Economic Impact of Travel Industry — United States of America

by | Oct 25, 2018 | Thoughts and Insights | 1 comment

  • With increasing contribution of Travel and Tourism to the US and global economy, tourists everywhere are seeking better ways to manage their travel plans. Other than choosing a desired destination and making a wishlist of things to do, an important part of any tourist’s plan is usually how much luggage do they want to carry and how will they manage to store it while they are using public transport or simply walking around in the city. Imagine a scenario where a tourist checks out of a hotel and before reaching the airport, he decides to visit one or two more places on the way. One thing that could bog him down would be walking around with his luggage which is no one’s idea of fun and may end up hampering the whole experience.

     

    Vertoe, a short term luggage storage solution startup aims to optimize world’s spaces and helps their customers find nearby storage locations where they can keep their bags for extremely affordable price point. The service will simply compliment the ever increasing growth in the travel industry!

    David Scowsill, President & CEO of WTTC says ‘Travel & Tourism’s impact on the economic and social development of a country can be enormous; opening it up for business, trade and capital investment, creating jobs and entrepreneurialism for the workforce and protecting heritage and cultural values. Travel & Tourism generated US$7.6 trillion (10% of global GDP) and 277 million jobs (1 in 11 jobs) for the global economy in 2014. Recent years have seen Travel & Tourism growing at a faster rate than both the wider economy and other significant sectors such as automotive, financial services and health care. International tourist arrivals also surged, reaching nearly 1.14billion and visitor spending more than matched that growth. Visitors from emerging economies now represent a 46% share of these international arrivals (up from 38% in 2000), proving the growth and increased opportunities for travel from those in these new markets.’

    World Travel & Tourism Council* (WTTC) has provided clear and empirical data in order to help both public and private bodies to make right decisions for the future growth of a sustainable Travel & Tourism sector.

    According to WTTC, ‘direct contribution of Travel and Tourism to GDP was US$458.0bn (2.6% of total GDP) in 2014 and is forecasted to rise by 3.8% pa, from 2015–2025, to US$684.6bn (3.0% of total GDP) in 2025. .This primarily reflects the economic activity generated by industries such as hotels, travel agents, airlines and other passenger services. But it also includes, for example, the activities of the restaurant and leisure industries directly supported.’

     

    ‘Travel & Tourism is expected to have attracted capital investment of US$144.3bn in 2014. This is expected to rise by 4.6% in 2015, and rise by 3.7% pa over the next ten years to US$216.7bn in 2025.’

     

    *The World Travel & Tourism Council is the global authority on the economic and social contribution of Travel & Tourism. All Statistics have been referenced from this link.