Going on holiday remains popular among the Dutch. Two-thirds of Dutch people would like to go on holiday more often. For seven out of ten, vacations are the main spending goal if they had more money. This is evident from consumer research conducted by holiday research company Trends & Tourism carried out for it large ‘the Future Vision for the Dutch Holiday Market 2030’.

The number of Dutch holidays is set to grow to 40 million in 2030. The positive sentiment around holidays will translate into further growth in the holiday market in the coming years but constraints on time and money will mean that growth will be moderate. The expectation in the future holiday vision is that the number of holidays from 2024 onwards will grow by an average of 1 to 1.5% per year (= 400,000 holidays) to 40 million in 2030. Growth will apply for both domestic and foreign holidays.

Fifteen trends that will determine the holiday market and are described in the Future Vision for the Dutch Holiday. These trends range from a growth of short holidays, going more off the beaten track (not following the crowds) to an increasing interest in experiencing nature during vacations. In the coming years, climate change will play an increasingly important role in holiday behaviour. This translates into trends such as more sustainable travel, as well as adapting holiday behaviour (e.g. destination, period) to changing weather conditions because of climate change. Almost half of the Dutch people who want to go on holiday in the coming years indicate that they have a holiday bucket list. This wish list is dominated by long-haul destinations, such as America, Japan, and Indonesia. However, the top 10 also includes some European destinations. Highest ranked European destinations are Iceland and Norway in 6th and 7th place.

Top ten on the Dutch bucket list:

USA

Japan

Indonesia

Australia

New-Zealand

Iceland

Norway

Canada

Italy

Spain