When you’ve already spent a small fortune on flights and hotels, planning your budget for day-to-day spending on your trip abroad can be a bit of a buzzkill. Indeed, not having to worry about spending money is why half of Brits believe all-inclusive holidays are such good value.
But whether it’s dining out, transport or activities, spending is an inevitable part of any vacation. It’s also vital to a tourist destination’s economy; take the UK — in 2022, overseas visitors spent some £26.5 billion while they were in Blighty and supported millions of jobs in the tourism sector.
But with so many tourists of every nationality toing and froing across the globe, have you ever wondered which country’s citizens spend the most money when they go abroad? Intrigued, Merchant Machine analysts used UN Tourism data to reveal how much the typical holidaymaker in 94 countries spends while on an international vacation.
Sections
What We Did
We analysed UNWTO (United Nations World Tourism Organisation) data to isolate the total outbound expenditure for each country and divided it by its total departures (reported as “overnight visitors” by some countries). This gave us an average individual spend in U.S. dollars per trip abroad for each country.
Key Findings
- The average Australian spends $3,078 when they go on holiday abroad — more than any other country in the world.
- The average Brit only spends $1,157 on an overseas holiday, and a typical U.S. tourist spends $1,323.
- The average tourist from Iceland spends $2,470 per vacation abroad, more than any other country in Europe.
Australian Tourists Spend the Most While Travelling Abroad
When Australians go on vacation, they really live it up: the average individual from down under spends 3,078 USD while on holiday abroad, the most of any country in our analysis. To put that into perspective, that’s nearly twice the amount the average Brit spends ($1,157 or about £930). It could be that Australians just have more cash to splash, considering the average salary there is among the highest of any OECD country. Overseas travel destinations of choice include New Zealand and Indonesia.
In contrast, holidaymakers from Kyrgyzstan spend the least of any country while on holiday ($58). This is around a quarter of what a typical worker here makes in a month ($228), the lowest gross average monthly salary of any country in Europe. Two other countries spend less than a hundred U.S. dollars while on holiday: Zimbabwe ($62) and Eswatini ($69).
U.S. Tourists Spend More When on Vacations Abroad than Any Other North American Country
As one of the richest and highest-earning countries in the world, it’s no surprise that the U.S. tops our ranking of the North American countries spending the most on holiday, with the average American spending $1,323 while abroad. According to tourism experts, Americans tend to “spend more on dining, hotels and organised tours than their counterparts in Europe and elsewhere … they’re accustomed to tipping, too. They also take longer trips and often bring a passel of loved ones with them.”
U.S. workers are also not given as much annual leave compared to the rest of the world. According to the BBC, Deepak Chhabra of Arizona State University posits that “those with less time per year for holidays could be more eager to take the plunge when it comes to spending.” When a holiday is likely the only one they’ll have that year, travellers might also accrue healthier savings allotted for holiday spending.
Iceland Tops Ranking of European Holidaymaker Spending
Meanwhile, Iceland tops in Europe: the average Icelander spends $2,470 on vacations abroad. Iceland boasts the second-highest average salary of any EU country, meaning a local worker likely has more disposable income to splash while on holiday. The typical Icelander also enjoys a total of 38 days off a year (24 government-mandated annual leave days and 14 public holidays), which may translate to longer trips abroad.
Portugal comes in second place ($2,166), another country with a generous annual leave allowance (31 days total). Top international destinations for Portuguese holidaymakers include Paris, London and Amsterdam. The UK ranks 11th ($1,157). One survey revealed that half of UK adults think they overspend when they go on holiday, with one in ten going into debt because of it.
South Koreans Spend the Most of Any Asian Country on Trips Overseas
The average South Korean spends $3,040 when they go on holiday abroad, more than any other country in Asia and the second-highest total in the world. A previous study by Expedia revealed that South Koreans take the fewest annual leave days of any country in the world, so it could be that — like Americans — holiday spending is ramped up during the short period of time per year that South Koreans are on vacation. When they do go abroad, Japan is a popular choice.
Singapore ranks next ($2,966). One study revealed that nearly one in two Singaporean holidaymakers book an on-trip activity before they get to their destination (and we all know how expensive tourist attractions and activities can be). In contrast, the aforementioned Kyrgyzstan ($58) ranks as the Asian country that spends the least while on foreign holidays.
Brazilians Spend More on Their Trips Abroad than Any Other South American Country
Brazil leads the pack in South America, with the average Brazilian spending $1,719 when they go away. Europe is a top destination for Brazilian holidaymakers, a continent home to some of the most expensive countries in the world when considering local costs for food, accommodation and transportation. It seems the taste for big-budget destinations is not new: in 2013, New York City — among the most expensive cities in the world — saw a surge of “big-spending” Brazilian tourists.
“Some of the reasons behind the Brazilian tourist boom in NY are well known,” writes Pan Kwan Yuk. “A relatively strong real and easier access to credit have helped, as have the high taxes and rising inflation that make Brazil an expensive place buy consumer goods. Indeed, a common refrain among Brazilian visitors is that they save so much money buying in the US that the savings often cover their US airfare and hotel bills.” To capitalise on the boom in interest, NYC & Company partnered with São Paulo’s tourist board to make flights between the two cities cheaper.
In Africa, Morocco’s Holidaymakers Spend the Most While on Vacation
Meanwhile, the average Moroccan holidaymaker spends $932 on vacation abroad, the most of any country in Africa. Only 28% of Moroccans go abroad for vacation; those that do tend to choose Turkey for its affordability and visa-free status. Cheaper holidays could translate to more money being allotted to the holiday spending fund. Not far behind Morocco is Uganda ($922), where the average local earns one of the highest monthly salaries on the continent.
The average Zimbabwean spends the least ($62) while on holiday. South Africa is a popular destination for Zimbabweans. One study on the expenditure patterns of Zimbabweans travelling to South Africa to visit friends and family found that 86% were “strongly involved” in shopping once there because of the U.S. Dollar/Rand exchange rate. Respondents commented that they bought goods in South Africa because it was cheaper than back home.
Australian Tourists Spend Twice What New Zealanders Do on Holiday
As we’ve already uncovered, the average Australian tourist spends the most of any country in the world ($3,078) when they travel abroad. That’s twice the amount that the average New Zealander spends ($1,576).
Australia is the most popular destination for New Zealanders travelling abroad, and it is one of the most expensive countries in the world in terms of the cost of living. Commenting on the high cost of Australia’s tourist-centred attractions like skiing resorts, overnight train journeys and day cruises, Michael Gebicki writes for the Sydney Morning Herald:
“Isolation is one reason [as to why they’re expensive]. Many of those experiences take place in remote regions, often in wilderness. Establishing high end accommodation in a remote location … delivering quality food and rich and satisfying daily experiences costs a bomb when you’re catering to a small number of guests prepared to shell out $1000-plus per person per night. …. Costs are even higher for those that can only operate for a few months each year due to climate (which includes our ski fields).”
The Importance of Tourist Spending
Whether you’re a big spender or keep a tighter hold of the purse strings while on holiday, it’s nice to know that whatever cash you do splash in restaurants, gift shops and attractions provides a boost to the local economy. This is particularly true of countries heavily dependent on tourism; take the Maldives, which, during the COVID-19 pandemic, was plunged into an economic recession due to the sudden lack of paying visitors. The UK’s tourism industry was also slow to recover from the effects of COVID-19 travel restrictions.
With that in mind, it’s great to uncover that so many people worldwide are booking overseas holidays, spending their hard-earned money (no matter how much) and supporting local jobs and communities while they’re there.
Methodology
To find out which countries spend the most on average per vacation, we looked at UN Tourism data for each country, focusing on outbound departures and expenditures.
We analysed the total outbound expenditure for each country, dividing it by the total departures reported by some countries as “overnight visitors.”
The data for the majority of countries comes from the UNWTO 2022 report. For countries that haven’t reported 2022 data, we sourced data for both metrics from the most recent pre-Covid year (2019).
This data analysis is correct as of March 2024.
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