Golf Business Community

Following the first edition of our Golf Travel Insights report in 2008, the world has experienced a major economic downturn, and, similarly to other industries, golf tourism has also been hit hard. We have prepared this second edition with the aim to find out about recent trends in golf tourism, how customer needs and preferences have changed and what is expected in the years to come.

The Golf Travel Insights report is based on a global survey among golf tour operators, performed by KPMG’s Golf Advisory practice during summer 2010. Over 120 golf tour operators from 41 countries have participated in the survey. As a conclusion of our key findings, the survey shows that while Spain and Portugal remain the number one targets, followed by traditional golf destinations in the UK, Ireland and the US, emerging destinations in the South-east Mediterranean and Southeast Asia can become a success story if they follow a conscious and well master planned development strategy, by understanding customer needs.

 We have also invited Peter Walton, chief executive of the International Association of Golf Tour Operators (IAGTO), to provide an overview of the recent trends in the global golf tourism industry. IAGTO, the global trade organisation of the golf tourism industry has 1450 member companies in 81 countries including 350 golf tour operators in 50 countries.

Please read Peter’s enlightening “State of the Market Briefing”, which will also help you put KPMG’s survey findings into the right context.

Also read interview with Andrew Stanley, CEO of Golfbreaks.com, on how is the golf travel market performing, how are destinations, resorts and travel companies adapting, and what are the new trends in customer behaviour.