Affluent travelers, not middle-class vacationers, appear poised to keep the world’s tourism engine humming even as the broader economy cools.
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Visa’s July “Global Travel Insight” report found that households earning more than $200,000 a year (barely 5% of all households) accounted for roughly 1 in every 4 travel dollars spent worldwide last year.
Using anonymized VisaNet card data, the network revealed that London was the top city for well-heeled visitors, per the report.
Emerging-market elites stayed clear of crowded capitals in favor of seasonal or second-tier destinations such as Japan’s Hokkaido, Egypt’s Mersa Matruh and Argentina’s Mendoza. Asia Pacific was the fastest-growing source of high-income globetrotters, with its affluent household base expected to expand 8% annually through 2030, the report said.
Spending patterns underscored the segment’s heft. Affluent cardholders’ cross-border credit outlays averaged three times that of non-affluent travelers in 2024 and six times in Hong Kong, where retail purchases made up more than half of those charges, per the report.
In Australia, domestic luxury tourists, who are defined as spending more than $500 per night, devote one-third of their budgets to food, drink and shopping, the report said.
Loyalty programs matter, as two-thirds of wealthy Americans said airline or hotel points dictate booking decisions. Those planning international trips over the next year intend to spend 38% more than their mass-market counterparts, according to the report.
Affluent travelers “are not just resilient—they are catalytic,” the report said. “…Merchants and issuers that anticipate their evolving preferences — especially in emerging affluent markets — will be best positioned to capture long-term loyalty and unlock outsized economic value.”
Additionally, affluent consumers in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and India are the most eager to travel, with more than 80% planning at least one trip in the next 12 months, per the report.
Within the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), high-income travelers generated 55% of intra-regional trips, thanks to better air links and easier visas. Meanwhile, Japan climbed to the seventh-most-visited country for wealthy Americans in 2024 from ninth a year earlier, buoyed by demand for immersive cultural experiences, the report said.
PYMNTS’ coverage has tracked similar themes, including Marriott International’s push to court high-spend Chinese tourists via Alibaba’s travel website; American Express Global Business Travel (Amex GBT) seeing multinational customers increase their business travel; and airlines focusing on roomier seats and other perks for wealthier leisure travelers.
The through-line is that travel’s priciest customers are increasingly the sector’s most reliable ones, even when everyone else tightens their belts.
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