The newest annual research report from the Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA) shows that cooler-weather destinations and ‘last chance travel’ are key trends over the past year.
ATTA compiles the report from a survey with the association’s global database of adventure tour operators. The survey had 224 respondents from Africa, Asia, North America, Europe, South America, the Caribbean, the Middle East and Oceania.
Adventure travel was found to be on an upward trajectory, with the average number of travellers per operator increasing by 65% in 2023 compared with 2019. On average, trips were 65% full.
Researchers found that while the Mediterranean and Western Europe were consistent favourites for adventure travellers, cooler destinations, such as Scandinavia, were becoming more popular due to an increase in global temperatures.
While global warming has affected where adventure travellers choose to go, climate change has also affected motivations for adventure travellers. For the first time, ‘last chance travel’ is one of the top 10 motivations for adventure travel. This is the motivation to visit certain areas or landmarks before they fall victim to climate change.
Such examples of these destinations include the Arctic, Antarctica, Venice and the Alps, according to Luxury Travel Magazine.
The most popular age group of adventure trip clients is 45-54, making up 38% of all clients. It was found that adventure tour operators are diversifying their market base to focus on families, women and travellers aged 50 and over.
The association also noted that overtourism was becoming a serious problem. “Overtourism was rated the fourth most important tourism and conservation issue by survey respondents,” said Shannon Stowell, CEO of ATTA.
“An increasing number of destinations that are frustrated with overtourism and with destructive and disrespectful tourists, have begun to take action. This bodes well for adventure travel of course but unfortunately some destinations will lump all forms of tourism together as problematic,” she concluded.
