Gasoline prices are skyrocketing, yet two-thirds of Hungarians traveled abroad by car this year

By: Trademagazin Date: 2023. 05. 08. 10:06

The Central Statistical Office 2022 IV. data for the fourth quarter of the year already showed that Hungarians started traveling abroad again: the number of trips beyond our country’s borders increased by 22% compared to a year earlier: in the last quarter of the year, Hungarian citizens traveled abroad 4.3 million times. The number of one-day trips increased by 12%, and the number of multi-day visits by 42%; on average, Hungarians spent 2.7 days abroad during their travels. Most people visited Austria, Slovakia and Serbia – two-thirds of the trips were directed to these three countries.

Although the average price of diesel and 95 gasoline last summer of HUF 700-800 (official price HUF 480) has decreased since November 2022, the average price of gasoline did not drop below HUF 600 until mid-April 2023 based on KSH data. Longer-distance trips by car are therefore still considered expensive.

However, this did not hold Hungarians back during their trips abroad: based on the travel insurance data of Genertel Biztosító between December 2022 and April 2023, more than two-thirds of the customers traveled by car. This represents an increase compared to the same period last year, because according to the data at the time, there were more trips by plane, and the proportion of people traveling by car was only 50%.