxes on products and imports included within the value of this expenditure at purchasers' prices ( TSA:RMF 2008, 4.96 ).

Tourism direct gross value added : Tourism direct gross value added (TDGVA) is the part of gross value added generated by tourism industries and other industries of the economy that directly serve visitors in response to internal tourism consumption ( TSA:RMF 2008, 4.88 ).

Tourism expenditure : Tourism expenditure refers to the amount paid for the acquisition of consumption goods and services, as well as valuables, for own use or to give away, for and during tourism trips. It includes expenditures by visitors themselves, as well as expenses that are paid for or reimbursed by others ( IRTS 2008, 4.2 ).

Tourism industries : The tourism industries comprise all establishments for which the principal activity is a tourism characteristic activity. Tourism industries (also referred to as tourism activities) are the activities that typically producetourism characteristic products. The term tourism industries is equivalent to tourism characteristic activities and the two terms are sometimes used synonymously in the IRTS 2008, 5.10, 5.11 and figure 5.1 .

Tourism product : A tourism product is a combination of tangible and intangible elements, such as natural, cultural and man-made resources, attractions, facilities, services and activities around a specific center of interest which represents the core of the destination marketing mix and creates an overall visitor experience including emotional aspects for the potential customers. A tourism product is priced and sold through distribution channels and it has a life-cycle.

Tourism ratio : For each variable of supply in the Tourism Satellite Account, the tourism ratiois the ratio between the total value of tourism share and total value of the corresponding variable in the Tourism Satellite Account expressed in percentage form ( TSA:RMF 2008, 4.56 ). (See also Tourism share).

Tourism Satellite Account : The Tourism Satellite Account is the second international standard on tourism statistics (Tourism Satellite Account: Recommended Methodological Framework 2008 –TSA:RMF 2008) that has been developed in order to present economic data relative to tourism within a framework of internal and external consistency with the rest of the statistical system through its link to the System of National Accounts. It is the basic reconciliation framework of tourism statistics. As a statistical tool for the economic accounting of tourism, the TSA can be seen as a set of 10 summary tables, each with their underlying data and representing a different aspect of the economic data relative to tourism: inbound, domestic tourism and outbound tourism expenditure, internal tourism expenditure, production accounts of tourism industries, the Gross Value Added (GVA) and Gross Domestic Product (GDP) attributable to tourism demand, employment, investment, government consumption, and non-monetary indicators.

Tourism Satellite Account aggregates : The compilation of the following aggregates, which represent a set of relevant indicators of the size of tourism in an economy is recommended ( TSA:RMF 2008, 4.81 ):

• Internal tourism expenditure;
• Internal tourism consumption;
• Gross value added of tourism industries (GVATI);
• Tourism direct gross value added (TDGVA);
• Tourism direct gross domestic product (TDGDP).

Tourism sector : The tourism sector, as contemplated in the TSA, is the cluster of production units in different industries that provide consumption goods and services demanded by visitors. Such industries are called tourism industries because visitor acquisition represents such a significant share of their supply that, in the absence of visitors, their production of these would cease to exist in meaningful quantity.

Tourism share : Tourism share is the share of the corresponding fraction of internal tourism consumption in each component of supply ( TSA:RMF 2008, 4.51 ). For each industry, the tourism share of output (in value), is the sum of the tourism share corresponding to each product component of its output ( TSA:RMF 2008, 4.55 ). (See also Tourism ratio ).

Tourism single-purpose consumer durable goods : Tourism single-purpose consumer durables is a specific category of consumer durable goods that include durable goods that are used exclusively, or almost exclusively, by individuals while on tourism trips ( TSA:RMF 2008 , 2.41 and Annex 5 ).

Tourism trip : Trips taken by visitors are tourism trips ( IRTS 2008, 2.29 ).

Tourist (or overnight visitor): A visitor (domestic, inbound or outbound) is classified as a tourist (or overnight visitor), if his/her trip includes an overnight stay, or as a same-day visitor (or excursionist) otherwise ( IRTS 2008, 2.13 ).

Tourism value chain : The tourism value chain is the sequence of primary and support activities which are strategically fundamental for the performance of the tourism sector. Linked processes such as policy making and integrated planning, product development and packaging, promotion and marketing, distribution and sales and destination operations and services are the key primary activities of the tourism value chain. Support activities involve transport and infrastructure, human resource development, technology and systems development and other complementary goods and services which may not be related to core tourism businesses but have a high impact on the value of tourism.

Travel / traveller : Travel refers to the activity of travellers. A traveller is someone who moves between different geographic locations, for any purpose and any duration ( IRTS 2008, 2.4 ). The visitor is a particular type of traveller and consequently tourism is a subset of travel.

Travel group : A travel group is made up of individuals or travel parties travelling together: examples are people travelling on the same package tour or youngsters attending a summer camp ( IRTS 2008, 3.5 ).

Travel item (in balance of payments): Travel is an item of the goods and services account of the balance of payments: travel credits cover goods and services for own use or to give away acquired from an economy by non-residents during visits to that economy. Travel debits cover goods and services for own use or to give away acquired from other economies by residents during visits to other economies ( BPM6, 10.86 ).

Travel party : A travel party is defined as visitors travelling together on a trip and whose expenditures are pooled ( IRTS 2008, 3.2 ).

Trip : A trip refers to the travel by a person from the time of departure from his/her usual residence until he/she returns: it thus refers to a round trip. Trips taken by visitors are tourism trips.

Urban/city tourism : Urban/city tourism is a type of tourism activity which takes place in an urban space with its inherent attributes characterized by non-agricultural based economy such as administration, manufacturing, trade and services and by being nodal points of transport. Urban/city destinations offer a broad and heterogeneous range of cultural, architectural, technological, social and natural experiences and products for leisure and business.

Usual environment: The usual environment of an individual, a key concept in tourism, is defined as the geographical area (though not necessarily a contiguous one) within which an individual conducts his/her regular life routines ( IRTS 2008, 2.21 ).

Usual residence : The place of usual residence is the geographical place where the enumerated person usually resides (Principles and recommendations for population and housing censuses of the United Nations, 2.16 to 2.18).

Vacation home : A vacation home (sometimes also designated as a holiday home) is a secondary dwelling that is visited by the members of the household mostly for purposes of recreation, vacation or any other form of leisure ( IRTS 2008, 2.27 ).

Valuables : Valuables are produced goods of considerable value that are not used primarily for purposes of production or consumption but are held as stores of value over time ( SNA 2008, 10.13 ).

Visit : A trip is made up of visits to different places.The term "tourism visit" refers to a stay in a place visited during a tourism trip ( IRTS 2008, 2.7 and 2.33 ).

Visitor : A visitor is a traveller taking a trip to a main destination outside his/her usual environment, for less than a year, for any main purpose (business, leisure or other personal purpose) other than to be employed by a resident entity in the country or place visited ( IRTS 2008, 2.9 ). A visitor (domestic, inbound or outbound) is classified as a tourist (or overnight visitor), if his/her trip includes an overnight stay, or as a same-day visitor (or excursionist) otherwise ( IRTS 2008, 2.13 ).

Wellness tourism : Wellness tourism is a type of tourism activity which aims to improve and balance all of the main domains of human life including physical, mental, emotional, occupational, intellectual and spiritual. The primary motivation for the wellness tourist is to engage in preventive, proactive, lifestyle-enhancing activities such as fitness, healthy eating, relaxation, pampering and healing treatments.

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Domestic Tourism as a Pathway to Revive the Tourism Industry and Business Post the COVID-19 Pandemic

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This research aims to explore the potential of domestic tourism as a means to revitalise the tourism industry from the perspectives of local residents and tourism players. A quantitative online survey focused on domestic travel behaviour, motivation, places of interest, travel preferences, and willingness to travel within Malaysia; it was answered by 219 Malaysians. Interview data were collected using structured, open-ended interview questions through emails to eight respondents from tourism associations, five from the hotel sector, and two from the travel and tour sector. Data collection was carried out from 10 January to 15 February 2021. The findings reveal that domestic tourism has the potential to revive the tourism industry. A high percentage of respondents indicated the desire to travel domestically and being motivated by attractive tour packages at discounted prices. COVID-19 has impacted tourist behaviour and attitudes towards travelling, and people prefer to travel domestically rather than overseas. Furthermore, tourism players acknowledged the potential to revive the tourism industry and business via domestic tourism. Despite this, declarations of health, safety issues, flight availability, travel restrictions, and quarantine durations are key barriers to stimulating domestic tourism and rebuilding the tourism industry.

This research was conducted as a part of the project ‘ERIA Research on COVID-19’ at the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA).

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Total contribution of travel and tourism to GDP in India 2013-2023

Domestic expenditure on tourism in India 2008-2024

Revenue share from tourism in India 2013-2023, by segment

Editor’s Picks Current statistics on this topic

Number of domestic tourists in India 2022, by leading state

Share of domestic tourists in India 2022, by leading state

Destinations

Number of domestic visitors to ticketed monuments India FY 2023

Further recommended statistics

Economic overview.

• Premium Statistic Revenue in the Travel & Tourism market India 2018-2028
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• Basic Statistic Revenue share from tourism India 2013-2022, by visitor origin
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Revenue in the Travel & Tourism market India 2018-2028

Revenue in the Travel & Tourism market for different segments India from 2018 to 2028 (in million U.S. dollars)

Number of users in the Travel & Tourism market India 2018-2028

Number of users in the Travel & Tourism market for different segments India from 2018 to 2028 (in thousand individuals)

Revenue share from tourism India 2013-2022, by visitor origin

Distribution of spending from tourism to GDP in India from 2013 to 2022, by visitor origin

Distribution of travel and tourism GDP in India FY 2023, by type of visitor

Distribution of travel and tourism GDP in India in financial year 2023, by type of visitor

Tourism development

• Premium Statistic Tourism infrastructure expenditure India FY 2024, by type
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• Premium Statistic Tourism expenditure for Swadesh Darshan India FY 2021-2025
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• Premium Statistic Value of PE/VC deals in the travel and hospitality sector India 2022, by company

Tourism infrastructure expenditure India FY 2024, by type

Expenditure of infrastructure in the tourism sector across India in financial year 2024, by type (in million Indian rupees)

Tourism promotion and publicity expenditure India FY 2021-2025, by type

Tourism expenditure of promotion and publicity across India from financial year 2021 to 2023, with estimates until 2025, by type (in million Indian rupees)

Tourism expenditure for Swadesh Darshan India FY 2021-2025

Expenditure of Swadesh Darshan across India from financial year 2021 to 2023, with estimates until 2025 (in million Indian rupees)

Tourism expenditure for PRASHAD India FY 2021-2025

Expenditure of Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual, Heritage Augmentation Drive (PRASHAD) across India form financial year 2021 to 2023, with estimates until 2025 (in million Indian rupees)

Value of PE/VC deals in the travel and hospitality sector India 2022, by company

Value of private equity and venture capital deals in travel and hospitality sector in India in 2022, by leading company (in million U.S. dollars)

Domestic tourists

• Basic Statistic Number of domestic tourist visits in India 2000-2022
• Premium Statistic Number of domestic tourists in India 2022, by leading state
• Basic Statistic Domestic expenditure on tourism in India 2008-2024
• Premium Statistic Number of domestic visitors to ticketed monuments India FY 2023

Number of domestic tourist visits in India 2000-2022

Number of domestic tourist visits in India from 2000 to 2022 (in millions)

Number of domestic tourist visits in India in 2022, by leading state (in millions)

Domestic expenditure on tourism across India from 2008 to 2024 (in billion U.S. dollars)

Leading ticketed monuments in India in financial year 2023, by number of domestic visitors (in 1,000s)

Hospitality overview

• Basic Statistic Occupancy rate in hotels in India FY 2001-2024
• Premium Statistic Number of classified star hotels India 2023, by category
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• Premium Statistic Share of hotel inventory in India 2023, by brands

Occupancy rate in hotels in India FY 2001-2024

Occupancy rate in hotels in India from financial year 2001 to 2023, with estimates of 2024

Number of classified star hotels India 2023, by category

Number of classified star hotels in India as of April 2023, by star category

Occupancy rate in Indian hotel rooms FY 2022-2023, by city

Occupancy rate in hotel rooms across India from financial year 2022 to 2023, by city

Share of hotel inventory in India 2023, by brands

Share of hotel inventory in India as of August 2023, by brands

Indian travel market

• Basic Statistic Market cap of leading online travel companies worldwide 2023
• Premium Statistic Global passenger rail market leader market shares 2022
• Basic Statistic Domestic market share of airlines across India FY 2023, by passengers carried

Market cap of leading online travel companies worldwide 2023

Market cap of leading online travel companies worldwide as of September 2023 (in million U.S. dollars)

Global passenger rail market leader market shares 2022

Market shares of leading passenger rail providers worldwide 2022

Domestic market share of airlines across India FY 2023, by passengers carried

Domestic market share of airlines across India in financial year 2023, by passengers carried

Consumer sentiment

• Premium Statistic Attitudes towards traveling in India 2024
• Premium Statistic Preferred domestic tourist destinations in India H1 2024
• Premium Statistic Travel product online bookings in India 2024
• Premium Statistic Travel frequency for business purposes in India 2024
• Premium Statistic Travel frequency for private purposes in India 2024
• Premium Statistic Package holiday bookings by brand in India 2024

Attitudes towards traveling in India 2024

Attitudes towards traveling in India as of March 2024

Preferred domestic tourist destinations in India H1 2024

Preferred domestic tourist destinations in India as of first half of 2024

Travel product online bookings in India 2024

Travel product online bookings in India as of March 2024

Travel frequency for business purposes in India 2024

Travel frequency for business purposes in India as of March 2024

Travel frequency for private purposes in India 2024

Travel frequency for private purposes in India as of March 2024

Package holiday bookings by brand in India 2024

Package holiday bookings by brand in India as of March 2024

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India's domestic travel is 'way above' pre-Covid levels: Indian Hotels Company

Posted: July 22, 2024 | Last updated: July 22, 2024

Puneet Chhatwal, CEO and managing director of Indian Hotels Company, discusses the company's business outlook.

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Airlines Restart Flights but Disruptions are Expected to Persist

Planes began taking off again Friday morning after a big tech outage, but it will take airlines a while to get stranded passengers to their destinations.

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Canceled share of

global flights

Canceled share of global flights

By Niraj Chokshi ,  Derrick Bryson Taylor and Corey Kilgannon

• July 19, 2024

Airlines raced on Friday to contain the effects of a tech outage that severely disrupted travel around the world early in the day, delaying or stranding passengers and flight crews.

The outage, which affected many industries and emergency services, caused chaos at airports, with more than half of flight cancellations concentrated in the United States, one of the busiest aviation markets in the world. The industry appeared to be getting a handle on the disruption on Friday afternoon, but its effects could ripple into the weekend.

More than 2,400 flights across the country were canceled on Friday and thousands more were delayed, according to FlightAware, a company that tracks flight information. Airports serving large cities, such as New York City, Chicago and Atlanta, were among the hardest hit.

There were about 110,000 commercial flights scheduled worldwide on Friday, according to Cirium, an aviation data company. A quarter were set to depart from U.S. airports, carrying up to 3.7 million passengers.

How the airline cancellations rippled around the world (and across time zones)

Share of canceled flights at 25 airports on Friday

50% of flights

Ai r po r t

Bengalu r u K empeg o wda

Dhaka Shahjalal

Minneapolis-Saint P aul

Stuttga r t

Melbou r ne

Be r lin B r anden b urg

London City

Amsterdam Schiphol

Chicago O'Hare

Raleigh−Durham

B r adl e y

Cha r lotte

Reagan National

Philadelphia

1:20 a.m. ET

As the sun rose over the East Coast, major carriers, including American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines, had paused flights. Each had begun to restart operations by around 9 a.m. Eastern time, scrambling to minimize the reverberating effects of the earlier delays and cancellations.

“Travelers, we’re working with airlines to closely monitor the global I.T. issue that could continue to affect flights this weekend,” the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement on social media.

The agency said none of its systems, including those at its air traffic control operations, were affected by technology outages.

American said in a statement that it had been able to “safely reestablish” its operation as of 5 a.m. Delta and United said flights had resumed in the morning. Several carriers said they would waive fees and fare differences or offer refunds.

But a Transportation Department representative said airlines might be obligated to go further and provide travelers with ground transportation, as well as accommodation to those affected by overnight cancellations.

At Denver International Airport, large screens where arrivals and departures would usually be displayed were flashing blue error messages, leaving some passengers confused and uneasy.

Frank Tingley, a 42-year-old data analyst, was among the thousands of travelers stranded at that airport.

“I’m not good, actually,” he said, adding that he first noticed an issue when airport staff had difficulties scanning tickets for his flight to Boston Logan International Airport.

Mr. Tingley said he was initially allowed to board the plane but after further complications and delays, passengers were told to get off.

“The general mood is that people are finding a quiet corner and just trying to hunker down,” he said.

An anxious scene played out late Friday morning at Albany International Airport as airline passengers who arrived after the earlier delays rushed to find their bags and used cellphones to put their plans back in order.

At a gate where an American Airlines flight to Charlotte, N.C., would soon board, passengers swapped stories and sought help from two airline agents who worked quickly to untangle their routes.

The airline employees seemed to succeed in some cases. But not everyone would arrive to where they were going before night fell. A man and woman with two children who were headed to Los Angeles discussed where to spend the night in Charlotte.

The outage affected several airline systems.

For United, that included those used to calculate aircraft weight, check in customers and manage call center phones. At Taoyuan International, Taiwan’s largest airport, and Hong Kong International Airport, airline agents had to manually check passengers in. In India, some airlines issued handwritten boarding passes because they couldn’t print them or issue them digitally.

In South Korea, Jeju Air, which flies to dozens of Asian and Pacific destinations, said on its website that a number of services, including flight reservations, were disrupted. Air Premia said its reservations and online check-in systems were not working normally, and urged passengers flying to San Francisco and Newark to arrive at Seoul’s Incheon airport as soon as possible.

Planes already in the sky were able to continue to their destinations.

Some airlines were hardly affected. Alaska Airlines, the nation’s fifth-largest carrier, canceled only a handful of flights on Friday because it did not use the CrowdStrike software that caused the outage, a spokeswoman, Tricia Bruckbauer, said in a statement.

“We are working hard to accommodate as many impacted guests from other airlines onto our flights, and we’re grateful to our teams for taking great care in keeping guests moving,” she said.

The delays and cancellations were expected to have a cascading effect because airport landing slots and support staff were limited, and crews often worked several trips in a day.

When flights are canceled, pilots and flight attendants may be late to their next assigned trips, or unable to make them altogether, requiring airlines to assign backup crews. Aviation regulations also limit how many hours crews can work at a stretch, including time spent waiting at airports. That can force airlines to find and assign other pilots and attendants to take over, leading to further delays.

Carriers routinely deal with last-minute changes; they appeared to be limiting the effects of the disruption on Friday. But such widespread outages can quickly spiral out of control for even the most prepared airlines.

The industry has had similarly large disruptions earlier this year. Bad weather forced U.S. airlines to scrap more than 3,100 flights on Jan. 15, the worst day for cancellations this year so far, according to FlightAware. On average, about 320 flights were canceled per day this year, while another 5,200 were delayed.

Over the winter holidays in late 2022, Southwest Airlines suffered a major disruption when it was unable to cope with severe weather at airports in Denver and Chicago. The airline, one of the nation’s largest, ended up canceling nearly 17,000 flights — more than a third of those scheduled — over the last 10 days of the year. That episode cost Southwest more than $1 billion.

On Friday, however, Southwest appeared relatively unscathed: While hundreds of its flights were delayed, only a handful had been canceled.

Emily Flitter , Jenny Gross , Mark Walker and Christine Chung contributed reporting.

Niraj Chokshi writes about aviation, rail and other transportation industries. More about Niraj Chokshi

Derrick Bryson Taylor covers breaking and trending news and is based in London. More about Derrick Bryson Taylor

Corey Kilgannon is a Times reporter who writes about crime and criminal justice in and around New York City, as well as breaking news and other feature stories. More about Corey Kilgannon

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A disruption caused by a Global IT Outage on July 19, 2024 affected our operation systemwide. A travel waiver, which offers customers the ability to make a one-time change to their itinerary, is in effect. The fare difference for customers will be waived when rebooked travel occurs on or before July 27, in the same cabin of service as originally booked. Check flight status frequently for up-to-the-minute information about your flight plans, or get updates sent directly to your mobile device or by email with  On-Time Flight Notification .  

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