According to Statistics Estonia leading analyst Piret Pukk, although travel by Estonian residents rebounded in the years following the pandemic, it fell again in 2025.

Pukk noted that overnight domestic trips still outnumbered foreign trips by more than twofold last year. "Compared with 2024, the number of domestic trips declined in all quarters. The number of trips abroad decreased in the first three quarters but began to rise again in the fourth quarter," Pukk said, adding that based on data from Tallinn Airport, this can likely be attributed to a noticeable increase in charter flights.

More than half of all trips vacations

As the main destinations, Estonian residents traveled to European Union countries 1.1 million times over the year, accounting for 72 percent of overnight trips abroad. The most popular foreign travel destinations remained Finland, Latvia and Spain. Of countries outside the EU, Turkey was visited the most, the leading analyst said. Travel to destinations such as Italy, Sweden and Lithuania declined last year.

Within Estonia, the most popular destinations were Harju County (including Tallinn), Tartu County and Pärnu County. These were followed in popularity by Ida-Viru County and Saare County, as well as Lääne County, Lääne-Viru County and Viljandi County, Pukk added.

More than half of all trips made last year were for holidays. Business trips accounted for 13 percent of domestic travel and 19 percent of trips abroad. The remaining trips were made for personal reasons, such as visiting friends or relatives.

More money spent on foreign trips

Last year, most overnight stays on trips abroad were in paid accommodations (79 percent, or 7.5 million nights). Of these, 4.9 million nights were spent in hotels or hotel-like accommodations, while nearly 2.5 million nights were spent in other types of paid lodging. There were nearly 2 million overnight stays in free accommodations on trips abroad, most often with friends or relatives.

Piret Pukk explained that on domestic trips within Estonia, people make greater use of free accommodation options, staying with acquaintances or relatives, as well as in vacation properties they own.

In recent years, the average cost of an overnight trip abroad has exceeded €1,000. In 2025, the average spending per overnight foreign trip was €1,118, which is 1 percent higher than the year before. By contrast, €163 was spent on an average domestic trip last year, 12 percent less than the previous year.

"Spending on domestic travel has likely decreased because people are cutting back and looking for more affordable travel options," Pukk noted.

Commenting on the statistics, Raul Eamets, chief economist at Bigbank, said that looking ahead, the tourism sector and especially foreign travel may face setbacks this year as flying is likely to become significantly more expensive due to an oil crisis.

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