Romanians spent EUR 10 bln on vacations abroad in 2025, official data says

Romanians spent EUR 10 billion on vacations abroad last year, the highest sum ever, according to data published by the National Bank of Romania and cited by Economedia. The figure represents a major leap from EUR 8.93 billion in 2024, an increase of over EUR 1 billion.

At the same time, Romania’s deficit in the “Tourism/Travel” segment increased significantly in 2025. Tourism receipts (export of services) reached EUR 5.38 billion, compared to EUR 5.28 billion in 2024, a marginal increase of approximately EUR 100 million.

As such, Romania’s tourism deficit deepened from EUR 3.65 billion in 2024 to EUR 4.62 billion in 2025, representing a deterioration of nearly EUR 1 billion in a single year.

The data indicate a structural imbalance: the pace at which Romanians’ spending abroad is increasing is far higher than the pace at which Romania manages to attract foreign tourists and revenues from this sector.

Tourism is the largest negative component in the country's services balance and significantly erodes the gains generated by other sectors. In macroeconomic terms, an increasing share of domestic consumption is turning into foreign currency outflows, with a direct impact on the current account deficit.

To address the situation, the Romanian government recently updated its Tourism Investment Masterplan, aiming to enhance the tourist experience.

“In recent years, many investments in tourism have focused on construction, without being accompanied by investments in the actual tourist experience: trails, activities, highlighting nature, and solutions that help local communities have tourism outside of the season,” economy minister Irineu Darău said last week on Facebook.

(Photo source: Michael Zhang|Dreamstime.com)