June 20, 2026, 12:12 pm | Read time: 3 minutes
A restaurant visit, sunscreen, or grocery shopping: Daily expenses can quickly add up, especially on vacation. However, depending on the destination, the same budget can be worth significantly more or less. Recent comparisons show which countries offer travelers high purchasing power and where travel costs are noticeably higher.
Turkey offers the highest purchasing power for German travelers
Those spending their vacation in Turkey get particularly good value for their money earned in Germany. This is highlighted by the banking association. According to them, travelers receive goods and services for one euro that would cost 1.79 euros in Germany.
The purchasing power of the euro is also high in Poland: There, one euro equates to a purchasing power of 1.47 euros compared to Germany. In Hungary, the value is 1.35 euros.
Travelers also enjoy a purchasing power advantage in Greece and Spain, where they get about 20 percent more for their money. In Italy, the price level is also somewhat lower than in Germany.
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Purchasing power can aid in travel planning
Those who carefully calculate their vacation expenses in advance should consider not only travel and accommodation costs but also the purchasing power at the destination. Because: “The higher the purchasing power of our euro abroad, the more you can afford on site,” writes the banking association.
In some countries, the euro is worth less
Not everywhere do travelers benefit from low prices. In Denmark, vacationers receive goods and services for one euro that would cost around 0.79 euros in Germany. This means the purchasing power there is about 20 percent below the German level.
Switzerland is even more expensive. There, the purchasing power of the euro is almost 40 percent lower. In France and Austria, prices are roughly on par with Germany.
For the comparison, the banking association used data from the OECD. The organization regularly determines price level differences in its 38 member states.
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Hotels and restaurants in Southern Europe often cheaper
The Federal Statistical Office recently published another comparison. It examined the prices for hotel stays and restaurant visits in selected vacation countries compared to Germany.
The result: In many Southern European destinations, these services are cheaper than in Germany. In Turkey, prices are 33 percent lower, in Portugal 30 percent, and in Spain 22 percent. The differences are particularly large in North Macedonia and Bulgaria, where hotel and restaurant services cost 52 and 47 percent less, respectively, than in Germany.
High prices in Scandinavia and Switzerland
Hotel stays and restaurant visits are more expensive than in Germany in the Benelux countries as well as in Finland and Sweden.
According to the Federal Statistical Office, the price level is particularly high in Denmark, where these services cost 29 percent more. In Norway, the surcharge is 34 percent. Prices are even higher in Switzerland and Iceland, each 49 percent above the German level.
With material from dpa