Adventure Tourism: 60+ Statistics, Facts, and Trends [2023]

Adrenaline. 

Thrill. Excitement.

Adventure tourism has it all in spades.

So—

While you’re getting your gear ready for the next big adventure, we’ve curated and vetted a list of adventure tourism stats, facts, and trends to help you get up to speed on what’s happening in the industry.

Top 5 Adventure Tourism Statistics to Know in 2023

1. The adventure tourism industry earned $282B in 2021 worldwide.
2. In the US, adventure tourism added $40B+ to the economy in 2021.
3. With a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15%, the adventure tourism market is expected to grow to over $1T by 2030.
4. Women make up 51% of adventure solo travelers.
5. 34% of global adventure travelers are Americans.

General Adventure Tourism Stats and Facts

• Soft adventure activities (e.g., backpacking, camping, and hiking) make up 60% of adventurous tourism’s revenue.
• Hard adventure activities, such as rock climbing or caving, bring 20% in revenue.
• The average length of an adventure trip in 2021 was eight nights.
• The median cost of an adventure trip in 2021 was $2,900, excluding airfares.
• Adventure tourists spend an average of $240 on souvenirs and local handicrafts.
• 54% of Americans went outdoors in 2021, totaling 12B trips.
• 65% of adventure activities are booked independently (without travel agents).
• 55% of adventure travel companies don’t have sustainability certifications.

• Sustainable itineraries are the 2nd most-demanded adventure travel option, just slightly behind custom journeys.

The Portrait of a Typical Adventure Tourist

• Couples are the most likely cohort to engage in adventure tourism, making up 40% of such travelers. Next are solo travelers (25%), groups (20%), and families (14%).
• Women are more likely than men (51% vs. 38%) to seek adventures on their own.

• 85% of tourists aged 30–40 get activity inspirations from social media.
• Living new experiences, going off the beaten track, and traveling as locals are the key adventure travel motivations.
• 34% of the global adventure tourist clientele comes from the US.
• Americans with an annual income of $100K+ make up 32% of adventure travelers.
• The average age of an adventure tourist in America is 37.

• Females make up 46% of outdoor travelers in the US.
• The average annual income of an adventure tourist in the US is $70K.
• 34% of adventure travelers do 52+ outings per year.
• Causal outdoorers who do 1–3 outings yearly make up 33% of US adventure tourists.
• Americans with some college education make up 60% of US adventure travelers.

• Whites make up the majority (72%) of adventure enthusiasts in the US, followed by Hispanics (11%), Blacks (9%), and Asians (5%).
• Hiking is the most popular activity among Whites, exercised by 22% of white Americans.
• Running is the most popular outdoor sport among Asians (24%), Hispanics (21%), and Blacks (15%).
• Asians are the most outdoor-active ethnic group in North America, with 58% engaging in adventure tourism, followed by Whites (56%) and Hispanics (51%). 
• 30% of children under 17 love biking, and 26% enjoy camping.

• 78% of people say that being physically active outside is their key motivation to adventure travel.
• 69% of adventure tourists enjoy interacting with nature.
• Traveling to an outdoor environment is the 3rd most popular reason to engage in adventure tourism, as mentioned by 66% of outdoorers.

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Most Popular Destinations for Adventure Travel

• Europe hosts 100M adventure trips annually.

• The Old World accounted for 40% of adventure tourism revenue in 2021.
• 28% of adventure tourism companies are headquartered in North America, Europe (21%), and South America (18%).
• Europe attracts 49% of adventure tourists. Central America comes second with a 20% clientele share, followed by North America (14%).
• Most popular adventure tourism activities globally:

• The United States (18%), Italy (9%), and Tanzania (7%) were the top destinations for adventure tourists in 2021.

Adventure Tourism Market

• The adventure tourism market was worth $282B globally in 2021, down from $800B+ in 2019.
• The adventure tourism market was valued at $42B in the US in 2021.
• With a year-over-year growth rate of over 15%, the global adventurous tourism market may reach over $1T by 2030.

• Europe has the highest adventure tourism market share of 40%, followed by the Asia-Pacific region (30%) and North America (~20%).

COVID-19 vs. Adventure Tourism

• COVID-19 resulted in a 93% drop in adventurous tourism revenues worldwide.
• 70% of adventure tourism companies in 2021 employed up to 10 people. For comparison, that number was around 40% in 2019.
• Only 2% of adventure tourism companies had 100+ employees in 2021, down from 10% in 2019.
• 81% of adventure tourism operators experienced revenue drops in 2021.
• About eight in 10 adventure travel operators expected their revenues to go up in 2022 compared to 2021.
• 30% of adventure tourism companies made less than $50K in 2021. The share of below 50K earners grew three times from 2019.
• Only 1% of adventure tourism businesses earned $10M+ in 2021, down from 10% in 2019.
• An adventure tourism organization’s average number of clients in 2021 was 1.3K, a 65% decrease from 2019.
• Every one in three adventure tourism companies wanted to take a loan in 2022 to keep the business afloat.
• 79% of adventure tourism operators introduced flexible cancellation policies in response to the pandemic-induced customer drop.
• The adventure tourism segment saw a 1.4x increase in clients from 2020 to 2021. That’s still 65% less compared to 2019.
• Over 40% of adventure tourism operators indicated that travelers aged 50+ were their primary focus in 2022.
• Over half of adventure tourism companies targeted specific genders in their marketing campaigns—37% focused on women and 16% on men.
• Word of mouth is the best strategy to attract new adventure travelers, according to 68% of businesses.

Stacking It All Up

There you have it.

A comprehensive list of adventure travel statistics, facts, and trends to give you a behind-the-scenes look. 

Are there any other stats or facts you’d like to see? 

Let us know in the comments! 

FAQ

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Sources

• Adventure Travel Trade Association, “Diversity in Adventure Travel Report: US. Travelers of Color”
• Adventure Travel Trade Association, “Adventure Travel Industry Snapshot”
• Adventure Travel Trade Association, “Creating, Communicating, and Connecting: Technology in Adventure Travel”
• Grand View Research, “Adventure Tourism”
• Outdoor Foundation, “2022 Outdoor Participation Trends Report”

Adam Grucela

Adam is an SEO & Digital PR writer with a child’s curiosity about the surrounding world. His superpower to dig out juicy facts got him citations in Forbes, Social Media Today, and 90+ other news outlets. Adam enjoys snapping pictures and won the national Huawei Next Image Award.