Sunbathing in Tuscany, celebrating in Ibiza or sightseeing in New York – the corona crisis is putting a spanner in the works for many people's vacation plans this year. According to a study by the market research institute Forsa on behalf of the insurance company CosmosDirekt, almost every second person in Germany had already booked specific travel plans and at least one vacation for 2020.
But the possibility of traveling abroad is currently far from certain. There are plenty of alternatives for vacation days and vacations – and they are in demand. What are people up to in Germany this summer?
Holidays on balconies – demand for sun protection and pools is increasing
The fact that many people prepare for days off at home, on the balcony and in the garden suggests the strong demand for barbecues, pools, sandboxes and swings in hardware stores. In the past few years, products from the garden and leisure sector have also been increasingly sold, "but this year the demand is even stronger," said a spokesman for the Hornbach hardware stores. According to its own information, toom hardware store is also currently seeing increased demand for sun protection and pools, among other things.
There is a run on allotments
Many people who do not have their own garden would like to spend their days off in the allotment this year – this is indicated by the waiting lists for allotments. "We have at least a doubling of the demand for allotment gardens compared to the rest of the world," says Stefan Grundei, managing director of the Federal Association of German Garden Friends. In Berlin, Hamburg, Munich and other cities, demand has even quadrupled in some cases. Nationwide associations with almost one million allotments are organized in the association. Allotments are leased indefinitely in accordance with the Federal Allotment Law and are capped at prices.
vacation in Germany
According to a survey by the consumer forum "Mydealz", one in four wants to go on vacation within the Federal Republic this year. "Travel within Germany is of particular importance this year," says a spokeswoman for the "Airbnb" platform.
A third of the people spend their holidays in Germany anyway, says Jürgen Schmude, Professor of Tourism Economics at the Ludwig Maximilians University in Munich and President of the German Society for Tourism Science. The German tourism landscape also has something to offer the other two thirds of people who otherwise travel abroad on average: "We have coasts, low mountain ranges, alpine tourism." He does not believe that the holiday inland is now much more expensive than the bargain trip to the Canary Islands. According to various estimates, 20 to 35 percent of people even gave up their vacation this year, says Schmude. Reasons for this include concerns about security or an uncertain professional future.
A survey of Airbnb users found that 39 percent of vacationers want to travel within Germany after the pandemic, according to company information. 61 percent of those surveyed stated that they wanted to spend the first trip within Europe.
The demand for holiday apartments and courtyards is increasing
On the holiday home portal "FeWo-direkt", in the last week of April – when it became clear that holidays in Germany would be possible again in the coming weeks – the search for accommodation on the North and Baltic Seas was particularly important. Western Pomerania-Rügen in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and North Friesland in Schleswig-Holstein are particularly popular. The city of Lübeck and the district of Ostholstein in the northernmost state and the district of Aurich in Lower Saxony ranked third and fourth of most searches for holiday apartments on the portal.
Holidays on farms and holiday farms are also in high demand. After a few weeks of uncertainty, the demand is now "exorbitant", says Susanne Wibbeke, managing director of the Bavarian Farm and Country Vacation Association, which has brought together 1,400 holiday farms.
Camping: No trip without booking in advance
The campsites in the Federal Republic will probably be well visited in the coming months. While the operators experienced a large cancellation wave in the first weeks of the Corona crisis, booking inquiries rose sharply after the announcement of the resumption of camping tourism in the respective federal state for Pentecost and the summer holidays, as the managing director of the Federal Association of the Camping Industry in Germany, Christian Günther, announced . "This is especially true for the classic holiday regions." Günther recommends that you do not travel this year without booking in advance.
The expert Schmude is not surprised that holiday apartments or houses and camping are currently in such high demand. "This gives security because you are not always in the public space, you have a retreat."
Let's go outside: bike tours are becoming increasingly popular
The Corona pandemic is causing an unprecedented boom in bicycle dealers, the two-wheeler industry association said. Many people are also on foot: According to the German Hiking Association, hiking is booming during the Corona crisis. "Hiking will be a particularly popular holiday activity, even for people who have not hiked so far or only rarely," said managing director Ute Dicks recently. So that it does not become too narrow, the association advises to avoid crowded paths. It may make sense to "plan a hike off the beaten track".
In the long term, the Corona crisis will leave significant traces in tourism, says Schmude. He expects vacation and relaxation to become more outdoor and nature-oriented in the future. Holidays that are accompanied by large crowds, such as city tourism or cruises, will probably be avoided in the coming time. Nature and health-oriented holidays have increased in recent years. "This will now be reinforced once again."
Surf tip: Corona in Germany: Which loosenings are planned – and where now which applies