Eurostat: Senior tourists in Romania spend almost ten times less than those in Luxembourg

Tourists aged 65 or over living in the European Union (EU) accounted for 20% of the tourism activity (in terms of number of nights spent by EU residents), in 2014, according to EU’s statistical office Eurostat. However, their share in tourism expenditure was a bit lower, of 16%. An older tourist in the EU spent on average EUR 52.6 per day, or EUR 12.7 less than the average tourist. The older tourists in Romania spent an average of EUR 13.8 per day per person for their holidays, almost ten times less than those in Luxembourg – EUR 120.8, the Eurostat data shows. The senior tourists in Luxembourg spent the highest amount on average per day, followed by Austrians – EUR 106.9, Maltese – EUR 93.7, Belgians - EUR 89.5, Irishmen - EUR 88, and Danes – EUR 85.1. On the opposite side, the lowest average expenditure per person and per day were recorded for older tourists living in the Czech Republic – EUR 13.7, Romania – EUR 13.8, Greece – EUR 18, Lithuania – EUR 19.1, and Hungary – EUR 19.2. In Romania, the tourists aged 65 or over had a share of 7% in the total tourism expenditure, or EUR 127.7 million. The proportion of people aged 65 or over in all tourism nights was particularly high for residents of France and Cyprus, where they accounted for a quarter (25%) of all tourism nights in 2014, as well as for the Czech Republic, Greece, and Sweden (all 24%), Ireland and Portugal (both 23%), according to Eurostat. On the other hand, older tourists represented 9% of nights spent by residents of Malta, and 10% of nights spent by residents of Bulgaria, Latvia, and Slovenia. In Romania, the figure amounted to 13%. With a share of 89%, Romania is among the Member States in which older tourists favored domestic holidays over outbound trips. Higher shares were registered in Spain (94%), and Greece (92%). Foreign tourists spend EUR 615 mln in Romania in six months. Who gets most of their money? Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com