Megatrends Defining the Future of Tourism

This book identifies and describes five megatrends that will define the landscape of the Travel, Tourism & Hospitality industry, with a particular focus on the European context. Humans began travelling on the same day that Homo Sapiens first realized he could walk upright. No boundaries, mountains or cliffs have managed to stop or diminish our insatiable desire to find out what lies beyond the visible horizon. Tourism has enjoyed virtually uninterrupted growth for the past several decades, and the sector has now become the third-largest source of export revenue, after chemicals and fuel, and ahead of the automotive and food sectors. And yet, in its current globalised format, it is exposed to sudden shocks that can swiftly shake up the status quo accelerating the deployment of some megatrends here described. We have all witnessed the Covid-19 pandemic and its devastating consequences for the industry.

While the number of international tourism arrivals to Europe has soared to over 700 million a year, at the same time we are experiencing a period of deep transformation. Bauman couldn't have been more accurate or insightful when he coined the word 'liquid' in this regard. As an exquisite expression of a civilized, rich and discerning first-world society, travel and tourism are now changing shape and meaning, requiring our business models to adapt. What are the megatrends that will dictate the future shape of our industry's landscape? Who is the new tourist, if there is one, and what is she looking for? Is the new post-technological era transforming the depth and the very essence of travelling? This book offers a number of visionary insights, as well as operational takeaways.