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A favorite time to treat yourself, the summer holidays are the right time to let go of spending, and in particular when it comes to food. Holidays can therefore be expensive because we also want to treat ourselves to excursions, souvenirs and especially outings to restaurants.
The holidays are the perfect time to let go. And this doesn’t just happen in the head, but also in the wallet. While the inflationary context is still on many minds, due to the strong tension that this has generated in purchasing habits, this aspect of holidays is logically not a detail. A survey carried out by Younited*, an instant credit operator in Europe, has just indicated that no less than 30% of French people have spread the payment of their vacation in several installments, or have even taken out a loan. Is this management envisaged to access maximum pleasure at the appropriate time? There is every reason to ask the question since no less than 56% have planned a budget of more than 1,000 euros, in a context where fewer vacationers have reduced it (53% in 2024 compared to 66% in 2023).
A level of spending that seems to be real since the latest OpinionWay study for Shopfully** establishes at 47% the proportion of French people who will spend 1,000 euros or more on their vacation. In the same way that food shopping represents a large part of daily expenses, vacation does not change the situation on this point. 32% of respondents tend to even spend more on soft drinks and food. This is also the case for 21% of respondents with regard to wine, aperitifs and other alcoholic beverages.
But the item of expenditure that holidaymakers indulge themselves with the most is restaurants. 56% admit that this type of outing tends to generate more expenses. Ultimately, for 66%, food takes up a significant portion of the budget while leisure comes in second place (49%). There is only one watchword: pleasure. 78% of French people say they want to treat themselves during their holidays. However, 22% remain attentive to prices. 57% continue to look out for promotions, for example.
Castles, city walks, museums, sea trips… Guided tours and excursions make up the third item for which holidaymakers tend to dig deeper into their wallets. And that’s not all: the programme is completed by a trip to a water park or an amusement park (20%). Note that summer seems less likely to be the time to go to the theatre or the cinema (14%).
And then, the holidays would not be complete without a souvenir in the suitcase. The budget also includes spending on small trinkets that remind us of this summer vintage. A small pleasure that can generate more spending, recognize 24% of French people, even though these are not the only seasonal items that are purchased. There are also beach towels, or that bucket that we forgot to make sandcastles… (12%).
*Study carried out on a sample of 756 French respondents, aged 18 and over, online from May 27 to 31, 2024.
**OpinionWay survey for ShopFully conducted among a panel of 1,036 French people, representative of the French population aged 18 and over.
Slideshow: These timeless activities that we only do on vacation