ETC: 34% of European Travelers to Avoid Destinations with Extreme Temperatures

Three in four (76 percent) European travelers planning Intra-European trips, are adapting their behavior to the climate crisis, according to statistical data released in the European Travel Commission (ETC) report for Summer/Fall 2024.

The ETC polled 5,859 people on how the climate emergency affects their travel arrangements with a third (some 34 percent) of Europeans saying they will avoid destinations where extreme weather phenomena (17.3 percent will avoid extreme temperatures and 16.4 percent seek holiday destinations with more stable weather conditions). Almost one in ten (8.5 percent) said they would change the months they travel, while one in ten travelers said they worried about extreme weather.

Source: ETC

No surprisingly, 32 percent of travelers saying they avoid destinations with extreme temperatures are over the age of 55, with the percentage falling to just 11 percent for these between the ages of 18 and 24.

The sentiment is also being reflected in statistics concerning the destinations preferred for travel in the summer, with the ETC report for Summer/Fall 2024 showing a deep fall of expressed intentions to travel to Southern/Mediterranean Europe. With an impressive 57 percent saying in the summer of 2022 that they were planning to travel to the region, their percentage plummeted in the 2023 survey to 47 percent and again this year to 46 percent.

Source: ETC

Even more, concerns regarding “pleasant weather” and “stable weather conditions” are in the minds of 21 percent of travelers when choosing vacation destinations.

Yet, in spite of concerns for high temperatures, Europeans planning to travel during the next five months, up to November 2024, still insist that what they are really looking for is “Sand & Beach” for their vacation, more than any other feature.

Source: ETC

The attraction of Mediterranean countries remains even more undisputed, with Europeans planning to travel between June and November 2024, saying that their countries of preference are Spain, Italy, France and Greece, with Germany, the only northern European destination completing the list of the top 5.

Even more so, it is Greece and Portugal, two countries of the South that are recorded tops in attracting fresh enthusiasts, meaning people who plan to visit them for the first time. Out of people participating in the ETC survey, 28 percent said that they would be first time comers to Greece and 27 percent planning to visit Portugal for their first time.

Source: ETC

According to ETC statistics, when planning intra-European trips, Europeans continue to prioritize destinations that offer a mix of sand, beach, and of course, sunny weather, despite their concerns about increasing heatwaves and wildfires.

“To aid travelers with an aversion to extreme weather, destinations should mitigate the impact of such events by establishing cooling areas in tourist spots, increasing the availability of shaded areas, and investing in heat-resilient infrastructure (e.g., heat-reflective pavements),” the ETC report concludes.