Dutch people travel less to the US and Canada now due to the more expensive dollar

Less Dutch people are going to the United States of America or Canada on vacation this year. Travel to the two countries has risen considerably in price as the dollar is now a lot more expensive compared to the euro, this is leading to Dutch consumers preferring different destinations.

Specialized travel providers told ANP that they are not expecting Dutch people to stay in the United States because of the arrival of the new American president, Donald Trump. “Dutch people do not respond to this at all, we saw this during the first period under Trump,” said Paul Backer, the owner of Tioga Tours, during the travel association ANVR’s New Year reception.

“American camping rental companies said that all Swiss people canceled their trips after 9/11, as did half of the Germans but zero of the Dutch people. That shows how the Dutch view political situations," said Backer. The Dutch still request quotes for trips to America, but according to him, they still drop out more often when they see a price increase of 10 to 15 percent.

“If the price is right, then Dutch people will go,” said the director of Travel Trend Natasja Eshuis. “But right now, our trips cost a couple of hundred euros more. As a family, you can easily calculate that it is way cheaper to go to Indonesia or Thailand. There is more interest in that right now. We do not know if these are the same customers, but we make up with Asia what we lose in turnover in America."

The ANVR has also recognized the dwindling interest in trips to the United States and Canada. Long-distance travel is generally gaining popularity, although its share in total travel remains lower than before the coronavirus crisis (14.2 percent versus 15.8 percent). "Indonesia and China emerged from the corona dip very slowly but are now completely 'back on track'," the association stated.

ANVR director Frank Radstake expects a "slight" growth in the number of bookings across the board for 2025. He cannot yet predict whether this will completely compensate for the consequences of the coronavirus crisis. Initially, the industry thought that last year there would be more bookings than in 2019 for the first time, but due to price increases, among other things, growth came to a lower-than-expected 4 percent.