The rise in the number of outbound Chinese tourists and growth of shared accommodation are the two megatrends that are reshaping the Asia Pacific tourism and hospitality sector, according to CBRE’s inaugural Hotel Megatrends report.

According to CBRE, intra-regional tourism is forecast to grow by 286 million trips by 2020 and will remain the key demand driver as people are most likely to travel within the same region for their first overseas trip. International tourist arrivals to the region have also been growing steadily. According to United Nations World Tourism Organization, the region welcomed 279 million international tourist arrivals in 2015 and the number is predicted to increase to 355 million in 2020.

The strong intra-regional tourism is due to the rise in the number of Chinese travelling abroad, says CBRE. The number of Chinese outbound tourists rose 10% y-o-y to 128 million in 2015, while spending increased by 26% over the same period to reach US$292 billion. CBRE expects China to continue to lead the growth and it is forecasting that mainland Chinese will make 134 million intra-regional trips by 2020.

On the other hand, CBRE observes that the rise of shared accommodation poses a major challenge for the traditional hotel industry. The main competitive advantage of online platforms such as Airbnb is their ability to offer accommodations at a lower price. Properties on Airbnb often come with free amenities such as washing machine and kitchen, which traditional hotels rarely offer.