Welcome to the third edition of our Asia Newsletter - and can you believe that we are in the second half of 2022 already? October’s Adventure Travel World Summit in Lugano, Switzerland, is fast approaching, and personally, I can’t wait to experience my first ATWS - and hopefully meet many of you there, too. Tickets are selling out fast, so don’t wait too long to reserve your ticket!
In April’s edition of the newsletter, I discussed how we were starting to see tourism recovery in Asia. Happily, this has continued into mid-2022, with steps even being taken towards a greater reopening in Japan - and some encouraging developments from China, too.
Adventure Travel Trends
ATTA released our annual 2022 Adventure Travel Industry Snapshot in May, with some interesting insights for global and Asian trends:
- 31% of 2021 guests in Asia were solo travelers, one of the highest regions to receive this type of traveler globally
- 32% of travelers into Asia were aged 51-60 years old
- 27% of Asian companies received bookings via travel agents, 22% directly via their website, and 21% via OTAs
- The top trending activities in Asia for adventure travel were cultural, hiking/ trekking/ walking, cycling (electric bikes), rafting, and fishing. Given the wealth of unique cultural experiences that Asia has to offer, this seems like a fantastic opportunity to showcase them - and as a differentiator from adventure travel in other regions
- Lastly, I found it fascinating that 61% of outbound operators globally have changed or created new products. Anecdotally, I am certainly seeing outbound operators starting to ramp up their product development, and I feel that this is another chance for Asian inbound operators and destinations to find new partners overseas
There are plenty of other relevant insights for the adventure travel industry within the report, so I urge you all to download the report (it’s free) and take notes!
ATTA Member News
Please join me in giving a huge welcome to new Asian ATTA members: Postcard Travel from India, W-Asobi based in Japan, TTRMongolia based in Mongolia, and Gobytrain in Taiwan!
I was happy to see that some of the updates from our fellow Asian ATTA members made it into AdventureTravel News, highlighting how they used COVID-19 as a catalyst to explore new ventures.
- Impact Adventures ran a scheme, Indonesia in 360, to upskill local guides with digital marketing skills, teaching them how to produce 360-degree videos, and capturing off-the-beaten-track Indonesia in 25 videos for viewers at home to explore.
- Adventures in Borneo, Malaysia, meanwhile, used the pandemic as an opportunity to combine founder Joanne Swann’s passion for yoga and wellness with adventure travel, enhancing adventure travel itineraries with love and kindness.
Are you an ATTA Business Member with news you’d like to have featured in Adventure Travel News? Let me, Miya Liu, or the editorial team know, and we’d love to share it.
Must-Watch and Recommended Reading
A must-watch for the ATTA community is the recent webinar we ran on Climate Change and Tourism in the Pacific Islands. It provides inspiration from the South Pacific Tourism Organization, Intrepid Travel, The Climate Reality Project, Ziptrek Ecotours, and Tomorrow’s Air on what steps tourism businesses can take to reduce their environmental impact.
I’ve also been delighted to see adventure travel in Asia in the media spotlight once more, as travel has reopened, and have greatly enjoyed reading this account of motorbike touring in Vietnam - and listening to the Philippines’ Department of Tourism’s first ‘podumentary’ series “Escape: Stories from the Road,” with a dedicated episode to adventure travel.
Upcoming Events and Networking Opportunities
Don’t forget to join our Member Connects, to learn more about how to maximize your ATTA membership, as well as meet other members. Our next Member Connect will be hosted by Asia Community Lead, Miya Liu, on 14th July 2022 at 12 pm GMT+8 / 9.30 am GMT+5.5.
And I am excited to give an early save-the-date that ATTA will be hosting a panel discussion and AdventureConnect at travel trade show ITB Asia in Singapore on October 21, 2022. I’ll be sending more details as they are finalized, but I hope to see as many of you there as possible!
As a final save the date, the ATTA’s annual Adventure Travel World Summit will be in Hokkaido, Japan, 11-14 September 2023. Stay tuned for more event information coming soon.
