Abstract
Why buy this report
- Get insight into trends in market performance
- Pinpoint growth sectors and identify factors driving change
- Identify market and brand leaders and understand the competitive
environment
Product coverage
Airline capacity and utilisation; Arrivals by country of origin; Arrivals by
mode of transport; Arrivals by purpose of visit; Car rental services by
sector; Demand factors; Departures by destination; Departures by mode of
transport; Departures by purpose of visit; Domestic tourism by destination;
Domestic tourism by mode of transport; Tourism receipts and expenditure;
Tourist attractions; Transportation; Travel accommodation; Travel retail
services
Executive summary
1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Recovery of Dutch economy will help tourist industry
The economic slowdown in 2003 had a very negative impact on the Dutch tourist
industry. After 2003 consumer confidence plummeted and the Dutch consumer
became highly price sensitive. Many families that were impacted by the
economic slowdown in many cases had to change or put off their holiday plans
as a result of financial pressures. Although in 2005 the economy still slowed
down, analysts predict that the worst of the recession was over. If the
economy makes a recovery over the forecast period, this will have a positive
effect on the willingness of Dutch consumers to spend money on holidays.
Only modest growth of arrivals and tourist receipts in 2005
The Dutch tourism industry showed modest growth in terms of number of arrivals
and incoming tourist receipts. Receipts grew by a higher percentage than the
number of tourists which was due to the relatively higher growth in business
travel. Business travel usually has a stronger effect on receipts than regular
tourism. The Netherlands is a popular tourist destination but, owing to the
small size of the country, visitors tend to come to the country for short
breaks, rather than long holidays. Many visitors, especially those from
further afield, tend to include the Netherlands as part of a larger itinerary,
encompassing other neighbouring countries.
Outgoing tourism continues to increase
Despite economic turmoil, worrying world events and health scares, outgoing
tourism numbers rose substantially over the review period. The economic
recession meant that during the review period more people took shorter trips
to neighbouring countries in Europe and chose to travel by car. For their long
holidays, the Dutch avoided Eurozone countries in favour of cheap long haul
destinations or European countries such as Turkey and the Czech Republic.
The internet has a major impact on the Dutch tourist industry
The developments in on-line sales are progressing extremely quickly. The
internet has caused a true revolution in the travel business over the review
period. The Dutch in general are not keen on on-line sales as they still have
reservations about divulging their bank details. However, on-line travel sales
are something of an exception. The Dutch have a very high level of computer
ownership and fast internet speed. This all led to significant growth of
on-line sales over the review period. Many companies across the various
industries connected to tourism are struggling to cope with the new demands
and the increased competition from internet intermediaries.
Rembrandt anniversary boosts tourism
2006 is expected to see extraordinary growth in the number of arrivals. The
Dutch tourism industry is expecting that the many events and special
exhibitions surrounding the anniversary of the birth of Rembrandt will attract
many more tourists to the Netherlands. The organisation of the Rembrandt 400
year celebrations has concentrated on making 2006 a special year. Obviously
the high number of visitors can not be sustained in 2007 and the following
years, however, there is an expectation that the anniversary will have a
positive effect on overall tourism to the Netherlands. Word of mouth and
return visits from neighbouring countries in particular will give Dutch
tourism a boost for the years to come.
View Cart
