Finns make more trips to Southern Europe in Jan-Apr

Leisure trips made by Finnish residents to abroad remained at the same level from January to April 2018 compared to the corresponding period of last year, according to Statistics Finland.

Increasingly more of the Finns who travelled abroad in the first four months of the year made trips to familiar travel destinations in the Mediterranean or Sweden.

In the first four months of 2018, Finnish residents aged 15 to 84 made 15.8 million trips when all domestic and foreign leisure trips, as well as business and professional trips are included.

In addition to trips with overnight stay, the number also includes same-day trips abroad and in Finland.

Altogether, 6.6 million domestic leisure trips with overnight stay were made in the January to April period. Of these, 4.7 million were trips with free accommodation.

During the first four months of the year, leisure trips to our neighbouring countries numbered 560,000 to Estonia and 500,000 to Sweden. Trips to Sweden with overnight stay in the destination country and same-day trips increased from one year ago. Cruises to Sweden remained roughly on level with last year's spring.

In the early part of 2018, overnight cruises to Estonia remained at the same level, and trips with overnight stay in the destination country and same-day trips fell slightly from the previous year. Despite this, Estonia is still the number one favourite for Finns all the year round.

In the early part of the year, 340,000 trips were headed to Spain, of which 55 per cent to the Canary Islands. In the first four months of the year, 150,000 trips were made to Continental Spain and the Balearic Islands and the number of trips grew by 29 per cent. March was the most popular of the four months to travel to the Canary Islands and April to Continental Spain.

When examining only trips with overnight stay in the destination country, roughly the same number of such trips were made as in last year's January to April period.

April was the most popular month for these trips in the early part of the year, as then the number of trips abroad with overnight stay in the destination country was 570,000. Of the trips with overnight stay in the destination country, 16 per cent were headed to Estonia, similarly 16 per cent to the northern coast of the Mediterranean, and 10 per cent to the Canary Islands.

In addition to leisure trips, 1.1 million business and professional trips with overnight stay and 1.4 million business and professional trips lasting only one day were made in Finland. Business and professional trips abroad (inclusive of trips with overnight stay in the destination country, cruises and same-day trips) numbered 0.7 million. Domestic business trips decreased but business trips abroad increased from last year's corresponding period.

These data derive from Statistics Finland's Finnish Travel survey for which altogether 4,518 persons aged 15 to 84 were interviewed in February, March, April and May.