Package holiday prices in the EU were 3.2% higher in August 2026 than in August 2025, matching the overall inflation figure (3.2%). Meanwhile, passenger air transport prices decreased 0.4%, remaining well below the headline inflation rate.
Both package holidays and passenger air transport prices have fluctuated strongly since January 2025, with passenger air transport showing the greatest volatility. Airfares rose 13.7% in April 2025 year-on-year, then fell by 3.2% in the following month. Fluctuations remain visible in 2026, as flight prices started the year with a 2.9% fall, followed by a sharp drop (-4.7%) in April, a major rise in May (+8.1%) and moderate increases in the following months, compared with the respective months of 2025.
For package holidays, prices were 8.3% and 8.0% higher in January and February 2025 than in the same months of the previous year, but from then on, the annual rate of change increased slowly. Prices peaked again in April 2025 (+7.7%), then fell closer to the inflation rate between June and October 2025, before rising again. Like flight prices, package holiday prices also dropped in April 2026 (-0.5%), but recovered in the following months.
How did package holiday and flight prices develop in your country?
In August 2026, flight prices increased the most in Greece (+16.3%) and Ireland (+14.4%) compared with August 2025. For 10 EU countries, flight prices fell, with Slovakia registering the largest drop (-61.2%); for the remaining countries, declines ranged from -15.8% in Spain to -0.9% in Lithuania.
In the same month, package holiday prices rose the most in Belgium, up 16.2% compared with August 2025. Portugal followed with a 14.3% increase, ahead of Sweden (+12.8%), Lithuania (+12.3%) and Romania (+11.9%). In contrast, 4 EU countries recorded package holiday price decreases: Estonia (-21.1%), Spain (-5.2%), Italy (-4.8%) and Ireland (-0.4%).
