Flight delays grow by the hour, ticket prices have soared (mostly due to increased fuel costs), and security issues remain at the forefront of the travel industry--and yet online travel consumers in the U.S. are poised to spend some $122 billion by 2009, according to a recent report from eMarketer.
The report, "Online Travel Worldwide: A Mosaic of Separate Markets," identifies the U.S. as the global leader in online travel expenditures. U.S. leisure and corporate travel consumers will spend $122.4 billion by 2009, up from $64.9 billion last year, while European travelers spent $35.5 billion online in 2005 . And, the Asia-Pacific region, now one-quarter the size of the U.S. market, reaped $15.9 billion in 2005, but is poised for growth in upcoming years.
The report's demographic studies of travelers in the U.S., Europe, and the Asia-Pacific region show the emergence of an older generation of travelers: baby boomers (ages 45 to 60), who are healthy, adventurous and affluent, as well as Internet-savvy. "Online travel distributors and marketers who pay attention to these customers and design travel offers matching their interests and needs will reap rewards," said Jeffrey Grau, eMarketer's senior analyst and author of the report, in a statement.
The U.S. represents the most mature travel market, but growth is slowing, while southern and eastern Europe have untapped potential. The four fastest-growing travel markets over the next four years are China, South Korea, India, and Japan, the report finds. China, with projected travel spending growth of 18.3 percent to 2010, will rise from seventh place to fourth place in personal and business travel spending among the world's 16 largest economies.
The report indicates that searching for flights and comparing fares is relatively easy on the Web, making online travel planning and buying a natural. The report also notes that 21 percent of respondents to a 2005 ACNielsen survey of over 21,000 Internet users in 38 countries worldwide reported that airline tickets were one of their last three online purchases. Tours and hotel reservations are less popular online purchases because customer service plays a larger role in consumers making these buying decision, according to the eMarketer report.
Online leisure/unmanaged business travel sales in the U.S. will total $77.7 billion in 2006, according to eMarketer estimates. If online corporate travel sales of $36.5 billion, estimated by PhoCusWright, are factored in, then total U.S. online travel sales will equal $114.2 billion in 2006. PhoCusWright also estimates that total U.S. travel sales (online and offline) will be $235.2 billion this year. This means that in 2006 online sales will account for about 49 percent of total travel sales.
