You may be new to the travel industry, investigating a career in travel or just trying to research a bit about the industry ahead of your next adventure. There’s a mass of information out there and it can be overwhelming to wrap your head around. Lucky for you, our team of travel experts have been hard at work to give you a bird’s eye view of the travel industry as a whole.

The travel industry has gone through many evolutions with a variety of external factors contributing to who has access to travel, where they are travelling to and what the travel industry looks like overall.

A few important travel industry statistics

Let’s start by setting the scene…the travel industry is HUGE and the numbers certainly prove it.

Source: Statista

A brief history of the travel industry

We are fortunate to live in a globalised world meaning that travel is reasonably accessible. At the press of a button, most people are able to book a flight and jet off to wherever our wallets will take us. 

But, it hasn’t always been so easy. To help you understand how the industry has developed to the point it has today and where it might head in the future, here is a travel industry timeline.

Pre 1950

Before the mid 20th century, travel was reserved for the extremely wealthy. It was expensive and it was time-consuming (can you imagine having to travel on a boat for 3 weeks…. or 3 months!). The concept of a ‘travel industry’ had not yet formed; it was more a collection of hotels, restaurants and coachlines who all operated independently from one another.

1950 – 2000

After the Second World War, travel suddenly started to become accessible for many more people due to the development of commercial airlines. Although they were originally still very expensive, costs started to reduce over the years and more people were able to invest in seeing the world.

The industry grew and grew, and many saw a gap in the market for people wanting to travel but not having the knowledge, or time to organise it themselves – travel agents and tour operators started to establish themselves!

2000 – 2019

The travel industry has undoubtedly boomed, and the way that people travel is almost unrecognisable from the early 20th century. With smartphones, we now have unlimited apps at our fingertips, specifically designed to make every aspect of travel easier. 

For travellers, there are websites and apps to help them plan their travel, help them while travelling and to give them inspiration for their next trip! For travel agents and tour operators, itinerary software has streamlined much of their processes, from itinerary planning to customer relationship management. Now all this technology is amazing, and helps our lives in many ways, but has also resulted in fragmentation of the travel industry with travellers choosing to plan and manage their trips themselves or online increasingly.

 2020 and the future of travel

Due to the pandemic and the pause in travel, both countries and travellers worldwide re-evaluated travel and how it should be conducted. Countries who experienced over-tourism considered ways to encourage more sustainable travel in their destinations. For travellers, Covid triggered them to start thinking about their bucket list destinations and working with travel designers to plan and book them. This resulted in tourism returning with a significant rise in 2022, although the industry is indicating it might be plateauing in 2023/2024.

How does the industry actually work?

You may be thinking to yourselves, how does travel actually function as an industry. How does it all fit together? You are not alone, it’s a complex industry notorious for its jargon, terminology and abundance of acronyms!

As you can see there are a few key players to remember:

Tourism Boards and Government organisations: Usually run or overseen by local or national governments. These boards set in place regulations for the other players in the industry. They also market countries or cities as tourist destinations for potential travellers

Suppliers/Vendors: Suppliers (or Vendors) are the hotels, the restaurants and the activity providers that travellers eat, stay and partake in on their travels. Travellers may liaise with and purchase from suppliers directly if they are organising their own travels, or communications with suppliers may be managed entirely by a middle-man (AKA, the tour operator, travel agent, travel wholesaler or DMC).

Tour Operators: Tour Operators design itineraries, often tailor made, for their customers, liaising with suppliers to organise and book the travel itinerary (partially or start to finish)

Travel Agents: Travel agents liaise with tour operators to book packages and tours for their clients. As such, tour operators will often focus on a certain destination or market area, whereas travel agents can focus on selling the whole world – with a comprehensive list of suppliers in their books

Destination Management Companies (DMC’s): Organisations that specialise in offering tours, logistics, and planning services for a particular destination. They often re-sell their services to tour operators

Ground Handlers: A ground handler takes care of some day to day operations and tour management such as picking customers up from the airport and arranging sightseeing tours

Associations and Memberships: These organisations exist to provide support, promotion, and opportunity to other players in the travel industry. All of them operate with a slightly different mission, whether it’s to promote sustainable business practices, celebrate the luxury travel market or to connect travellers with LGBTQ friendly travel businesses

Travellers: Arguably the most important cog in the wheel. Everyone in the tourism industry sets out to meet travellers’ needs – to ensure they keep coming back for more!

The beauty of the travel industry supply chain is how all of these key players work together creating one of the worlds biggest industries.   

 Interested to learn more?

The ultimate A-Z glossary for the Travel industry. Understand the different terms, jargon and acronyms.

For a taste of the luxury end of travel, explore our list of Exclusive luxury travel communities

To discover more about sustainable tourism, download our ebook focusing on how to elevate travel design with sustainability.

30 OCTOBER 2023 – Tourwriter today has released a special report for travel designers and tour operator owners to benchmark their business in a post-Covid world. Tourwriter’s report, titled ‘The Travel Designers Benchmarking Report’, is the most comprehensive whitepaper produced for the high-end travel market since Covid. It comprises data from more than 10,000 tour operators across 195 countries and over 30 niche markets. 

The report shines a light on how the industry has set new benchmarks for business as they rebound from the pandemic. It marks the long awaited return of their industry leading annual report, which Tourwriter paused during the pandemic related downturn. “Naturally, it wasn’t right for us to continue with this initiative as our industry grappled with the devastation it left in its wake” they state in the reports introduction. 

“Our industry is in a unique position with travel businesses at various stages of rebound, and no real frame of reference as to what a new normal should look like for those operating in the high-end of the travel market,” said Tourwriter’s Head of Growth, Lisa Gardiner. 

“We saw a real need for travel designers to have a reliable source of information during this transitional scale up period. When we couldn’t find that source, we set out to create it ourselves,” explained Gardiner. Tourwriter is one of the industry’s longest standing tour operator software providers. They have become renowned for sharing industry resources and thought leadership content over the past two decades. 

Tourwriter’s report reveals high-end travel consultants in a post covid market are selling, on average, USD $1.02m, worth of travel per year, a twofold increase compared to pre-Covid data released by Tourwriter in 2019. “This figure is a promising sign that tailor-made travel has well and truly rebounded,” said Gardiner. The report also uncovers a substantial boom in sustainability lead travel businesses post covid, up by almost 9% compared to pre 2020 levels.

Tourwriter’s Marketing Manager, Lara Simmons believes a strong industry is a knowledgeable one. “We are more determined than ever to understand and share our insights into the world of tourism, so that travel designers across the globe can grow, learn and focus on sharing creative, imaginative travel with the world,” finished Simmons. 

Tourwriter’s 2024 Travel Designer’s Benchmarking report is available to download for free on their website now. 

In the ever-evolving landscape of the travel industry, staying ahead of the curve is not just a strategy—it’s a necessity. Travel influencers play a pivotal role in shaping trends, amplifying destination appeal, and inspiring consumers to explore. As a result, it’s become imperative for travel designers to immerse themselves in the travel influencer space, to get a glimpse into the experiences and perspectives of their customers. 

In this blog, we delve into the world of travel influencers, exploring why consumers are drawn to them, outline why they can be invaluable allies, and share some of our top influencers to get you started.

Why are travel influencers important?

New research released this year by Expedia shows that on average, travellers spend 33 days in the “inspiration” phase, before they even start researching or planning a trip. Travel influencers, as a result, serve as a powerful source of inspiration for your customers, before you even enter their radar. Influencers wield the ability to share narratives that are not only personal, but authentic—weaving tales that resonate deeply. They showcase breathtaking destinations, and recount unique anecdotes and challenges, making them more relatable than polished promotional material in the early stages of planning. 

Collaborating with travel influencers can offer numerous benefits to travel designers, both in direct partnerships and by simply staying informed about influencers’ activities. Here’s why travel designers should consider working together with influencers

Direct collaboration
Many influencers possess engaged and dedicated followings, but it’s important to partner with those whose audience closely aligns with your ideal customer base. By partnering with influencers, your tours and services can gain exposure in an authentic and personal manner, building trust and credibility among potential customers. Additionally, influencer endorsements serve as valuable social proof, impacting the decision-making process of potential customers.

Indirect collaboration
Even if partnering with influencers doesn’t align with your brand, maintaining an awareness of relevant travel influencers in your niche or destination can bring a host of indirect benefits to your business. Keeping abreast of their content helps designers gain valuable insights into the latest travel trends, destinations of interest, and evolving consumer preferences. By closely following influencer narratives, travel designers can nimbly adapt to shifts in consumer interests, ensuring the ongoing relevance of their offerings. This awareness also provides a window into the strategies of competitors and which aspects of their tours and services are resonating with consumers.

Travel influencers you should start following now

In the domain of travel influencers and the dynamic landscape of social media, personal preferences are vast and ever-evolving. Social media trends can shift in an instant, impacting the rise and fall of particular influencers in response to viral content surges. Amidst this, the algorithms driving platforms like TikTok and Instagram are finely attuned to your preferences. Below, we have compiled a beginner list of a few popular travel influencers to get you started. As you begin to engage with their content, the platforms refine their recommendations and you will be shown more content gems tailored to your interests.

Luxury travel:

@izkiz 2.7M followers and @iamtravelr 1.5M followers
Jennifer Tuffen is based in the United Kingdom, but showcases luxury travel experiences around the world along with her husband Umit Yoruk.

@Terplanet 1.7M followers and 24.9M likes
a.k.a. Karen and Terence, an Italian couple in their mid 30’s, make captivating TikTok videos about 5-star Hotels, acclaimed restaurants, and luxury escape.

Sustainable tourism:

@Veggiewayfarer 48K followers
Caroline runs the Veggie Wayfarer Instagram account, focused on authentic and meaningful travel experiences, and her journey into sustainability.

@Sophiaxverde 42K followers and 1.9M likes
Sophia is a TikTok account run by Sophia and her husband Sam, an American couple travelling around Europe and focusing their content on low-impact travel.

Off the beaten track and eco-tourism:

@chrisburkard 4M followers
Chris embarks on amazing adventures in all corners of the globe, showcasing destinations through his stunning photography.

@quingable 1.1M followers and 24.3 M likes
Quin is based in the USA, documenting her unique adventures in her van with her cat, Atlas.

Adrenline and adventure travel:

@alexojeda 8.4 followers and 326.5M likes
Alex makes content for the thrill-seekers out there, promoting adrenline-fuelled experiences world-over.

Local and cultural experiences:

@theglobewanderer 2.8M Instagram followers, 1.5M Tiktok followers and 16.6M likes
Mikki Tenazas a.k.a the globe wanderer focusses on storytelling; making content about unique destinations, experiences, cuisines & animals from around the world.

Want to understand more about creating a strategy for social media? Have a read of, The tour operators guide to a digital marketing strategy:

Part One: the why

Part Two: the how

Tour operators play an important role in the tourism industry, and with 72% of travellers believing that it is crucial we act now in order to protect our planet, focusing on responsible tourism is imperative. Despite the fact that once it was easy to dismiss sustainable travel as a costly initiative with little financial benefit, the evidence is now clear that this is not the case.

So how can you make sustainable travel easier for your customers, and why is it so important for your business? The purpose of this eBook is to help you understand the three pillars of sustainable tourism, why each of them is so important, and how you can adjust your business to meet the eco-conscious needs of travellers and the planet.

Download now