As we cross the halfway mark of 2026, is your tourism business feeling the squeeze of rising operating costs, or are you scaling profitably? Let's dive into the critical insights from Arival's Global Operator Landscape 4th Edition - The State of Experiences in Australia & New Zealand. 

Across the Trans-Tasman visitor economy, digital commerce has matured rapidly. Getting discovered online is no longer the primary hurdle for local operators. Instead, the focus has shifted toward managing rising acquisition costs and capturing valuable customer data to maximise yields.

To protect their bottom line, operators are heavily optimising how they generate revenue. Recent data reveals that growing direct bookings is now the absolute number one priority for 41% of ANZ tourism businesses. This massive shift stems from a collective need for better margin control and true customer ownership. While expanding market reach remains a vital goal, operators are actively avoiding over-reliance on third parties. By building out strong direct channels, they can keep more revenue in-house while protecting their brand equity.

This focus on direct growth comes at a time of shifting channel dynamics across the region. Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) have successfully expanded travel audiences, capturing 31% of ANZ bookings in 2025 up from 24% in 2023. This growth naturally softened direct operator website bookings, which slid slightly to 28%. Rather than viewing this as a conflict, smart businesses see it as a balance. In fact, 28% of operators still prioritise adding new distribution partners. The goal for 2026 is a healthy ecosystem where OTAs introduce new customers, and direct websites securely retain them.

Looking at the wider market, this distribution playbook varies greatly by specific travel segment. For instance, tours remain highly OTA-driven at 39%, whereas attractions still capture a third of their bookings via traditional walk-ups. To battle rising operational costs and economic uncertainty, operators are also modernising their pricing. 

Static pricing models dropped significantly to 77%, while variable, demand-based pricing jumped to 18%. However, backend tech fragmentation remains a hurdle, with nearly half of all businesses listing automation and integration as their top priority to replace slow, manual tracking.

If you are currently navigating these shifting market dynamics, these insights offer a practical roadmap to grow your bookings by pinpointing exactly where your profits might be leaking. 

Building a stronger direct channel doesn't mean walking away from the channels that bring you new customers. It means having the right infrastructure underneath both. This is where Nabooki comes in. Our self-serve booking software is built for tour and activity operators who want to run direct bookings, payments and customer data on one platform, without giving up the reach OTAs provide.

With Nabooki, you keep 100% of the margin on your direct bookings (simple monthly subscription, no commission), own your customer data outright, and still plug into the tour operator software built to help you grow a genuinely profitable direct channel alongside your existing distribution.

Ready to strengthen your direct revenue? Contact the Nabooki team to see how it works for your business.

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