Fewer holidays for 15% of Dutch households as prices continue dramatic rise this year
Spiraling costs are impacting Dutch household vacation planning, with roughly 15 percent of people in the Netherlands indicating they are either going on holiday less often, and 13 percent saying they plan on spending less on vacations in the coming year. That is also prompting those who do go on holiday to book earlier and earlier, said travel operator Zoover based in its Holiday Monitor report.
Airline ticket prices and rising airport fees were among the main factors that forced Dutch households to spend about 16 percent more on their vacations in 2024 when compared to a year earlier. "The increase in costs is happening so fast that a holiday is in danger of becoming inaccessible for some groups of Dutch people," said Zoover representative Reinoud Koot in a press release.
The higher prices are pushing many residents of the Netherlands to fly from airports in Belgium and Germany to save money. Dutch bookings were up 2.5 percent when flying to or from Cologne, 2.2 percent at Charleroi, 2.1 percent at Munster, and 1.7 percent in Dusseldorf. At the same time, Schiphol bookings dropped off by 6 percent, Eindhoven Airport trips fell by 2.3 percent, and bookings at Rotterdam The Hague Airport were down by 1.8 percent.
But the destinations area also becoming pricier. "For trips to Spain, Turkey, Greece and Egypt, the Dutch pay hundreds of euros more than last year," the report confirmed. "This higher travel amount is only partly explained by the fact that holidaymakers more often book a more expensive all-inclusive trip, so that they know in advance what to expect and do not have unexpected expenses."
The company noted that households are trying to lock in the best price they can for vacations during the popular holiday period at the end of the spring, but also the summer vacation period a few months later. Compared to 2023 data, customers completed the purchase of about 24 percent more bookings in December for travel taking place during those two periods.
This year, the late spring school holiday begins with the end of classes on Friday, April 25, two days before King's Day. It runs to Remembrance Day, on Sunday, May 4, which will be followed by the national Liberation Day holiday on May 5. This may have pushed many in the Netherlands to try to book in a way that either maximizes holiday time, or is in balance with the popular King's Day celebration, Remembrance Day ceremony, and Liberation Day festivals.
The six-week summer school holiday starts on July 5 in the southern third of the country, July 12 in the northern region, and July 19 in the central region. About 11 percent already booked a 2025 summer holiday, Zoover said. Spain, Turkey, Greece and Portugal were the most popular flights on the travel itineraries. "Search behavior shows that France will once again be the most popular holiday destination among the Dutch next year, followed by Spain and the Netherlands."
The analysis, released on Friday, is based on the company's own survey data. It also draws conclusions based on the behavior of roughly 30 million users who visited the website, and about 4 million reviews those users posted online.
