How Poles Are Spending Their Summer Holidays in 2024?

It’s the height of the summer, so in the latest installment of the Provident Barometer survey we asked Poles how they are spending their holidays this year. More than half of them have planned their holiday for the season (from June to August), and more than a third will only go after it ends. Before June started, less than 10% of people had taken their time off. Therefore, many respondents still have their hard-earned holiday ahead.

“According to the new edition of the Provident Barometer, 55.7% of us have planned for a holiday in the summer months – this answer dominates in nearly every age group, with the exception of seniors, who more frequently reserve for quieter, after-August dates,” says Karolina Łuczak, Press Secretary of Provident Poland. “Pre-season trips are not especially popular – only 9.7% of respondents choose them. If we do decide on earlier holidays, they are mostly women – 12.4% of them have reserved such a holiday, compared to 7.1% men”, she adds.

However, not all Poles use their entitled days off. As many as 35.2% will not use their entire holiday this year, and 17% are still unsure if it will be possible.

Well-deserved Rest

As previous surveys showed, before the holidays even began, typical Polish holidays are short, rarely exceeding two weeks. Only 7.5% of respondents then declared that they could afford a holiday longer than 14 days. 28.6% planned a holiday lasting from 8 to 14 days, and 27.5% intended to limit themselves to just one week. In practice, these plans seemed to align with Polish needs – 30% of them cannot imagine proper rest without at least two weeks off, and 23% – one week. Moreover, more than two-week break from work allows for about 13% of people to recharge. Interestingly, only 1 in 10 would suffice with 5-6 days off – startlingly, a quarter of the youngest respondents chose this plan, as opposed to only 3% of those aged 45 to 64 years.

Office gear stays at home

“Thoughts about work can easily disturb holiday peace, so data from the Provident Barometer is pleasing, showing that as many as 41.3% of people don’t pack any office gear. 12.4% declared taking their office phone with them, and 5% both their phone and laptop. In this case, men more often than women cannot let themselves forget about work during their trip (7.2% of men versus 2.7% of women)” – notes Karolina Łuczak, Provident Poland spokesperson.

So what disturbs Poles the most on holidays? The top issue is high prices, as reported by 53.8% of the respondents. Crowds and the overwhelming number of tourists were second on the list, noted by 48% of respondents. High prices and crowds often bother women (52.4% vs. 43.6%). The weather can also ruin 44% of respondents’ plans, and 26% – extreme weather phenomena. Nearly every third person (32.7%) also has a problem with ticks and mosquitoes. And only slightly fewer Poles (29.1%) find their rest disturbed by other vacationers’ behavior.

How Poles rest?

“For the umpteenth time, the preferred place for vacation relaxation for Poles are tourist towns. It is in resorts that 37% of respondents rest most effectively. Supporters of this way of spending time are almost all age groups — except one. We’re talking about the youngest respondents who in 31.4% prefer to spend their holidays actively. Thus, they stand out from the rest of the respondents – in the active rest category we have only 19.7% of all respondents,” Karolina Łuczak observes.

Every fifth person surveyed prefers to relax at home, and 17.5% will spend their free days in the country. The city is the choice of just 3% of Poles.

About the survey:

The Provident Barometer is a regular survey of Poles, which helps understand consumers’ behaviors and financial decisions better. The survey was carried out by Danae Ltd using the CAWI method on a sample of N=1000 adult Poles in July 2024.