Asia-Pacific Tourism Growth Expectations and the Technology Gap: Structural Opportunities in Emerging Markets

Strong Growth Confidence, but Structural Challenges Loom

The latest "Mapping the Future of APAC Travel" report released by Expedia Group reveals a seemingly contradictory picture: nearly two-thirds (about 62%) of travel professionals in the Asia-Pacific region expect demand to grow over the next two to three years, but at the same time, more than one-third point to technology infrastructure and content localization as major bottlenecks. This finding has multiple implications for global emerging market observers—it not only reflects the resilience of tourism recovery in the post-pandemic era, but also exposes the deep structural gaps that the Global South economies face in the wave of digitalization.

Regional Divergence: India Leads, China Steady

The report is based on a survey of 1,250 travel professionals from Australia, China, India, Japan, and Thailand. India leads with an 82% demand growth expectation, followed by Australia at 76%. Notably, India is predicted by respondents to be the strongest source of outbound travel growth in the next two to three years, while Hong Kong SAR and India itself are among the top for inbound travel growth expectations. This trend is highly consistent with the long-term assessment that the Global South's economic focus is shifting to Asia: young demographics, middle-class expansion, and digital penetration are redefining the growth engine of the tourism industry.

For China, although data is not separately listed, as one of the world's largest outbound travel markets, its growth expectations are still considered steady. Japan also receives high expectations due to the recovery of inbound tourism and the effect of the yen's depreciation. Overall, intra-APAC travel and leisure travel (including mass and high-end) are favored by more than 60% of professionals, indicating a trend of enhanced intra-regional circulation.

Payment Diversification and AI Adoption: Opportunities and Capability Gaps

The survey shows that 60% of respondents believe the importance of localized and diversified payment options is rising, and more than 70% think that "buy now, pay later," international credit cards, and loyalty points have become essentials for the booking experience. At the same time, 59% of professionals have observed an increase in demand for booking through AI tools or non-traditional platforms.

However, this change on the demand side has not been fully matched by the supply side. 33% of respondents cite a lack of localized content as a major challenge, 34% point to discoverability issues on search and AI platforms, and 35% say legacy systems are slowing down the adoption of new technologies. Although 79% of respondents have already started using AI and 97% plan to use it in the future, the efficiency and integration in actual implementation still need to be tested.Expedia Group’s Aileen Chan, Vice President of Sales for Asia Pacific, noted: “Complexity—spanning payments, content, and technology—remains a major barrier. The opportunity lies in helping partners simplify the experience and scale with confidence.” This comment highlights the typical dilemma in emerging market tourism: strong demand but uneven digital maturity on the supply side. For small and medium-sized travel enterprises in particular, legacy systems and a lack of locally adapted content can directly erode competitiveness.

Implications for Investment and Development in the Global South

From a long-term growth perspective, the above characteristics of Asia Pacific tourism reflect the common challenges of economic transformation in the Global South. First, demographics and rising incomes indeed support consumption upgrades, but technological shortcomings may become a bottleneck. Second, the adoption of payments and AI requires more developed fintech and digital infrastructure—precisely the key areas for attracting foreign investment and fostering local innovation in emerging markets. Third, intra-APAC tourism growth replaces traditional inter-regional travel, reinforcing a trade and service flow model of “South-South cooperation.”

For international investors, tourism-related infrastructure (such as hotel booking systems, payment gateways, and AI customer service tools) shows clear gaps in the lower-tier markets of India, Southeast Asia, and China—but also offers high-return potential. On sovereign risk, policy stability, data localization regulations, and foreign exchange volatility remain ongoing concerns.

Conclusion

Expedia’s research provides quantitative evidence for Asia Pacific tourism growth, but its deeper signal is that without bridging the technology gap, growth potential will not be fully realized. Tourism in the Global South stands at a crossroads—either seize the “latecomer advantage” by accelerating digital transformation, or be slowed by complexity and systemic inertia. For observers, the key indicators over the next two to three years are not growth numbers themselves, but payment diversity, depth of AI adoption, and the degree of content localization. These are the critical variables that will determine whether tourism in Asia Pacific—and the Global South as a whole—can achieve sustainable and inclusive growth.