Asian cities shine in Mastercard Economics Institute's 2025 travel trends report
Japan again is a hot travel destination in 2025, even more so than in 2024, according to the Mastercard Economics Institute.
Tokyo and Osaka top the list of destinations with the largest gains in worldwide flight bookings for this summer, according to Mastercard's annual travel report, which uncovers trends through data analysis. The top 15 was dominated by Asia -- eight on the list, including three in Japan and two in China:
1) Tokyo
2) Osaka
3) Paris
4) Shanghai
5) Palma de Mallorca
6) Seoul
7) Beijing
8) Madrid
9) Rio de Janeiro
10) Singapore
11) Nha Trang, Vietnam
12) Reykjavik, Iceland
13) Fukuoka, Japan
14) Hurghada, Egypt
15) Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt
"Last year was a really meaningful shift where Tokyo climbed higher in terms of one of the top markets traveled," said Michelle Meyer, the Mastercard Economics Institute's chief economist. "I think there was a fear that as we entered this year, demand would dry up. … But from our calculation, it is a market that continues to grow in popularity."
Weak currencies continue to make several Asia destinations -- including Japan and Vietnam -- relative bargains for many travelers. The presence of two Egypt resort destinations on the list perhaps reflects their value for European and Arab travelers, plus Egypt's relative stability in the Middle East region.
Wellness and national parks
Namibia, South Africa and Thailand ranked as the most popular destinations for wellness-related travel experiences. Mastercard's wellness travel index tracks cross-border spending at vendors such as spas and detox programs. Namibia tops the list with 3.5% growth.
South Africa, Zambia and Finland have the highest share of travelers specifically seeking out national parks. In South Africa, guests are specifically seeking out nature, with 23.3% of cross-border visitor spending happening at national parks. Zambia, Finland, Argentina, Switzerland and Canada are the other countries where national parks rank highest for cross-border spending.
Sporting events also draw international visitors. When Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani competed in his first World Series game last October, Japanese travelers came to see him, indicated by 91% growth in Japanese spending in the five miles surrounding Dodger Stadium, Mastercard found.
International business travel is trending slightly more local but for longer durations. For U.S. corporate Mastercard holders, travel grew in Canada and Latin America in 2024 compared to 2019, while it shrunk by more than 6% in Europe. The average business trip is now 10.2 days compared to 8.8 in the year preceding the pandemic.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
17 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Chinese state media calls for crackdown on 'zero-mileage used cars'
By Eduardo Baptista BEIJING (Reuters) -The Chinese practice of selling brand new cars as heavily discounted second-hand vehicles to get rid of inventory should be ended, the official newspaper of the country's governing Communist Party said in an article published on Thursday. The People's Daily, which often signals the positions of China's top Party leaders on a variety of issues, called for a crackdown on the practice, also known as zero-mileage used cars, just weeks after Great Wall Motor's Chairman Wei Jianjun publicly condemned it and China's commerce ministry met with Chinese automakers to discuss it. While China's Commerce Ministry did not make public its position, the People's Daily struck a harsh tone, calling out the inflation of sales data motivating Chinese carmakers and urging "tough regulatory action" to restore market order. "This disguised form of price cutting disrupts normal market order and is a striking example of the auto industry's 'involution'," the People's Daily said, using a term popular in China that describes a race to the bottom driven by excessive competition. "Once market competition rules are properly enforced, 'zero-mileage used cars' won't be able to run far — or for long." China is experiencing growing deflationary pressures as U.S. tariffs add to the gloomy mood in the world's No.2 economy. Companies in sectors from fast food to high fashion have been cutting prices amid concerns about oversupply and sluggish household demand. Price wars have gripped the Chinese auto industry in recent years, partly driven by slumping domestic consumption and overcapacity that has left many struggling to meet sales targets. While the sale of zero-mileage used cars is seen by many Chinese automakers as an effective way of clearing out an ever-growing inventory of unsold cars, with domestic and overseas consumers lured by deep discounts on what are still brand new cars, the state-run newspaper listed a litany of negative effects caused by the practice. "For manufacturers, this sales tactic may help reduce inventory in the short term but compresses profit margins, increases losses, and hinders investment in product quality and innovation — ultimately harming sustainable development," the article said. "For consumers, what seems like a good deal in terms of price comes with hidden risks: the loss of first-owner benefits, potential battery degradation, and steeper depreciation when reselling," it continued, adding the practice undermines fair competition, distorts market data, and disrupts both new and used car markets. The People's Daily singled out manufacturers of electric vehicles as needing to move beyond "data worship" and competing on volume, in order to focus on product quality and technological innovation. It did not name any specific automakers. The newspaper also listed measures Chinese regulatory authorities should adopt in order to prevent the sale of zero-mileage used cars, including strengthening oversight of second-hand vehicle registration, establishing a vehicle lifecycle tracking system, and strictly controlling the practice of immediate resale after registration. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
21 minutes ago
- Yahoo
India's external investment deficit a hurdle for rupee as Asia rides weak dollar's coattails
By Jaspreet Kalra and Nimesh Vora MUMBAI (Reuters) -The rupee is likely to lag most of its Asian peers in a softer dollar environment, analysts say, with the Indian currency weighed down by an imbalance between what the country owes and owns abroad. While currencies such as the Singapore dollar, Korean won and Taiwan dollar have surged 6% to 9.5% this year, the rupee is nearly flat. Analysts at Barclays, Jefferies, and ANZ attribute the divergence to differences in the net international investment positions (NIIP) with Asian economies. NIIP is the gap between what a country owns overseas and what it owes to the rest of the world. As of December 2024, India had a negative NIIP, owing about $350 billion more to the world than it owned in foreign assets. In contrast, most other Asian countries hold a positive NIIP, meaning their ownership of foreign assets exceeds their external liabilities. Unlike Taiwan, South Korea, China and Hong Kong, the absence of a positive NIIP for India implies underperformance of the rupee, said Mitul Kotecha, head of FX and EM macro strategy, Asia, at Barclays. A positive NIIP usually stems from consistent trade surpluses, with excess earnings often invested in U.S. assets. When the dollar softens, the value of those assets drops. To protect against that, investors hedge by selling dollars and buying their own currencies, which tends to boost the local units. According to Barclays, Singapore, Taiwan and China and Korea hold the most liquid net international assets in Asia, while India and Indonesia hold the least. India's international investment position implies that the rupee "may lag the rest of Asia," said Brad Bechtel, head of global FX at Jefferies. "It's not like a very negative story. It's just more of a lagging story," Bechtel said. The NIIP positions of Asian countries have come into focus amid investors seeking safety due to a persistently weaker dollar. Analysts and option markets concur that the dollar hasn't likely bottomed yet. Minutes of the Federal Reserve's May meeting cited a rise in hedging demand as one of the factors contributing to the dollar's decline. International investment surpluses in many Asian markets could boost their respective currencies, per analysts at BMI, a Fitch group company. "This would come as overseas capital is repatriated or as firms move to hedge previously unhedged FX exposure," the firm said in a recent note, pointing to the sharp appreciation in the Taiwanese dollar as an example.
Yahoo
25 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Rochester: Trump Escalates to De-Escalate
Asian shares edged higher on the back of US-China trade talks as officials struck a positive tone after the first day of negotiations. Jordan Rochester, Head of EMEA FICC Strategy at Mizuho spoke to Bloomberg's Lizzy Burden on Horizons Middle East and Africa on the market reaction to President Trump's tariffs plan.
