Dutch travelers shift toward familiar European destinations amid Iran war

Dutch consumers are booking summer and May holidays more cautiously following the Iran war, with travel patterns shifting sharply toward familiar European destinations while long-haul and Asian travel declines, according to the ANVR, the Dutch travel industry association, and tour operators.

The ANVR says that under normal conditions, about 80 percent of May and summer vacations are booked by this time of year, but that pattern has changed significantly this year.

“Shortly after the outbreak of the war, bookings completely stalled. Fortunately, they have started again, with Europe especially heavily booked. Asia is being avoided. The Dutch appear to be choosing what is familiar. If there is anything travelers dislike, it is uncertainty, so you generally see caution,” said ANVR director Frank Radstake.

According to Radstake, travelers who still opt for long-distance destinations are mainly choosing Cape Verde and Curaçao. Within Europe, Spain, Portugal, and Greece remain the most popular destinations. Turkey and Egypt are also recovering after earlier declines in demand when travelers avoided those countries following the outbreak of the Iran war.

The shift is benefiting some tour operators. Corendon and Sunweb, which focus heavily on well-known holiday destinations, report higher booking numbers compared with last year. Prijsvrij Vakanties and D-reizen report stable figures, with no significant change year-on-year.

A spokesperson for those operators said consumers have become more price-conscious. “Consumers have clearly become more price-conscious. You see that reflected in search and booking behavior: travelers compare more and are more flexible when it comes to choices such as departure dates and airports,” the spokesperson said.

At the same time, Sawadee, a specialist in long-distance and group travel, says it is being negatively affected. The company reports clear evidence of customer postponement behavior. “With the same number of website visitors, we are now converting significantly fewer bookings,” the company said.