Summer Travel's Winners: Japan, Live Tourism, and Biz Travel
Photo Credit: A large group of travelers at Asakusa in Tokyo. Wikimedia Commons / chensiyuan
Skift Take
Despite talk of financial pressure, many are continuing to spend on summer travel.
Many people plan to continue spending on travel this summer, even though some say they have concerns about affordability. That's the message from this month's wave of summer travel forecasts from travel brands and data providers – we reviewed 11 forecasts in all.
Japan is leading with trending international destinations. Tokyo, followed closely by Osaka, gained the most share of overall international flight bookings versus last year, according to the Mastercard Economics Institute. Paris came in third.
Vacationers say they are thinking carefully about their travel spending this summer, but some business travelers are hitting the road more often.
More than half of travelers expect to be more price-conscious, with inflation the number one reason affecting travel decisions, according to a Wakefield Research poll of 11,000 consumers in 11 countries that was sponsored by Expedia.
Global business travel continues to improve. Navan’s data revealed business travel bookings for summer 2025 are strong, with flights booked through its travel management software up 10% year-over-year and up 25% year-over-year.
U.S. Inbound Travel Uncertainty
The U.S. domestic outlook is relatively strong. But the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) warned that the U.S. could lose $12.5 billion in international visitor spending this year.
According to its study, the U.S. is the only country among 184 economies analyzed which is forecast to see international visitor spending decline in 2025.
However, it is still too early to have hard data confirming a year-over-year drop in overall inbound international tourism.
Skift Research recently wrote that "U.S. tourism would be damaged but continue to expand" if President Trump continued to target allies - and potential international visitors. It estimated that the U.S. travel sector might see a shortfall based on previous projected income in the magnitude of between $30 billion and $90 billion for the year.
Some companies predict travel demand will be about the same as last year, yet their surveys also suggest widespread financial anxiety.
- About 70% of Americans said they planned summer travel in a survey done by Bank of America.
- Nearly 70% of Americans said they didn't feel confident about vacationing due to money concerns, in a survey by Ipsos sponsored by Allianz Partners, a travel insurance provider.
- Reality check: Both can't be fully accurate. However, a few emerging trends in types of trips are suggestive of how the summer may unfold.
Events and Experiences Prioritized
Americans are traveling for ticketed events, with at least one planned for this year among 63% of Americans, Allianz data showed. Mastercard’s data also found that sports and meaningful experiences are big drivers.
Major events happening this summer include FIFA Club World Cup, a tournament of the top 32 teams around the globe competing in the U.S. starting June 15.
Lollapalooza, one of the most popular U.S. music festivals, with 400,000 attendees, is also this summer. In the UK, there is one of Europe’s top three music festivals, Glastonbury which about 210,000 people attend.
Priceline also pointed to the Red Rocks Summer Concert Series in Denver and San Francisco’s festival season, including August’s Outside Lands Festival – it was seeing high levels of searches for those destinations during the event dates.
For context, see Skift's megatrend 2025 Is the Year Live Tourism Becomes Unstoppable.
Shifts in the Mix of Trips?
Bank of America's research shows income is determining destination choices. Lower-income travelers increasingly stay domestic with road trips preferred, while middle and higher-income travelers are more likely to venture internationally.
Trips lasting only one or two nights are a continuing trend. A Deloitte survey found that 41% of vacationers plan to take a trip of three nights or fewer this year, compared with 37% last year.
Campspot, a booking platform for campgrounds, said more than 90% of travelers are planning short pop-up escapes (1–3 nights, budget-friendly, within 200 miles) and that about half of them are planning more short trips than in previous years.
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