Greece set a negative European record in 2024 in terms of its citizens’ ability to take a vacation, as according to the latest Eurostat data, Greece, Romania, and Bulgaria are the three countries with the largest percentage of the population that finds it impossible to take a one-week vacation for financial reasons.
Despite the millions of arrivals of foreign tourists, one in two Greeks cannot enjoy even basic vacations. The phenomenon reveals not only the reduced purchasing power, but also the disproportionate impact of punctuality, low wages, and general economic insecurity on the daily lives of citizens.
The data for Greece are revealing: In a country where tourism is a pillar of the national economy, 46% of its citizens cannot cover the cost of a week’s vacation, marking one of the lowest European performances. The worst “score” in Europe is recorded by Romania, where the corresponding percentage reaches 58.6%, and Bulgaria records a slightly better performance than Greece, with 41.4% declaring the inability to take a vacation.
More than 35% of the population cannot cover the cost of a week’s vacation in both Hungary and Portugal (39.3% and 35.2% respectively).
In contrast, only 8.9% of residents in Luxembourg, 11.6% in Sweden, and 13% in the Netherlands lack the financial resources for a vacation.
In Europe as a whole, the average population that cannot afford the cost of a holiday stands at 27%, showing a decrease of 1.5 percentage points compared to 2023, and is at significantly lower levels (or by 10.6 percentage points) compared to a decade ago.
