European Union reports growing tourism affordability gap and highlights migration as key to demographic challenges

In 2025, 27.5% of residents aged 16 and over across the European Union could not afford a one‑week holiday away from home, according to Eurostat. The share rose to 29.1% in Slovakia, while the highest rates were recorded in Romania (61.4%), Greece (46.6%) and both Bulgaria and Hungary (39.1%). The lowest percentages were in Luxembourg (10.6%), Sweden (12.4%) and the Netherlands (12.8%). Tourism generated roughly 10% of the EU’s gross domestic product, accounted for 10% of jobs and involved 4.6 million enterprises, 99% of which are small and medium‑sized.

A separate European Commission demographic report for 2026 warns that the EU faces an ageing population, a fertility rate of 1.34 children per woman (well below the 2.1 replacement level) and a shrinking labour force. Natural population growth is negative, making net migration essential: in 2024 the EU attracted 4.2 million migrants while 1.6 million left, resulting in 46.7 million residents born outside the Union (10.4% of the total). Projections suggest that without continued net migration the EU could be 130 million people smaller by 2100. The report stresses legal migration, cooperation with third‑country governments and a digital platform to match firms with foreign workers as primary policy tools.