The State of Global Tourism Competition and 5 Other Tourism Trends This Week

Throughout the week we post dozens of original stories, connecting the dots across the travel industry, and every weekend we sum it all up. This weekend roundup examines tourism.

For all of our weekend roundups, go here.

>>Get even deeper insight into the travel industry with two new products from Skift Research: New Research Products: More Data and More Insights Now Available

>>Break through the travel recommendation bubble with a good old-fashioned human expert: Travel Agents and the Power of Word-of-Mouth Recommendations

>>The Joint Meetings Industry Council’s “Iceberg” project is ambitious in terms of defining the value of the meetings industry more holistically, but there are a lot of challenges to provide the in-depth case studies required to quantify that successfully: How the Meetings Industry Is Attempting to Redefine Its Value Proposition

>>The meetings industry is beginning to evaluate the long-term impact of conferences on a host destination’s economic growth, and the business outcome for both local and visiting participants, with much more intention than in the past: Is the Meetings Industry Finally Understanding Its Value? — Meetings Innovation Report

>>Travel brands have an economic incentive to push policy makers and private sectors in their destinations on sustainability and leaner visa policies because tourists will reward them with higher spending and likely repeat visits: The State of Global Tourism Competition in 6 Charts

>>With less than five percent of Chinese travelers holding passports, last year’s spending totals for international Chinese travelers represents only a fraction of the market’s spending potential as millions more Chinese choose to travel abroad each year: Chinese Travelers Set a New Record for Global Tourism Spending in 2016