Survey: Romanians Have Less Money to Spend on Vacation in 2022

Romanians have less money to spend on vacation, according to the latest survey of Best Jobs, the most used recruiting platform in the country. After the pandemic years, Romanians can nearly afford one vacation in 2022 and the situation seems to get even worse.

Only 1 in 2 Romanian employees will go on vacation in 2022. 31% of Romanians will pay for their vacation costs as much as last year for this summer and 19% have reduced their budget by 30-50 %, according to the same source.

In the context of inflation and the general increase in living costs, more and more Romanians have a limited vacation budget.

According to the Best Jobs survey 41% of those who said they have made plans for the holidays expect to spend more this year, and 9% plan to stay home.

If last year, the pandemic influenced Romanians’ vacation plans, now the challenge is given by the economic context, which puts pressure on holiday budgets. However, holidays and periods without thinking about work are absolutely necessary for mental health and to prevent burnout, especially after the last two years, when social interactions and travel have been limited. These needs should not be ignored, and employers should ensure that employees have sufficient free time.

Ana Visian, marketing manager of BestJobs

Approximately 35% of Romanians say that they don’t have any vacation days left from 2021. Another 31% have less than 10 days left for this year, 16% have between 10 and 20 days left, and 7% have even more than 20 days available. However, 47% plan to take between 5 and 10 consecutive days off for summer vacation, while 26% want to take over 10 days. 8% will take less than 5 days, and 19% are not yet sure if they will take a vacation.

Last year, over 22% of Romanians say they went to exotic destinations abroad, while 31% organized their vacation on Romanian territory, for health concerns. Only 8% went both in the country and abroad, and 22% stayed at home. This year’s situation is different.

Most Romanians do not have enough money for vacations and that’s a fact. Some cannot afford to spend a few days in the country. The truth is that many Romanians who go on vacation, don’t even have money for it, but give up other expenses to afford it. Now that prices have risen in most segments, including hotels, fewer and fewer Romanians will be able to go on vacation, even on a limited budget.