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Travel trends in The Netherlands
That the Dutch are active travellers is probably no news for you. In general we travel often and we travel far with an average holiday participation rate of around 80% resulting in 35 million holidays per year. But more interesting would be to know how they are travelling. What are the trends and developments and how can your company or organisation implement this in your strategy?
Baltus Communications did some research.
All about themes
Experience. This ten letter word is key in the holidays of many Dutch holiday makers. Gone are the days that holidays merely evolved around the chosen accommodation and destination. The last few years there has been a growing interest in thematic holidays. Cultural, cycling and hiking holidays have always been popular among the Dutch but now face competition of wellness, shopping and spiritual trips. In addition, mastering a foreign language abroad and developing cooking skills often became and will continue to become the motivation for a trip. According to NBTC NIPO Research there is especially a lot of potential for cooking and language trips. This segment is expected to grow by 4,5% in the coming three years. In addition experience has often become superior to location and accommodation. A unique experience is desired.
Even tough themed holidays are (still) a relatively small segment it is definitely an important niche due to high spendings. Such holidays are generally booked by those in a higher social class.
The world of camping
Camping and the Dutch have always been associated and it will continue to be one of the major holiday segments. Where as it used to be a family trip with the camping somewhere sunny as the destination this segment is now facing some changes. Nowadays campers just like other holiday makers, seek experience. Luxury, themes and unique concepts are now a key part. Although 'glamping' is most likely here to stay, there's also a counter movement. Back-to-basics is it for many others. Simple no-nonsense tents, limited facilities, survivalling, making your own fire, personal contact, attention for sustainability and sleeping outdoors are focal points for a true nature experience.
Explore more
France and Germany have been fighting each other to become/remain the number one holiday destination for the Dutch for many years now but with airline faires dropping, new destinations have appealed many tourists. According to the ANWB, 18 percent of the Dutch want to go to a destination they have never been before.
Scandinavia for example has welcomed +427.000 tourists in 2014 compared to the year before according to the Continue Vakantie Onderzoek (CVO). Sweden saw the biggest increase with 10.8% more accommodation bookings.
The Ministry of Tourism of Indonesia has also reported a big increase in Dutch arrivals. In 2014 there was an increase of 5.1% compared to the year before, with 165.626 Dutch arrivals.
Other upcoming destinations are Iceland, Colombo (Sri Lanka) and Seoul (South Korea) according to Skyscanner. In addition the airline ticket search engine also lists Myanmar, Nicaragua, Taipei, Mykonos (Greece), Siem Reap (Cambodia) and Brazil in its top destinations.
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