The summer of 2025 marked a shift in premium Visa cardholder spending across Egypt, Pakistan, and Qatar. Over the three-month holiday period, average spend rose 33 percent year-on-year, driven by a surge in luxury travel and the rapid uptake of digital commerce.
Extended getaways made up two-thirds of travel spend across Egypt, Pakistan, and Qatar, reflecting a growing preference among affluent travelers for longer holidays that combine iconic and emerging destinations with immersive experiences. At the same time, eCommerce purchases grew by over 31 percent, reflecting greater comfort with alternative payment methods and deeper integration of online shopping into daily life.
Beneath the regional trend lie distinct market dynamics. In Qatar, premium cardholders generated 71 percent of all summer spend, with strong gains in leisure, dining, and online payments¹. In Pakistan, digital payments by premium customers more than doubled, alongside robust outbound travel growth². In Egypt, premium consumer card spend rose 44 percent, led by travel and experiential purchases³.
These patterns point to a broader transformation in consumer behavior. Luxury is becoming the norm for affluent travelers, digital-first payments are embedded in their routines, and experiences — from fine dining to curated leisure — are at the center of spending. The payment journey is now expected to be as seamless as the travel experience itself.
Visa’s Retail Spend Monitor, developed by Visa Consulting & Analytics (VCA), captured these shifts through VisaNet transaction data and survey-based estimates across payment methods. By combining deep regional insight with the scale of global data, VCA helps businesses anticipate seasonal demand, adapt to evolving preferences, and unlock growth.
As premium consumers increasingly seek extended travel and effortless digital commerce, issuers, merchants, and travel partners have an opportunity to lead the next phase of market growth by adapting to these expectations.
