Asia Pacific’s pet population grew at a CAGR of 2.4% between 2019 and 2024. The rise of lifestyle choices, such as DINKWADs (double income, no kids, with a dog), are bringing forth pet parents’ desire to include their animal companions in multiple aspects of their lives, both within and outside the home. One such avenue that is being increasingly explored is travelling with pets. Travel and pet industry players need to relook at the traveller journey through a pet parent’s lens. Opportunities begin right from the planning and discovery stage, through enhanced on-board experiences, all the way to lodging, presenting an experiential retail channel opportunity.
Experiential travellers on the road with their fur babies
Asia Pacific outbound and domestic tourism is expected to grow at a 7% CAGR in the coming five years and reach USD2.6 billion by 2029
Source: Euromonitor International
Growing appetite for pet travel is observed as perceptions around pet ownership become increasingly sophisticated in Asia Pacific. Pet owners hope to share unique life experiences not only within the home but also outside of it beyond cafés, parks and beaches. In fact, 68% of Asia Pacific pet-owning respondents seek curated experiences, while 66% of them believe it is important to spend on experiences, higher agreement compared to the global and Asia Pacific averages, according to Euromonitor’s Voice of the Consumer: Lifestyles Survey, fielded January to February 2024.
This brewing experiential-driven sentiment coupled with strong desire to enhance pets’ life experience presents an opportunity for curated pet travel experiences. Collaborations between travel and pet players along the traveller journey are key to achieve synergy when tapping into pet travel white space.
Getting on board during the discovery and planning stage
While the desire to experience new places with a pet is gaining ground, the process surrounding it can be quite complicated. Given the set of considerations a pet owner needs to review while making any pet travel plans, the discovery and planning stage stands out as potentially the most critical part of the journey.
When considering international travel, a country’s import requirements, particularly the pet quarantine period, serve as the biggest barrier to short-stay trips. Factors like country of origin, health certifications, vaccinations and microchipping determine the duration of quarantine. China, for instance, has a policy that stretches between zero and 30 days, while Japan’s policy ranges from 12hrs up to six months, with the possibility of extensions at both locations. While such rules limit the prospects of international pet leisure travel, they create more space for domestic pet travel to develop.
In this regard, online touchpoints will be important to tap into.
Over 70% of travel bookings in Asia Pacific will be made online in the next five years
Source: Euromonitor’s Travel system
Pet brands can capitalise on online touchpoints for branding moments. In May 2024, Mars Petcare, along with TripAdvisor, launched a new co-branded digital platform to connect consumers with pet-friendly travel destinations, businesses and communities. Features like pet-friendly destinations, an AI-powered trip planner and forums to connect with other pet parents help it serve as a one-stop resource for pet-friendly travel. Businesses that aim to serve the pet traveller must find touchpoints along the discovery and planning stage to rightfully capture interests like pet-friendly spaces, activities, walking trails, veterinary access etc.
Enhancing the on-board experience across travel modes
Travel modes that don’t just allow pets on board but also offer the right facilities and services catered towards the pet stand to gain through a better on-board experience. These modes aren’t just limited to air travel, but surface travel modes as well, such as trains, buses, cruises, and even ride-sharing options.
Over the next five years, surface travel in Asia Pacific is expected to grow at an 11.6% CAGR as a value for money and convenient alternative to air travel, especially amongst domestic travellers
Source: Euromonitor International
In order to enhance the on-board experience, businesses need to look at ways to integrate their offering into the experience. An example of this is Dog Cruise on the Royal Albatross in Singapore. Positioned as a luxurious dog cruise, the experience offers a 3-hour sunset sail with a 3-course meal sponsored by PetCubes, a Singaporean premium pet food brand. Elements like welcome packs, travel kits, toys, consumables and facilities don’t just make the experience more inclusive for the pet but more welcoming and comfortable for the pet parent.
Lodging as a new experiential retail channel
Hotels in the region tapped into the pet staycation opportunity in the past few years. Stay packages and in-room amenities are customised to attend to the needs of the special furry guest. Other than in-room welcome packs, there is more to explore.
65% of pet food and products was sold through offline channels in Asia Pacific in 2024
Source: Euromonitor’s Pet Care system
Hotels as a retail space can provide an elevated premium brand experience for travelling pet parents. Premium pet food in Asia Pacific is expected to reach USD9 billion in 2029. A brand collaboration area or integrated experiential area in hotels could further fuel the growth of premium pet food.
Asia Pacific’s pet travel sector is poised for growth, driven by evolving pet ownership trends and an increasing willingness among pet owners to invest in experiences with their companion animal. By considering aspects like experiences, inclusivity and collaborations, both pet care and travel sector players can unlock the full pawtential of this burgeoning space.
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