Why Travel? Report
At a glance
- Modern travellers prioritise meaning, personal connection, and self-expression over traditional itineraries, driven by social influence and technology.
What the report covers
Published by Trip.com Group and Google, this report examines evolving travel motivations among contemporary travellers, with particular focus on Asia-Pacific markets including Thailand, Indonesia, and India. It analyses the shift from conventional sightseeing toward experience-driven, wellness-oriented, and culturally immersive travel. The research explores how technology, livestreaming, and social influences shape booking behaviour and destination selection in these key markets.
Key findings
The report identifies a fundamental shift in travel motivation away from traditional itineraries toward experience-led journeys. Modern travellers prioritise meaning and personal connection, viewing travel as a vehicle for self-expression and healing. This transition reflects broader lifestyle changes where travel functions beyond conventional tourism, becoming integral to personal wellbeing and identity formation.
Livestream platforms have emerged as significant discovery and transaction channels in key Asia-Pacific markets. According to the report, over 75% of travellers in Thailand, Indonesia, and India engage with travel-related livestreams, with up to 76% reporting likelihood to book directly through these platforms. This indicates substantial influence of social commerce on purchasing decisions and represents a departure from traditional OTA-dominated booking pathways.
Cultural experiences demonstrate accelerating search growth, signalling traveller appetite for authentic, educational encounters. The report records a 53% year-on-year increase in searches for cultural activities such as Japanese tea ceremonies. This surge reflects preference for immersive, locally-rooted experiences over passive sightseeing and mass-market attractions.
Wellness travel represents the fastest-growing segment in the measured categories. Searches for wellness-focused trips, specifically golf and spa resorts, have grown 300%, demonstrating strong contemporary demand for recuperative, health-oriented travel. This exceptional growth rate exceeds cultural experience search increases, establishing wellness as the dominant emerging travel motivation.
Key numbers
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Likelihood to book directly through livestream platforms | up to 76% |
Figures as published in the source; forecasts and survey results are labelled as such in the note.
Why it matters
DMOs & destinations
Destinations must reposition marketing around experiential, cultural, and wellness offerings rather than generic attractions. Rising livestream engagement in Asia-Pacific signals urgent need for social commerce integration and content creator partnerships. DMOs should develop authentic cultural programming, leverage livestream distribution channels, and build direct booking relationships with travel content platforms to capture demand from travellers seeking meaning over conventional sightseeing.
Hotels & hospitality
Wellness amenities and spa offerings now command premium positioning in travel decision-making. Properties must develop experience-led packages combining cultural immersion, wellness treatments, and personalised services to align with motivation shifts. Livestream shopping presents direct booking opportunity; hotels should pursue partnerships with travel content creators, enable shoppable video formats, and optimise for social commerce to reach engaged Asia-Pacific audiences booking through non-traditional channels.
Travel tech & distribution
Livestream commerce is fundamentally reshaping booking behaviour in high-growth markets; platforms must invest in shoppable video infrastructure and creator ecosystem development. AI-driven personalisation should emphasise cultural and wellness experiences over itinerary-based search. Distribution strategies require hyper-local market focus on Thailand, Indonesia, and India alongside integration of social commerce capabilities with traditional OTA channels to capture this emerging booking behaviour.
Methodology and limits
This brief is based on the publicly available summary and corporate website content only; the full report text was not accessible from the source provided. The report draws on search data analysis and engagement metrics from Trip.com and Google platforms across Asia-Pacific markets. Figures represent observed behaviours including livestream engagement and booking intent, as well as year-on-year search trend growth rates. Specific sample sizes, detailed survey methodology, and precise data collection periods are not disclosed in the available summary material.
Official source
The report is © Trip.com Group / Google. This brief is an original editorial summary by TourismIntel — it quotes only figures published in the source and never reproduces the document.
Check the official statistics on Pulse
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