Strong growth for global adventure travel
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The value of the global adventure travel industry has grown at a rate of 65% per year since 2009, a new study has revealed.
According to the Adventure Tourism Market Study, compiled Washington DC’s George Washington University and the Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA), the global outbound adventure travel sector was worth US$263 billion last year, excluding airfares. This is a marked increase from the US$89bn the sector was valued at in 2009.
And when the estimated US$82bn spent on adventure gear, apparel and accessories is included in the total, the study reveals that adventure travellers spent more than US$345bn in 2012.
“Adventure tourism’s steep climb is attributed to growth in the global tourism industry, a significant increase in the percentage of adventure travellers, and an increase in the average amount spent per adventure travel trip,” said ATTA’s president, Shannon Stowell.
“As we watch adventure travel tourism grow it is imperative that we continue to provide travellers with transformative experiences, all while helping to protect and respect the very people and places visited.”
The study also found that individual adventure travellers are now spending more on their travels, with global average spending levels rising from US$593 per trip in 2009 to US$947 in 2012 – a fact ATTA put down to the “recovery from the global financial crisis and the emergence of new source markets”.
Other findings included the fact that the average adventure traveller is 36 years old – younger than non-adventure segments – and the average length of an adventure trip is 10 days. The sector is also more reliant on the travel trade, with almost half (45%) of adventure travellers using a tour operator, compared to just 31% of non-adventure travellers.
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