IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/vrs/ejothr/v15y2025i1p81-90n1006.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Older travellers as a critical sector of the tourism industry, now and in the future: overcoming myths and stereotypes

Author

Listed:
  • Patterson Ian

    (Deusto Business School, University of Deusto (Bilbao, Spain) Oxford Institute of Population Ageing, University of Oxford (UK))

  • Balderas-Cejudo Adela

    (Silk Road International University of Tourism and Cultural Heritage Samarkand, Uzbekistan)

Abstract

Population ageing is an irreversible global trend (United Nations, 2023). The global population of people aged 65 years and older is forecast to rise from 10% in 2022 to 16% by 2050. As a result, many older tourists who have large amounts of discretionary time and money at their disposal want to travel the world because they are wealthier, healthier, and more active than previous generations. This review paper provides a thorough analysis of the existing literature to predict the major trends associated with older travellers in the future and how tourism providers can more effectively respond to their changing needs. In the past, marketing campaigns have displayed a lack of understanding of the travel needs of older tourists. A ‘new age’ of older tourism and travel is emerging, where new technologies are becoming key drivers of change to support greater travel opportunities. This is likely to provide greater economic benefits for local communities because of the increased spending power of the ‘silver economy’. Marketing of tourism needs to be portrayed as a pleasurable and enjoyable experience, and as a mentally and physically healthy pursuit that can add increased vitality to the lives of older people.

Suggested Citation

  • Patterson Ian & Balderas-Cejudo Adela, 2025. "Older travellers as a critical sector of the tourism industry, now and in the future: overcoming myths and stereotypes," European Journal of Tourism, Hospitality and Recreation, Sciendo, vol. 15(1), pages 81-90.
    • Handle: RePEc:vrs:ejothr:v:15:y:2025:i:1:p:81-90:n:1006
    DOI: 10.2478/ejthr-2025-0006
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.2478/ejthr-2025-0006
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.2478/ejthr-2025-0006?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Dalia Streimikiene & Biruta Svagzdiene & Edmundas Jasinskas & Arturas Simanavicius, 2021. "Sustainable tourism development and competitiveness: The systematic literature review," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(1), pages 259-271, January.
    2. Roberto Patuelli & Peter Nijkamp, 2016. "Travel motivations of seniors," Tourism Economics, , vol. 22(4), pages 847-862, August.
    3. Chikuta Oliver & Kabote Forbes & Chikanya Nyasha, 2017. "Tour guides experiences with tourists with disabilities," European Journal of Tourism, Hospitality and Recreation, Sciendo, vol. 8(2), pages 130-139, December.
    4. Tzong-Shyuan Chen & Min-Shiang Hwang & Yin-Ju Chang, 2022. "The effect of wealth effect and population aging on tourism expenditure," Current Issues in Tourism, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 25(11), pages 1852-1865, June.
    5. Anders Wretstrand & Helena Svensson & Sofi Fristedt & Torbjörn Falkmer, 2009. "Older people and local public transit: Mobility effects of accessibility improvements in Sweden," The Journal of Transport and Land Use, Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota, vol. 2(2), pages 49-65.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Sien Leong Liew & Siti Rahayu Hussin & Nawal Hanim Abdullah, 2021. "Attributes of Senior-Friendly Tourism Destinations for Current and Future Senior Tourists: An Importance-Performance Analysis Approach," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(1), pages 21582440219, March.
    2. Al-Bakri Mohammad & Nazatul Aqilah Sutrisno & Tuan Sarifah Aini Syed Ahmad & Wan Admiza Wan Hassan & Siti Sara Ibrahim, 2025. "Positioning of Mosque Tourism Through Digitalization: A Case Study of Masjid Sri Sendayan Negeri Sembilan Malaysia," Information Management and Business Review, AMH International, vol. 17(1), pages 359-370.
    3. Apak, Ömer Ceyhun & Gürbüz, Ahmet, 2023. "The effect of local food consumption of domestic tourists on sustainable tourism," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    4. Hellen Ogutu & Youssef El Archi & Lóránt Dénes Dávid, 2023. "Current trends in sustainable organization management: A bibliometric analysis," Oeconomia Copernicana, Institute of Economic Research, vol. 14(1), pages 11-45, March.
    5. Pipatpong Fakfare & Walanchalee Wattanacharoensil, 2023. "Low‐carbon tourism for island destinations: A crucial alternative for sustainable development," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(1), pages 180-197, February.
    6. Kuo-Yan Wang & Jing Yu & Ka-Yin Chau & Jinchao Chen, 2025. "Exploring Sustainability Dynamics in Chinese Folk Belief Consumer Behavior: A Quintuple Innovation Helix Approach," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 16(1), pages 3350-3385, March.
    7. Gözde Özdemir Uçgun & Muhammed Talha Narcı, 2022. "The Role of Demographic Factors in Tourists’ Sustainability Consciousness, Sustainable Tourism Awareness and Purchasing Behavior," Journal of Tourismology, Istanbul University, Faculty of Economics, vol. 8(2), pages 215-237, December.
    8. Agung Hidayat & Maria Theresia Sri Budiastuti & Edy Trihatmoko & Danardono Danardono & Diah Ainurrohmah, 2024. "The potential of community-based ecotourism development with an ecosystem service approach: a case study of Kaliwlingi Village, Brebes, Indonesia," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 26(12), pages 31099-31119, December.
    9. Susanne T. Dale Nordbakke, 2019. "Mobility, Out-of-Home Activity Participation and Needs Fulfilment in Later Life," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(24), pages 1-16, December.
    10. Hou, Yuting & Yap, Winston & Chua, Rochelle & Song, Siqi & Yuen, Belinda, 2020. "The associations between older adults’ daily travel pattern and objective and perceived built environment: A study of three neighbourhoods in Singapore," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 99(C), pages 314-328.
    11. S. V. Ilkevich, 2018. "Senior Tourism Persp Ectives In The Context Of The Pension Reform In Russia," Strategic decisions and risk management, Real Economy Publishing House, issue 4.
    12. Yanan Li & Sid Terason, 2023. "Configuring the Pattern of Sustainable Tourism Development as Affected by the Construction of a High-Speed Railway System," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(3), pages 21582440231, July.
    13. Muhammad Ashraf Fauzi, 2025. "Sustainable tourism and sustainable development goals (SDGs): a state-of-the-art review of past, present, and future trends," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 27(2), pages 2841-2862, February.
    14. Antolini, Fabrizio & Terraglia, Ivan & Cesarini, Samuele, 2024. "Integrating multiple data sources to measure sustainable tourism in Italian regions," Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    15. Seieun Kim & Aura Lydia Riswanto & Angellie Williady & Reza Asriandi Ekaputra & Hak-Seon Kim, 2025. "A geospatial and big data exploration of tourism destinations: A case study of Busan, Republic of Korea," Electronic Markets, Springer;IIM University of St. Gallen, vol. 35(1), pages 1-17, December.
    16. repec:plo:pone00:0087827 is not listed on IDEAS
    17. Hansson, Lisa & Holmgren, Johan, 2018. "Cost effect of reorganising – A study of special transport services," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 453-459.
    18. Mifsud, Deborah & Attard, Maria & Ison, Stephen, 2017. "To drive or to use the bus? An exploratory study of older people in Malta," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 23-32.
    19. Amr Al‐Ansi, 2025. "Organized Crimes, Cultural Heritage, and Sustainable Tourism: A Configurational Analysis," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 33(3), pages 4294-4308, June.
    20. Christopher Zegras & Jae Seung Lee & Eran Ben-Joseph, 2012. "By Community or Design? Age-restricted Neighbourhoods, Physical Design and Baby Boomers’ Local Travel Behaviour in Suburban Boston, US," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 49(10), pages 2169-2198, August.
    21. Yuanhe Yu & Junwei Li & Zijun Li, 2025. "The impact of an urban tourism boom on farmers' income in neighboring rural communities: Evidence from the Lijiang Ancient City, China," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 33(2), pages 1714-1728, April.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:vrs:ejothr:v:15:y:2025:i:1:p:81-90:n:1006. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Peter Golla (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.sciendo.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.