UK Travel Market Forecast to Show Further Expansion into 2009
The travel and tourism industry serves three main markets: domestic tourism by UK residents within the UK; outbound tourism by UK residents traveling abroad; and inbound tourism by overseas residents traveling to the UK.
In 2004, total expenditure on UK travel and tourism was £70 billion, a rise of 4.8 percent from 2003. In 2004, a total of 239.8 million visits and 1.35 billion overnight stays were made.
Trends within the industry that are affecting the overall market include the increasing tendency for holidaymakers and travelers to arrange their own trips and vacations, as well as the ongoing rise in the popularity and use of low-cost air travel.
The trend for consumers to book their flights and accommodation over the Internet has also made many of the tasks previously undertaken by travel agents and tour operators redundant.
Overshadowing the travel and tourism industry`s performance in 2005 are the terrorist attacks in London in July, which are expected to have an impact on the domestic and inbound markets. In addition, the terrorist attacks in Turkey and Egypt could impact on the outbound market.
The UK travel and tourism market is forecast to show further expansion to 2009, with the outbound market again expected to show the most growth.
There is significant potential in the inbound market, however, with visits and spending from developing markets in Eastern Europe, China and South-East Asia expected to rise.
Looking even further ahead, the decision by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to hold the 2012 Olympic Games in London is expected to benefit every part of the UK, with each region likely to receive additional leisure and business visitors in the years before, during and after the Games.