New report looks at what American tourists want

A new report from Tourism Intelligence International entitled “How Americans Will Travel 2015”, predicts that Americans will want more than just Sun, Sand and Sea on their holidays. They will increasingly look for Culture and Content when making their travel plans. This has important implications for destinations seeking to attract North American travellers, particularly Caribbean islands where most two-thirds (63.4%) of all arrivals are from the North America. In fact, North Americans accounts for more than 90% of inbound arrivals to the Bahamas; 78% for Jamaica; 56% Trinidad and Tobago; 46% for St. Lucia and 35% for Barbados.

Dr. Auliana Poon, Managing Director of Tourism Intelligence International and author of “How Americans will Travel 2015” argues that the “Creative Class” of American Travellers is not simply looking to bask in the sun and get sun burnt. They want to experience the culture of a place they visit; they what to know about the content or “goodness” of a product before they buy it.

For Americans, taking part in activities of a cultural nature while on holiday is growing. More than half (51%) of the 40 million Americans travelling abroad visit historical places; almost one-third (32%) visit cultural heritage sites; and one-quarter (25%) went to an art gallery or museum, according to the Office of Travel and Tourism Industries. Americans’ interest in culture is definitely on the increase. And not just for the big-ticket mega events. North Americans are also keenly interested in small local events such as the Fish Fry at Oistins (Barbados), Anse La Ray (St Lucia), and Gouyave (Grenada); small rum shops and bars in local communities and villages such as Smokey and Buntey in St. James, Trinidad. Also on the increase is demand for cultural events at local communities in which visitors participate and blend in with locals (rather than events put on just for the visitors and where they are in the majority and are onlookers rather than participants). Events such as the Heritage Festival and Goat Race in Tobago; Divali and Pagwa in Trinidad, not to mention Trinidad Carnival itself, can be clear winners among the ‘Creative Class’ of North Americas.

“How Americans Will Travel 2015” points to the growth in participation of the ‘Creative Class’ also known as the Bourgeoisie Bohemians (Bobos), for whom intrinsic values and content are important considerations in their travel decisions. In terms of their attitude to food, they are not simply interested in drinking orange juice. They want to know whether the juice is freshly squeezed; is it genetically engineered; is it organically grown; what is the carbon footprint associated with getting the orange juice to them; and are the farmers who produce them fairly paid? They are not just interested in the product, but where it comes from as well as in its intrinsic values and content.

Similarly, with regard to holidays, the diverse and individualistic lifestyles of the Creative Class involve active participation and experiential activities that are multidimensional. They enjoy the ‘Street Level Culture’, considered as a “teeming blend of cafes, sidewalk musicians, and small galleries and bistros, where it is hard to draw the line between participant and observer, or between creativity and its creators”. Members of the Creative Class enjoy unique experiences and they would rather be a participant rather than a spectator. They want activities that manage to appeal to their sense of status and self-improvement at the same time.

These findings suggest that the Caribbean cannot continue to compete on sun, sand and sea alone. Culture and Content will need to be added to the tourism offer in order for Caribbean islands to stay competitive in the changing North American market.

The US continues to be an important travel market. In terms of spending, the USA is the most important outbound market in the world. More than 40 million Americans travel abroad, accounting for 63.5 million trips. US travellers abroad spent US$118 billion, according to the United Nations World Tourism Organisation. This makes the US the largest travel market in terms of expenditure and the second largest market in terms of outbound arrivals.

At the same time, US travel market has been under tremendous pressure – from war, terrorism and recession to fear, falling house prices, falling income levels, and rising unemployment. This has had a negative impact on US outbound travel with consequent declines in travel. Analysts predicted that Americans will spend as much as US$30 billion less on leisure trips in spring and summer of 2009

Dr. Auliana Poon asserts, however, that Americans are trading down but not out – they are travelling closer to home; staying away from home for shorter periods; using less expensive accommodation; but they are travelling. In addition, with the ‘Obama Effect’, Americans are more hopeful, less fearful and pent up desires will cause a major boom in travel with the emerging upswing. Indeed, many stressed out Americans, who postponed or reduced travel because of the recession, would take advantage of the new growth in the economy to take a much-deserved vacation.

Despite the challenges, Tourism Intelligence International predicts that US outbound to international destinations (excluding Canada and Mexico) will continue to increase to 2015, reaching 32.88 million by the year 2015, up from 30.79 million in 2008. This represents an average rate of a mere 1% per annum. However, some destinations and regions are expected to perform better than others.

Critically, Tourism Intelligence International forecasts reveal that American arrivals to the Caribbean will continue to decline to the year 2015. The decline is expected to be in the vicinity of almost 8% between 2008 and 2015. This represents an average decline of 1.2 percent per annum.

To win in this changing American market and regain market share, Caribbean tourism destinations should look beyond the numbers to the fundamental demographic and psychographic shifts taking place among North Americans, particularly the rise of the ‘Creative Class’. Focus on Culture and Content of holiday offerings will be key.

This volume will equip any travel and tourism provider with over 25 key strategies to attract the different types of American travellers, including the creative class and other generations of American travellers.

How Americans will Travel 2015 – Everything you need to know about the American and Canadian travel Markets – is available only from Tourism Intelligence International. Find out how the Americans will travel in the next five years? What have been the effects of the Global Economic Recession? What are the key drivers that affect the market? What strategies your company can adopt in successfully targeting the North American travel market?

If there is one report that you should read this year to enable you to win in this market, it is “How the Americans Will Travel 2015”. This 350-page report – published by Tourism Intelligence International, Trinidad – highlights the latest trends, data and essential information to fully understand the North American travel market over the next five years. The report, priced at €1,299 is presented in a clear and concise format supported by over 200 tables and graphs. The Executive Brief is available at €499 and individual chapters are priced at €199 each. Multi user electronic copies are also available.

“How Americans Will Travel 2015” will be presented at the International Tourism Exchange (ITB) in Berlin, Germany, on Wednesday 10th March 2010 at 3:00 p.m.