Possibilities and Pitfalls: European Travel Activities Market Tops €38 Billion

European travelers spent more than €38 billion on travel activities in 2013, representing roughly 13% of the region's travel market. But while digital channels play an increasingly important role among European travelers, according to an upcoming Phocuswright report, only one quarter of travel activity gross bookings is transacted online.

When They Get There (and Why they Go): Activities, Attractions, Events and Tours in Europe – a European and Global Edition report – is scheduled to publish on March 4, 2014.

Over the past decade, technological and commercial innovations have generated substantial interest in opportunities to drive online distribution and mobile discovery of in-destination events, activities, attractions and tours. Between 2005 and 2012, travel activities startups attracted over US$130 million in capital, and the investment flow continues. However, a substantial majority of activities continue to be booked offline.

"The travel activities opportunity is substantial, but so are the segment's challenges," says Douglas Quinby, Phocuswright's vice president, research. "The tools and technologies needed to transform the activities marketplace exist, but numerous inhibitors – including a highly fragmented activity provider landscape, entrenched booking behaviors, barriers to last-minute availability and challenging economics – are slowing the digitization of one of travel's stubbornly offline segments. The potential remains for a disruptive player to drive rapid gains within the segment, but the profits will be painstakingly earned."

Learn more about key challenges and opportunities in the European activities market during Phocuswright@ITB, taking place 5 March, 2014 in Berlin, Germany. A morning session entitled "When They Get There (And Why They Go): Tours, Activities and the European Traveler" delivers the results of Phocuswright's in-depth research and features a panel of key leaders who are remaking this rapidly changing travel segment. For more information, visit www.phocuswright.com/phocuswright-at-itb.

Phocuswright's When They Get There (and Why they Go): Activities, Attractions, Events and Tours in Europe takes a comprehensive look at more than 30 types of travel activities across five key countries in Europe – France, Germany, Spain, Italy and the U.K. The report provides insight into progress made in the broader travel activities ecosystem in the past several years and examines lingering barriers to online and mobile activities growth.

Key topics include:

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• Market sizing and forecasts for the European travel activities market from 2012-2015, including breakouts by activity type
• In-depth analysis of the travel activities opportunity, including key players, marketplace dynamics, and prospects for new entrants, established players and would-be disruptors
• Traveler behavior in relation to in-destination services, including research, shopping and booking trends; key drivers and inhibitors; advance purchase patterns; and the importance of individual activities within the trip lifecycle
• The role and impact of emerging technologies, including reservation and distribution technologies, social media and mobile
• Challenges and opportunities for travel suppliers, distributors and technology providers