More than three-quarters (76%) of Australian travel professionals expect business demand to grow over the next two to three years, but new APAC travel trends research warns that rising complexity and shifting traveller expectations could slow the momentum.
New Expedia Group research on APAC travel trends shows confidence in travel demand remains strong with Australia’s travel industry among the most optimistic in the Asia-Pacific region.
The Mapping the future of APAC travel study found 65 per cent of travel professionals across online travel agencies, hotels, air, travel management companies, transportation, loyalty programs and financial services in the region expect demand for their business to increase over the next two to three years.
This figure rises to 78 per cent among loyalty professionals across the APAC region.
India and Australia reported the highest confidence in demand growth at 82 per cent and 76 per cent, respectively.
Where the growth is coming from
Growth is expected across a wide range of segments. More than 60 per cent of those surveyed anticipate increases in luxury leisure travel, budget leisure travel, bleisure trips and intra-APAC regional travel.
Looking ahead at APAC travel trends, travel professionals predict India will see the strongest outbound growth over the next two to three years, followed by Japan, both established destinations for Australian travellers and part of a wider trend that has seen several Asian nations surge in recent ABS data.
For inbound travel, India and Hong Kong SAR are tipped to lead regional growth.
What travellers now expect
As demand rises, traveller expectations are becoming more complex and localised. Almost two in three (60%) of respondents report that local and diverse payment options have grown in importance in recent years.
More than 70 per cent say options such as ‘buy now, pay later’ (BNPL), global cards and loyalty redemption are now essential parts of the booking experience, reflecting how travellers are increasingly driving spend beyond flights and hotels.
At the same time, 59 per cent report growing importance for booking through AI-powered tools or non-traditional platforms, pointing to an accelerating shift towards more dynamic, tech-enabled trip planning.
Where complexity could slow momentum
The APAC travel trends research suggests the next challenge for the industry is not demand, but keeping pace with those shifting expectations. Many businesses still face structural hurdles.
One-third (33%) cite a lack of localised content as a major issue, 34 per cent point to discoverability challenges across search and AI-driven platforms and 35 per cent say legacy systems and integration challenges are slowing the adoption of new capabilities.
However, AI adoption is accelerating fast: 79 per cent of travel professionals say they already use it and 97 per cent plan to in the future, although many organisations are still working to unlock its full potential.
What it means for the trade
For Australian travel advisors, the APAC travel trends report points to a market where demand is not the constraint, but the ability to meet travellers across payments, content and technology will increasingly separate winners from the rest.
Expedia Group VP of Sales for APAC Aileen Chan said the region is one of the fastest growing but most complex travel markets in the world.
“While demand is clearly increasing, our research shows that complexity across payments, content and technology remains a major barrier. The opportunity lies in helping partners simplify that experience and scale with confidence,” she said.
KARRYON UNPACKS: Australia’s travel advisors are confident about business demand growth with India and Japan flagged as the outbound destinations to watch. The friction now sits less in winning the client and more in the booking journey, where payments, AI tools and ageing tech decide conversion.
