As the global travel landscape continues to evolve beyond price and proximity, the Mastercard Economics Institute’s Travel Trends 2025 report reveals that travellers are increasingly guided by passion, purpose, and personal fulfilment. For the New Zealand travel trade, these insights offer a roadmap for aligning products and services with deeper consumer motivations in an era where authenticity and values are defining the journey.
Based on aggregated and anonymised global spending patterns, the report surfaces emerging behaviours across sport tourism, wellness escapes, culinary travel, and business mobility while also shining a spotlight on the role of exchange rates and digital protection in shaping booking decisions.
Sporting Events Spark Travel Surges
Major sporting fixtures are acting as economic accelerators for tourism. The report highlights three global events where fan passion translated directly into increased spending. During the Champions League Final in London, Spanish visitors spent 148% more year-on-year, with German fans also boosting local spending by 61%. Shohei Ohtani’s World Series debut triggered a 91% spending surge from Japanese travellers in Los Angeles. The Copa Libertadores Final in Buenos Aires saw Brazilian tourists more than double their cross-border spend.
Wellness, Wilderness & Food-First Itineraries Lead Travel Preferences
Purpose-led travel is driving both long-haul and regional trends. The report’s Wellness Travel Index ranks Namibia, South Africa, and Thailand as top destinations for wellness-focused travellers. Notably, New Zealand, Italy, and Canada are also on the rise signalling a growing recognition of New Zealand’s nature-based, wellness-centric experiences on the global stage. Meanwhile, adventure travel continues to thrive, with national parks in South Africa (23.3%) and Zambia (15.5%) commanding a high share of cross-border tourism spend. Europe’s Nordic region is also gaining traction, with Finland’s national parks accounting for 7.1% of tourist expenditure. On the culinary front, global travellers are increasingly seeking out cities with diverse and authentic food experiences. In 2024, Istanbul led the world, welcoming diners from 67 nationalities. Other top destinations included Cannes, Interlaken, Gianyar (Bali), and Barcelona.
Currency Value Still Matters but With Limits
While currency fluctuations can influence travel behaviour, MEI’s research finds that the impact varies by region. A 1% depreciation of the Japanese yen (JPY) against the Chinese renminbi (RMB) led to a 1.5% increase in Chinese tourism to Japan, but only a 0.2% rise among visitors from New Zealand and the U.S.
Business Travel is Leaner, but Lasts Longer
Corporate travel is evolving. While frequency has declined, the duration of trips has extended with business travellers spending longer and engaging in bleisure activities that adds to work life balance.
Asia-Pacific Dominates Trending Travel Destinations
Asia-Pacific is at the forefront of trending destinations for June–September 2025, led by Tokyo and Osaka, topping booking volumes across multiple markets. Other surging destinations include Hurghada, Palma de Mallorca, Beijing, and Tulum. In Europe, Tirana (Albania) has recorded the sharpest growth in visitors since 2019 driven mainly by Italian tourists positioning the city as an emerging urban hotspot.
Tech-Driven Security Becoming Essential
The rise in travel has brought a parallel increase in fraud — with spikes of up to 28% in peak seasons. MEI notes that digital wallets and AI-driven fraud prevention are now essential tools for traveller protection, providing greater peace of mind.
“Global travel motivations go beyond economics,” says Michelle Meyer, Chief Economist at MEI. “When making the decision to travel, consumers are often seeking purpose and authenticity, along with value.”
