Holiday Affordability in Europe: Where Does Estonia Stand and Whose Wallet Suffers?

A growing number of Europeans are finding it easier to afford a week-long vacation, yet the trend is not universal. In 2025, 27.5% of European Union residents aged 16 and over could not afford a week away from home. This figure represents a significant improvement from 35.2% in 2015. However, the progress varies by country. While most of Europe has seen increased holiday affordability, five nations, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Germany, and Austria, have experienced a rise in the proportion of people unable to afford a break. The Nordic countries saw the largest increases, though their overall rates remain among the lowest in Europe. In Germany and Austria, approximately one in five residents could not afford a week's holiday in 2025, a slight increase from ten years prior. The situation differs starkly across the continent. Switzerland and Norway report the lowest rates of unaffordability at around 9%, while Romania faces the highest at 61%. Among the Baltic states, Lithuania reported the highest rate of unaffordability at 31% in 2025, followed by Latvia at 29%. Estonia's rate was 26%, slightly below the EU average and lower than its Baltic neighbors. Finland stood out with a much more favorable rate of 15%, nearly half that of Lithuania. Other countries where more than half the population cannot afford a holiday include Montenegro, Albania, and Turkey. Bulgaria, Hungary, Serbia, and Italy also struggle, with over a third of their populations unable to afford a vacation.