Czechs Want to Travel; Greater Foreign Holiday Budgets Allocated This Year

Despite the worldwide pandemic, Czechs have not lost interest in air travel. They even plan to invest more money in foreign holiday this year, as confirmed by a regular survey, conducted for Prague Airport by the Median agency among 1,565 respondents. Almost half of the survey participants stated they plan to spend over 46,000 crowns on their foreign trips this year. Two-thirds of the respondents plan to go on holiday more than once, and two-fifths of all survey participants want to spend at least three weeks abroad.

Travelling is the leisure time activity missed the most by Czechs during the pandemic. It is missed by 65 percent of the survey respondents. In addition, according to the recent survey results, they plan to indulge a lot in travelling this year. Their motivation has been growing steadily despite the pandemic abatement measures. While only 38 percent of respondents wanted to travel by air in May 2021, last December, the share increased to 44 percent.

“The results of the survey correspond to our slightly optimistic expectations and the capacities planned by airlines for the summer season. Based on these inputs, we expect the volume of passengers passing through the gates of Václav Havel Airport Prague to almost double this year,” Jiří Pos, Chairman of the Prague Airport Board of Directors, commented on the expectations within the market segment.

The potential increase in the number of passengers from Václav Havel Airport Prague is also indicated by the finding that 66 percent of the survey respondents plan to travel abroad more than once a year. Compared to last year, the planned length of trips has also changed. As many as 39 percent of participants plan to spend at least three weeks abroad, while in the spring of 2021, just a quarter of respondents expressed similar expectations.

More Czechs have also allocated greater foreign holiday budgets. Since last year, the share of those who plan to invest more than 46,000 crowns in foreign holidays has increased by 15 percentage points. A quarter of them estimate their spending at over 61 thousand crowns. Travel expenses are thus one of the few items on which they do not plan to save. Travelling was included in the top three categories in which Czechs plan to invest the greatest share of funds this year by 71 percent of respondents.

However, despite the optimistic travel plans, passengers continue to have their concerns. They are most often afraid of problems at entering the destination country, quarantine in a foreign country, and complications associated with tests and paperwork required before the trip.