A key finding from this year’s report showed that international premium class travel—business and first class—grew by 11.8%, outpacing growth in global economy travel of 11.5%.
According to iata, the total number of international premium-class travelers in 2024 was 116.9 million (6% of total international passengers.
Leading the regions in terms of percentage growth was Asia Pacific with a year-on-year growth of 22.8% with 21 million premium passengers—although it was outpaced in growth by economy class passenger numbers, up 28.6% to 500.8 million. Growth in premium travel exceeded economy class travel in Europe, Latin America, Middle East and North America.
Europe remained the largest market for international premium travel, with 39.3 million premium passengers while premium travelers as a percentage of all travelers were highest in the Middle East at 14.7%.
