Demand Key Trends

Six key trends shape the travel and tourism industry with relevant implications for Saudi tourism.

▶ Firstly, social media has a growing influence and travel inspiration, especially for younger generations. This is of high importance for Saudi Arabia. The Saudi Tourism Board should grow its presence on social media and work with influencers to attract the younger generation. Due to their importance in influencing older generations, STA must still work with traditional platforms.

▶ Secondly, beach holidays and global cities are making a comeback. This is also important for Saudi Arabia, as they should build the destinations to cater to these high-volume segments that are important to achieve volume-based targets for tourism.

▶ Thirdly, business and leisure are becoming a popular blend. This is relevant to the Saudi Tourism Board as they can leverage travel purpose bundling to extend the stay of tourists.

▶ Fourthly, luxury travel remains afloat under economic headwinds. This is a value to Saudi Arabia as luxury travel is a great driver of spending growth. The critical implication is to improve the entire customer journey to cater to a sophisticated traveler, from private airport experience to luxury dining and premium experiences.

▶ Fifthly, personalization has become important for the experiential traveler. This is less important to Saudi Arabia as niche markets have lower volume. However, they are of higher value. There is an opportunity to partner with specialized bespoke travel agencies to design luxury travel packages in SaudiArabia that are personalized to their preferences.

▶ Lastly, we see the emergence of the sustainable traveler. This is of low importance to the Saudi Tourism Board due to the niche nature of demand.
Nevertheless, it might be a lever for differentiation for particular social groups.