Romania had the highest proportion of people in the European Union unable to afford a one-week holiday away from home in 2024, with 58.6% of the population affected, according to data published by Eurostat on July 15.
The figure places Romania at the top of the EU ranking, ahead of Greece (46%) and Bulgaria (41.4%), Ziarul Financiar reported.
Eurostat’s data covers individuals aged over 16 and reflects financial hardship in taking at least one week of annual leave.
Romania’s level represents a return to 2018 conditions, following a modest improvement during the pandemic. The country recorded its worst figure in 2022 when 62.5% of the population could not afford a holiday. While the proportion declined slightly in subsequent years, Romania has consistently remained the EU member state with the highest rate of holiday deprivation.
By comparison, the EU average in 2024 stood at 27%, down 1.5 percentage points from 2023 and significantly lower than a decade earlier, when nearly 40% of the bloc’s population reported being unable to afford a week-long holiday.
Other countries with above-average rates included Hungary, Portugal, Croatia, Spain, Slovakia, Cyprus, Lithuania, Italy, Latvia and Malta. In contrast, Luxembourg had the lowest share of residents unable to afford a vacation at just 9%, followed by Sweden (11.6%) and the Netherlands (13%).
The figures highlight continuing disparities in living standards and financial resilience across the EU. Despite moderate economic growth and wage increases in recent years, many Romanian households still face challenges in meeting basic quality-of-life benchmarks observed elsewhere in the Union.
iulian@romania-insider.com
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