Accor: 16% of Europeans plan to travel to Greece in 2025

More European travelers are expected to travel to Greece in 2025 compared to their respective intentions last year.

According to a report by Accor, 16% of Europeans intend to travel to Greece in the new year – excluding trips within their own country – compared to a corresponding percentage of 13% who stated the same last year.

Most Europeans will prefer Spain (24%), Italy (20%), and France (16%), with our country being fourth in order of preference.

The broader trend recorded in the survey is that Europe will continue to dominate the destinations of choice for Europeans in 2025, however, the number of those choosing Europe (80%) is down 6 percentage points from last year (86%), with an increase in the number of Europeans who will prefer other parts of the world. North America will be chosen by 20% compared to 16% last year, South America by 12% compared to 8% last year, Africa by 13% compared to 10% last year, Asia by 22% compared to 16% last year and Australia by 8% compared to 5% last year.

The report, based on a survey of 8,000 travelers from seven European countries, reveals that more than half of Europeans (53%) expect to spend more on travel in 2025 than in 2024, compared to just 10% who anticipate a smaller holiday budget. Travelers in Poland are, once again, the most confident about the strength of their travel spending in 2025 compared to this year. 65% expect an increased travel budget compared to just 8% who expect a decrease, followed by travelers from Germany (62% vs. 8%) and Spain (55% vs. 12%). 52% of travelers from the Netherlands and the United Kingdom also expect to spend more, while only 12% and 10% respectively expect a decrease in their spending.

Overall, the number of trips that Europeans plan to take in 2025 is also up. 88% say they expect to take at least one leisure trip abroad in the coming year, with significant increases in both international and domestic business trips.

Turning sustainability intentions into choices

While the survey shows continued optimism from European travelers, it also highlights the need for the travel industry to channel its growth sustainably. Climate change and sustainable choices are important to 73% of travelers – up from 71% in the previous survey – including 25% who said these factors are very important (up from 22% last year).

Travelers in Italy and Germany are the most determined to travel green, with 81% saying these factors are important, followed by travelers from Spain (78%), Poland (77%), France (75%), the Netherlands (67%) and the United Kingdom (63%).

In terms of changes they intend to make due to climate concerns, one in five (20%) said they would avoid areas prone to extreme weather. Travelers will also make personal behavioral choices to reduce their negative impact, such as reusing reusable water bottles (36%), taking shorter showers to save water (35%), choosing local and/or seasonal produce in restaurants (32%), and choosing independent businesses in destinations (27%).

Overtourism

The vast majority of travelers (90%) say that issues caused by overtourism will have some impact on where or how they choose to travel in 2025. A third (31%) say they will refrain from traveling during peak periods to avoid crowds. One in four (27%) will avoid destinations suffering from overtourism and more than one in five (22%) will deliberately choose lesser-known spots for their trips.

Overcoming the barriers

With cost still the biggest barrier for consumers to make more positive travel choices, 46% said that reducing the “premium” on sustainable options would make it easier for them to choose. Other factors include the availability of more sustainable options (36%), greater transparency about the impact of offers (34%), and rewards for choosing sustainable options (31%).

Respondents also expressed support for future government actions to encourage greener travel options, such as Germany’s trial of reducing train fares aimed at reducing transport emissions (22%), and a ban on short-haul flights where more sustainable alternatives exist (16%), as has happened in France.

Workations continue to flourish

Expectations for international ‘workations’ – combining work and leisure – are rising in the new year, from 0.6 per traveler last year to 0.87 in 2025. Notably, one in four Europeans (25%) expect to take at least one combined work and leisure trip abroad in 2025, up from 19% in the previous survey. Expectations for domestic workations are also very high, from 0.6 to 0.91 on average per person.

Making budgets go further

While travel is a priority, cost-of-living pressures continue to impact travel plans, with 88% of respondents taking at least one measure to reduce their expenses as a result of the higher cost of living.

Cost-saving plans include avoiding travel during peak season (30%), choosing lower-cost accommodation types (23%) and cheaper destinations (22%), as well as behavioral choices during vacations, such as packing less luggage on flights (13%), drinking fewer drinks (9%), and skipping appetizers or desserts at meals (7%).

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