Fourth of Dutch can't afford vacation

An increasing number of Dutch people decide not to go away during the summer holidays because they can't afford it. This year a quarter of Dutch people have opted to rather stay home, in 2012 the figure was 18 percent. This is according to a holiday money survey done by the National Institute for Budget Information, Nibud, the Telegraaf reports. According to the results of the survey, many of the people staying home for the holidays are households with a below average income - less than 1,750 euros per month. The average Dutch household go away on holiday for 16 days. People and families with low incomes who do go on vacation, often do so for a much shorter time, a week at the most. The higher incomes often go away for two or three weeks. The average 16 day holiday usually costs about 3,170 euros. "Households who stay at home can not afford a vacation", a spokesperson for Nibud said to the Telegraaf. "They need the money for other things. The money is put aside or spent on household expenses. We further see that people with arrears use the money to repay debts or to supplement shortfalls in the current account." The study also showed that 93 percent of Dutch people take short trips during the holidays. Popular locations are the cinema, zoo, concerts, festivals, museums and casinos. People who do not go on vacation take fewer trips than those who don't. 20 percent of the low-income households that do not go on vacation don't take trips at all, because they can not afford it.