Romania’s evolving travel wishlist – 2024 bucket list and surprising trends

Romanians love to travel. They’re eager to explore new destinations and broaden their horizons. As we reflect on the travel trends of 2024, it’s clear that Romanian travelers are not just sticking to the usual spots—they’re actively searching for new places to visit, even if they haven’t fully booked their trips just yet. A local travel-tech company looked at the data.

Where do Romanians want to travel? 

A closer look at Romania’s bucket-list destinations for 2024 reveals a mix of exciting, well-known spots and relatively unexplored hidden gems, showcasing a blend of popular favorites and emerging destinations for them.

Italy leads with over 27 million searches, followed by Spain at over 20 million searches, and Germany at 12.4 million searches. These destinations continue to dominate Romanian travel interest. However, looking at the most trending countries, where the increase in searches stands out, we see some exciting new possibilities. Qatar has seen an impressive 75.26% increase in searches, while Egypt and Korea both experienced a notable rise of 32%, and 32.28% respectively.

Similarly, lesser-popular destinations for Romanians such as Curaçao (+33.69%) and Vietnam (+20.9%) are gaining traction. Central Asian countries are also making waves, with Tajikistan experiencing an extraordinary 96.27% increase in searches, followed by Uzbekistan (+51.58%), Kyrgyzstan (+47.12%), Kazakhstan (+45.51%), and Turkmenistan (+32.45%).

These trends show a growing interest in both exotic and some interesting off-the-beaten-path locations.

This comes as no surprise. A survey conducted among travelers from Romania, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Spain, in collaboration with Stem/Mark, revealed interesting insights into vacation preferences. According to the survey, 49.8% of Romanians enjoy exploring new places and cultures, while 15% are more adventurous, seeking out lesser-popular destinations.

Where did they actually travel? 

If we take a closer look at where Romanian travelers have actually ventured, some countries consistently draw their attention. Popular and regional/nearby choices such as Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Germany, and France remain at the top of the list. Other countries in Europe that continue to attract Romanian travelers include Moldova, Greece, Turkey, Belgium, the Netherlands, Portugal, Austria, Ireland, and Hungary.

A sneak peak into the 2025 bucket list 

For 2025, Romanians are increasingly interested in the UAE, USA, Japan, Egypt, and Indonesia. These destinations are seeing a rise in searches, showing a clear preference for a mix of modern luxury, cultural experiences, and exotic getaways.