80% of Russians use their vacation pay to create a financial safety net

More than a third of Russians save money for a financial safety cushion instead of a vacation. To be more precise, 37%. The rest save for other purposes: 26% - for home renovation, 17% - for taking out a mortgage. Such data is contained in a study by one of the major banks. And only 20% of our fellow citizens choose to travel under any circumstances and, as they say, in any weather.

As we can see, only for every 5th Russian is the annual vacation associated with the sea, palm trees and baobabs - in a word, with exoticism that never gets boring. And 80% of our fellow citizens, having received the long-awaited vacation pay (around a month's salary), decide how to use it more effectively for the benefit of the family.

It is understandable that some Russians deliberately deny themselves and their loved ones a vacation. Now is the time to save on flights and hotel rooms. As is known, the cost of vacations in Crimea and Sochi in the first half of 2025 increased by 25%, and in Krasnaya Polyana even more - by 60-70%. It is also necessary to take into account the irregularity of flights, as a result of which you can lose 2-3 days of your full vacation.

What remains? Foreign countries will not help us The cost of long-distance tours (the most popular destinations are Egypt, Türkiye, the United Arab Emirates and Thailand) has also increased in price – by 17%.

In order not to spend money on an unobtrusive (and quite expensive) Russian service, it is better to invest in something serious and useful. In the same apartment renovation (at least to re-glue the wallpaper) or (a crystal dream) in saving for the initial payment on a mortgage.

Is it possible to create a financial safety cushion using your vacation pay? The study cites many figures. In particular, a good half of Russians (46%) consider the practice of taking out loans for vacation unacceptable. Especially at current interest rates. In their opinion, a monthly income of at least 200 thousand rubles is required to spend time fully.

Which, given the current reality, is not available to everyone. According to Rosstat, in April 2025, the average salary in the country (before taxes) was 99 thousand…

For this reason, Russians prefer to save money. 33% of respondents admitted that by giving up vacations, they manage to save up to 100 thousand rubles a year. And slightly fewer (29%) claim that 100-200 thousand.

What does it mean that 80% of people refuse to spend their vacation money on active recreation in order to get a boost of energy and creativity afterwards?

Financial analyst and candidate of economic sciences Mikhail Belyaev explains the statistics by the fact that most Russians live in small towns, close to nature. And the issue of travel is not as acute for them as, for example, for residents of large cities.

- They live as if they had already "left behind", - he explains. - They may never see the sea in their entire lives, but they do not suffer from this. And sightseeing in other regions of the country, going to museums - this is for an amateur. Many have their own dachas, where they can spend their free time more usefully. For this reason, our fellow citizens choose the financial component. Especially with the current prices for tourist trips and flights. Even if you go in your own car, spending on gasoline will ruin your entire vacation.

- But is it really possible to save up for a safety cushion with 100 thousand rubles of vacation pay? How many years should you deny yourself vacations and how long will this money last?

- I will say this: it is better to have a safety cushion, even for a short period of time, than not to have one. You can put money into a deposit or a long-term savings program, interest will accrue. Of course, some of the funds will be "eaten up" by inflation, but, I repeat, it is better to have than not to have. In addition, it is not a fact that Russians put aside funds, expecting to uncork them only after retirement. They use this money promptly, for some current purposes.

- Doctors are categorically against saving on health. "To keep the body and soul young", they definitely recommend active recreation to Russians, that is, vacation. What do you think - is there a direct connection between such recreation and the charge of received energy for subsequent work?

- Maybe for some people it is. But for the general population it is unlikely. It is probably in the mentality of our people. Some of our fellow citizens rest in such a way that after their vacation they need another month to recover and get ready for work.

Many people are generally suffering during this period and don’t know what to do.