Vacation Departures: A Look at Ordinary French People [ABO]


Vacation departure rates, more or less variable

Partir seul rend enfin difficile l’idée de voyager pour 62% des Français - DepositPhotos.com, serezniy

PONANT


All due respect: where do French holidaymakers stand?

According to the latest figures from Credoc, 57% of French people aged 15 to 69 go on vacation at least once a year and 14% of them never go — notably among precarious groups — while couples with children and residents of the Paris metropolitan area go away more often.

In a country like ours, where departure aid has not completely disappeared (aid provided by employers, the CAF, town halls or other bodies), a quarter of the population benefited from at least one of these aids. In particular, young people and economically disadvantaged groups.

Remember also the special case of holiday vouchers, pure products of the 1980s and the Mauroy government, which can also be used for leisure, the arts and culture, or dining, and which benefit 29% of the 15-69 age group and 36% of working professionals.

See also: Departures on vacation: a major indicator of social inequalities



Barriers to departure

If the lack of financial means explains the absence of vacation departures for 47% of the 15-69 age group, they are nevertheless a good third who restrict spending on essential expenses (health, food) to maintain a budget for vacations.

It should also be noted that 33% of respondents say they prefer to take their children on trips, even if it means not going themselves.

But beyond finances, other situations can be cited by non-participants :

– 23% prefer to stay at home

– 14% mention family and health problems

– 12%, for their part, highlight professional reasons.

Organizational difficulties around departure and, above all, social aspects also make departures difficult or impossible for some respondents :

– traveling alone finally makes the idea of traveling difficult for 62% of French people

– traveling with family also poses a problem for 53% of our fellow citizens

– the stress related to departure affects 42% of French people, notably in terms of organization, planning, and online payments, which people are increasingly reluctant to do.

See also: Solitude, desperately seeking friendship


A slight improvement in terms of aid

Globally, however, according to a study conducted for the ANCV *, things are moving in the right direction: since 2008, CAF assistance has risen from 5% to 12%; municipal aid has risen from 1% to 7%; employer aid over the same period reaches 15% of the French population, up from 10%.

In 2025, these aids reduced the rate of non-departures among those aged 15-69 to 14% versus 18% in 2009.

13% report traveling “every two years” versus 9% in 2009.

The French people who travel once a year are also somewhat more numerous.

* In 2024, according to the ANCV annual report: 23% of holiday vouchers were used for vacations and transportation, 24% for accommodation, 9% for cultural leisure.


Eco-anxiety is rising, especially among the young

Not surprisingly, especially after summer heatwaves and other fires and droughts, it is worth confirming that the climate issue is becoming more and more entrenched in people’s minds.

According to Credoc, six in ten French people believe that climate change will bring major changes to their lifestyles, and nearly half believe that climate disruption adds to their anxiety.

On these issues, young people are more worried than older generations given the time they have left to live and their awareness of these questions at school.

However, two-thirds of French people think they can protect themselves at an individual level from the consequences of climatic disruptions.

A figure all the more meaningful since today 42% of residents in France have already faced the consequences of warming where they live, compared with 24% in 2015.


Cultural outings say a lot as well, but they change little



Josette Sicsic - DR

Journalist, consultant, lecturer, Josette Sicsic has been observing for over 25 years the changes in the world in order to analyze their consequences for the tourism sector.

After leading for more than 20 years the Touriscopie journal, she remains at the forefront of current events where she decodes the present to forecast the future. On the site www.tourmag.com, in the Futuroscopie section, she publishes several times a week prospective and analytical articles.

Contact: 06 14 47 99 04

Mail: [email protected]

Amara Nambinga

Amara Nambinga

I write about tourism, culture, and emerging destinations with a Namibian perspective. Through my articles, I try to highlight the places, people, and travel stories that show how Africa and the wider world are changing.