When holidays are a luxury

The effervescent spending of the past few years, which saw bank clients borrow money to go on holiday is a thing of the past. Now, the tendency is to cut spending. As a result, only 57% of Romanians in urban areas decided to go on holiday this summer, reveals a survey conducted by market research company 360insights. Another 18% said they intended to go on holiday, but at a later time, in September-October. “Most people choose to travel within Romania, and the range of destinations is not very wide,” says Manuela Danila, Omnibus project manager at 360insights. As concerns those who did go on holiday, seven out of ten decided to spend it in Romania, while the preferred destinations for those travelling abroad were Greece, Italy, Bulgaria, Turkey and Spain. “I think during the winter holidays, a large number of tourists will remain in Romania, more than in other years,” believes Sorin Stoica, CEO of Eturia travel agency.

Stoica believes over the next few years, and partly as a result of TV campaigns to promote Romania, tourists will be tempted to go even to previously unexplored areas. However, “the Black Sea coast remains the most in demand” for now, says Radu Morariu, deputy general manager of Eximtur Cluj-Napoca, one of the largest travel agencies on the Romanian market. He adds, however, that lately there has been heightened interest in rural areas, Bucovina, Bran-Rucar-Moeciu, Praid, and Maramures.

A proof of the more cautious spending is the fact that budgets have been significantly cut, more so than the number of clients, says Morariu. “Shorter holidays are preferred, to closer and less expensive destinations, chiefly with transportation costs in mind,” adds the Eximtur representative. In fact, the agency’s revenues are below last year’s, with the turnover expected for this year revolving around 32 million euros, down 8 million against 2008.

As for holiday packages sold in Romania, Eximtur representatives say the number of tourists has gone down against the same time last year, and that most clients only ask for accommodation, instead of packages that also include meals. The exceptions are the hotel packages that offer all-inclusive services or buffet-style meals. On the overall market, results are even weaker in 2009, down by almost 40% against last year.