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Published: 7 October 2015

Finns travelled in Finland as well as to Central Europe in the cool summer of 2015

According to Statistics Finland's preliminary data, Finnish residents travelled eagerly to Central Europe in May to August 2015, and 20 per cent more trips were headed there than in the year before. Among Mediterranean countries, Greece and Turkey increased their appeal. The number of trips made to Estonia also grew from the year before. Slightly more trips with paid accommodation were made in Finland than in the corresponding period of the previous year.

Finns' leisure trips in May to August 2003 to 2015*

Finns' leisure trips in May to August 2003 to 2015*

In the second four months of 2015, Finnish residents aged 15 to 84 made around 15 million trips when domestic and foreign leisure trips, as well as business and professional trips are included. In addition to trips with overnight stays, same-day trips abroad are also included in the number of trips.

Nearly 11 million domestic leisure trips with overnight stay were made in the May to August period. Eight million of them were trips with free accommodation, which is six per cent lower than in May to August 2014.

Leisure trips with overnight stay at paid accommodation numbered 2.7 million and the most popular destinations were in Uusimaa, Varsinais-Suomi and Pirkanmaa. Uusimaa lost its popularity from last year, but still retained its top position as the region of travelling in summer months. In all, the number of trips with paid accommodation in Finland was only slightly higher than in May to August of the previous year.

At paid accommodation, a tourist stays at a rented cottage, hotel or campsite, for example. In these leisure trips overnight stays were mainly in hotels. The number of hotel stays was 3.7 million, which is more than one-half of paid accommodation. A rented cottage is also popular in summer time and overnight stays at rented cottages in these trips numbered 1.8 million, which is good one-quarter of overnight stays at paid accommodation.

July is conventionally the most popular month for travelling in summer months. Then there were nearly one million trips in Finland with overnight stays at paid accommodation. However, July 2015 was quite weak from the viewpoint of the domestic tourism business. The number of trips with paid accommodation made in July last remained under one million in 2009.

In all, 3.1 million leisure trips were made abroad in May to August. The figure includes trips with overnight stay in the destination country, cruises and same-day trips. Of the leisure trips abroad, 2,471,000 were trips with overnight stay in the destination country and 320,000 were cruises with overnight stay on board only. Nearly all cruises were made to Sweden or Estonia. In May to August, 344,000 same-day trips were made abroad, of which nearly two-thirds were same-day cruises to Estonia.

In summer, leisure trips were made mostly by boat or air. The number of trips by sea was 1.4 million as was that of trips by air.

Leisure trips to Estonia increased from summer 2014. Trips with overnight stay in the destination country headed to our southern neighbour numbered 644,000, overnight cruises 123,000 and same-day cruises 222,000. Cruises with overnight stay on board decreased from the corresponding period of last year, but trips including overnight stay in the country of destination and same-day cruises increased.

Leisure trips to Sweden decreased from summer 2014. The number of trips with overnight stay in the destination country headed to our western neighbour was 284,000, overnight cruises 194,000 and same-day trips 66,000.

Leisure trips to Russia increased in total by three per cent after the dip in summer 2014. Trips with overnight stay in the destination country to Russia increased, but the numbers of same-day trips decreased from the corresponding period of last year.

The favourite destination for Western and Central Europe was Germany, to which trips made grew by as much as 52 per cent. France also increased its popularity among Finnish tourists.

The summer in Finland was cool and Finns could only dream of a heat wave in the middle of the summer. Many Finns, however, made their dreams of hot weather true by making a holiday trip to southern Europe. A total of 589,000 trips were made to northern Mediterranean countries, which figure was still slightly lower than in May to August 2014.

Slightly more trips were made to Greece than in the previous summer season and their number went up by four per cent. Spain, Italy and Turkey remained other favourite Mediterranean countries. Trips to Spain and Italy dropped in number but those to Turkey increased by 30 per cent.

Package tours are not more popular in summer than in any other time of the year. Thirty-five per cent of trips to Estonia with overnight stay in the destination country were package tours. Of trips made to Greece, 89 per cent were package tours and of trips made to Turkey, 55 per cent. Only a small part of the trips to Spain and Italy were package tours. Around 20 per cent of trips to Spain and just nine per cent of those to Italy were package tours.

Trips with overnight stay in the destination country rose in total by three per cent from last year's May to August period.

Although over one-half of holiday nights abroad were spent in hotels, overnight stays at friends and relatives increase particularly in summer, because one-quarter of holiday nights spent abroad were at friends and relatives.

July was also the most popular month for travelling abroad, as then the number of trips abroad with overnight stay in the destination country was 789,000. In the most popular holiday month, still three per cent fewer trips with overnight stay in the destination country were made than twelve months earlier.

In addition to leisure trips, one million domestic business or professional trips were made in Finland. Business or professional trips abroad (inclusive of trips with overnight stay in the destination country, cruises and same-day trips) numbered 0.6 million. Business trips both in Finland and abroad increased, in Finland by two per cent and abroad by 11 per cent from the corresponding period last year.

These data derive from Statistics Finland's Finnish Travel survey for which altogether 5,106 Finnish residents aged 15 to 84 were interviewed in June, July, August and September. Until 2011, data were collected from those aged 15 to 74.


Source: Finnish Travel, Statistics Finland

Inquiries: Taru Tamminen 029 551 2243, Mervi Härkönen 029 551 3254, liikenne.matkailu@stat.fi

Director in charge: Mari Ylä-Jarkko

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Updated 7.10.2015

Referencing instructions:

Official Statistics of Finland (OSF): Finnish Travel [e-publication].
ISSN=1798-9027. Summer (1.5.-31.8) 2015. Helsinki: Statistics Finland [referred: 22.12.2024].
Access method: http://www.stat.fi/til/smat/2015/14/smat_2015_14_2015-10-07_tie_001_en.html