Factors Driving the Growth
As the long-term data at the top of this report shows, international tourist arrivals have increased steadily over the last eight years, contracting only slightly and briefly in the aftermath of three economic downturns since the early 90s: the Asian Financial Crisis of 1997, the early 2000s recession and the Global Financial Crisis of 2008.
Given the fact that T&T is generally a cyclical industry, it seems that future T&T industry growth projections, which predict steady and relatively even growth over the next 3-5 years, are based on the assumption that no other major financial disruptions will impact the steady uptick in T&T demand that has been seen since 2007 (especially among first-time tourists from Asia’s emerging markets), and no other unanticipated circumstances, such as natural disasters or political upheaval, will turn away prospective travelers in the near-to-medium term.
It is, of course, impossible to predict with any degree of perfection what kinds of unanticipated shocks or boons might impact Southeast Asia’s T&T industry in the coming years, but barring any major catastrophes, the overall outlook for travel and tourism in Southeast Asia for the coming years looks good.