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Germans Traveled More Than Other Europeans in Summer 2020

Although the pandemic has limited travel for many people in Europe, Germans seemed to enjoy their summer 2020 vacation despite all troubles. Tourists from Germany made more outbound trips than the European average. A special survey conducted with ITB Berlin and IPK International revealed that Germans decided not to skip their vacation plans because of the COVID-19 and were satisfied with their travel experience.

Approximately one-third of all German outbound travelers had a vacation abroad in June – August 2020 despite the pandemic. This is higher than the average European result of 22% and a lot higher than the global average of 19%. What destinations were Germans interested in the most? Were they booking hotels in Vienna or maybe Amsterdam? It looks like the pandemic made people choose more short-distance locations. Over half of German travelers (60%) decided to visit a neighboring country. The car turned out to be the most popular vehicle choice – 63% of travelers chose this method. Air and rail scored significantly lower – 25% and 12% respectively.

Traveling during Corona can be challenging and less pleasant but Germans were satisfied with their summer 2020 vacations. 66% of Germans called their trips “better than expected”. A little more than one-fourth, 27% of the respondents, called their vacation “as expected”, and only 7% of Germans were not satisfied. Still, the travel satisfaction of German tourists is somewhat lower compared to tourists from Asia and the Americas.

Today, many hotels and transportation companies try to offer cheaper rates in an attempt to revitalize their businesses. Surprisingly, tourists do not feel attracted by discounts. The majority of respondents does not search for cheaper options and did not cut their vacation budgets. In 2021, Germans want to travel abroad, and the percent of people who plan to do this is higher than the European and global average. More Austrians, Swiss, and Dutch than usual also want to travel abroad in 2021.

What destinations do Germans plan to visit in 2021? Hotels in Madrid, Rome, and Vienna might be hot destinations next year as Spain, Italy, and Austria were the top vacation choices. That being said, interest in destinations located outside Europe is lower than usual due to uncertainty about safety and potential problems with entry and exit.

05.12.2020

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