Europeans Hope to Travel This Summer

Despite lockdowns and strict measures in most EU countries, Europeans are eager to travel and hope to do this before the end of July 2021. This information is stated in the latest report by the European Travel Commission (ETC). 54% of respondents plan to have a domestic vacation to travel to another European country within the next six months.

Every month, ETC publishes an upgraded travel report with information about limitations caused by COVID-19, current market sentiment, and the biggest challenges that the market faces. The latest issue of the report is based on the data collected in January 2021. Today, Europeans are equally concerned about the number of COVID-19 cases and possible quarantine measures for travelers (15% each). Safety is more important when before these days. Almost two-thirds (69%) of respondents say that they are willing to travel to places that have strict health protocols. Only 21% of respondents see health protocols as a potential threat to their trouble-free vacation.

Vaccination is a key to tourism recovery. Both industry experts and tourists agree on this. Mass vaccination makes everyone hope that tourism will start recovering already this summer. 11% of Europeans say that vaccines are one of the main factors for them to plan their next vacation. By the way, what vacation types are Europeans dreaming of nowadays? It looks like hotels in Mallorca, Algarve, San Sebastian, Sicily, or Mykonos do not need to worry. Beach destinations are at the top of the list today. After the long lockdown, people are craving sun and beach. Tourists from the UK, Austria, Switzerland, and Germany are the most willing to have a beach holiday.

Overall, 34% of Europeans plan to have their next vacation between May and July 2021. A little more than one-third (35%) of respondents prefer to say within borders of their home countries, and 41% of respondents want to visit another European country. The latter is the highest result since the survey start.

People are also less scared of traveling by air these days. The percentage of people who are scared of traveling by air due to coronavirus has fallen from 20% to 16%. In September 2020, only 49% of people were ready to travel by air. The results of the January 2021 survey are better – 54% of respondents are ready to travel by air.