Tourism is expected to become a major driver of economic growth in Asia and the Pacific over the next decade.
Asian Development Bank economist Sanchita Basu Das said the World Travel and Tourism Council estimates tourism will account for 11.2 percent of regional gross domestic product by 2035 and generate jobs equivalent to 12.7 percent of regional employment.
“These are the headline numbers, but they point us towards the scale of opportunity that lies ahead in the sector,” she said Thursday during a webinar on resilient tourism in Asia and the Pacific.
Das said Asia’s tourism sector remains on an upward trajectory, with international arrivals in 2024 reaching 96.3 percent of 2019 pre-pandemic levels, up from 78.8 percent in 2023.
She said tourism performance varied across subregions, with East Asia attracting the highest number of tourists. Oceania, including Australia and New Zealand, accounted for only about 3 percent of arrivals but generated 13 percent to 14 percent of tourism receipts, indicating higher spending per visitor.
In Central Asia, tourism performance also improved.
“From 2016 to 2019, the sub-region's tourism sector accelerated more rapidly than the rest of Asia,” she said.
Das said intra-regional travel remained a key driver of tourism in Asia, with 65 percent of arrivals in 2023 coming from within the region.
“However, while intra-regional travel remains a dominant part, reliance on a single source market is changing,” she noted.
On the impact of the ongoing Middle East conflict, Das said available data for the first quarter of 2026 showed limited effects on Asian tourism economies.
“It should be noted that Asia's direct dependence on Middle East tourists is relatively modest. For most of the countries, Middle Eastern tourists account for less than 0.5 percent of total tourists,” she said, adding that the Middle East serves more as a destination market for Asian travelers than as a source market.
“But the dependence could be higher for the travelers moving from Europe to Southeast Asia, where many Middle Eastern countries act as a transit route for the tourists,” the economist added.
Das also outlined four policy areas to strengthen tourism resilience in Asia.
She said seamless connectivity, including liberal visa policies, could improve accessibility, reduce travel time, and lower costs.
“More open visa regimes encourage bookings and repeat travelers. While restrictive visa policies can reduce international arrivals,” she said.
Das also emphasized the need for common tourism standards through regional cooperation, saying harmonized standards reduce risks for travelers and lower compliance costs for businesses operating across borders.
She added that product and market diversification remain critical, warning that heavy reliance on a small number of markets leaves destinations vulnerable to external shocks.
“Developing thematic multi-country itineraries can boost travels and spending while enabling faster responses during disruptions. These policies support diversification and allow economies to quickly refocus their target markets during times of external shock,” she said.