Shaping the Future of Luxury Travel | Future Traveller Tribes 2030 7


7


Business class flight bookings, 2011-2015 Bookings


15 million Domestic 12 million


2011 2012 2013 2014 2015


International


2011 2012 2013 2014 2015


Source: Amadeus Travel Intelligence


9 million


6 million


3 million


0 EUROPE NORTH AMERICA ASIA MIDDLE EAST AFRICA SOUTH AMERICA OCEANIA


The graph (above) shows a steady decline in business class bookings in Europe, which was probably driven by the economic recession and accompanying austerity measures. During this period, many European firms and public sector agencies tightened their belts and implemented policies against travelling in business class for journeys under a certain length. Premium leisure travellers followed suit – in this economic climate, premium fares were seen as unjustified for flying short distances – whereas for international flights, the European demand for business class flights remained fairly constant, due to the journey length.


Meanwhile, in North America, the opposite has been the case, with business class traffic continuing to grow despite the recession. Once again, this could be driven by regional business travel patterns, rather than luxury leisure travel.


Asia experienced the biggest increase in business class flight bookings during this time. This was likely spurred by the continent’s impressive GDP growth, rapidly expanding global business networks, and by a new affluent class of travellers throughout the region that is eager to book leisure trips in business class.


However, one thing to note is that China’s relatively mature luxury market is set against a backdrop of tightening regulations, where the government is applying pressure to tackle corruption. This means that fewer people want to be perceived as ultra-rich and attract scrutiny – as illustrated by the nation’s declining private jet market. In other words, luxury travellers in China are more conscious about flaunting their wealth, and will make travel choices accordingly.


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