Despite Inflation, Croats Willing to Spend on Winter Holidays

Lauren Simmonds

inflation croats

January the 31st, 2025 – Despite retail boycotts and all kinds of complaints about inflation, Croats are still willing to spend a considerable sum on their upcoming winter holidays, typically comprised of skiing.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/TI writes, a new survey on consumer habits during the winter season has revealed significant trend towards digital payments and a willingness to spend more among Croats. The majority of respondents, 61 percent of them in total, plan to use cashless payment methods – cards, smartphones or watches, which indicates the very strong digital transformation of the tourism sector.

The financial indicators themselves are of particular interest: regardless of inflation, almost half of the Croats who responded (49 percent) stated that they’re planning to go on a winter holiday. 47 percent of them plan to spend between 50 and 150 euros per person per day. In addition, 14 percent are planning to take at least two winter holidays this year, up to three days, which indicates significant market potential.

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The survey also identified key challenges in the digital payment infrastructure. The biggest problems were recorded in the hospitality sector (23 percent), parking fees (22 percent) and ski passes (14 percent). This data is particularly important because 37 percent of people stated that the lack of a digital payment option would directly affect their spending, and in turn, their final choice of destination. More specifically, a significant number of people claim they would spend less (17 percent), go to a competitor (9 percent) or not return to the same place (11 percent).

In terms of the geographical distribution of spending, again regardless of inflation, half of Croats plan to keep their spending within Croatia. The rest plan to spend in neighbouring Slovenia (20 percent) and nearby Austria (16 percent). Both of these nations have come out on top as the leading international destinations.

“Companies that don’t enable digital payments risk losing users, especially in highly competitive environments such as ski resorts,” warned Renata Vujasinović, Visa Country Manager for Croatia, emphasising the importance of adapting to new market trends.

A particularly interesting trend is the diversification of spending – in addition to traditional skiing activities, a significant part of these budgets are set to be spent on wellness treatments, food and cultural events. This indicates a change in the spending structure of Croats heading off on winter breaks, and opens up new business opportunities in different segments of the wider tourism offer.

The data also shows that 60 percent of Croats intending to take winter breaks prefer a completely cashless experience at ski resorts. They prefer to exclusively use their mobile devices or smartwatches to make payments. Digital payments dominate in three key sectors: hospitality (25 percent), accommodation (24 percent) and commerce (23 percent).

It’s worth noting that the collection of this data was carried out by the Response Now s.r.o. agency back in December 2024. It was carried out on a representative sample of the Croatian internet-using population aged 18 to 60, with a total of 1,021 respondents. The survey’s client was Visa, and the results were reported by Komunikacijski laboratorij (Communications Laboratory).

 

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