The Netherlands attracts more guests, especially popular holiday homes
The number of people who slept a night in a hotel, a cottage or at a campsite in the Netherlands increased in 2019. The Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) reported Wednesday. The number of overnight stays increased by 7 percent to 124 million. The total number of guests increased by 5 percent to 46.3 million. Foreign guests in particular were more often found in Dutch accommodations. The number of guests from across the border increased by 8 percent in 2019. The number of Dutch guests increased by 3 percent.
Holiday homes in particular were popular last year compared to other types of accommodation. Both the number of people who booked a holiday home and the number of overnight stays in holiday homes increased by around 10 percent, according to the CBS. Noord-Holland remained the most visited province with around 15 million guests in 2019 and, together with Noord-Brabant, was the fastest growing in terms of the number of guests. Flevo land was the least visited province with around 700,000 guests.
Because the number of overnight stays increased more than the number of guests, the average length of stay per guest increased. This increase in length of stay is visible in all provinces, with the exception of Noord-Brabant. More and more Dutch young people are starting their own businesses. Economisch Nieuws that is quite a smart move. The future offers little job guarantee. Knowing how to do business can then be very useful. When Fleur Huijs (21) was twenty, she had an annual turnover of 10,000 euros. “I had set up my own company a year earlier,” she says. With Fleur Presents she gives presentation training to school pupils and students. “You don’t learn how to present at school. While that is such an important skill. Huijs was well aware that there is a need for training in which you learn that skill. And her turnover is rising. In the first two months of 2020 alone, she generated more revenue than in her entire first year.
Increase in the number of young people with their own businesses
Huijs is not the only one who runs his own company at a very young age. In fact, entrepreneurship is becoming increasingly popular among young people. In the past year, the number of entrepreneurs aged eighteen or younger grew by no less than 70 percent. In 2018, 3,876 young start-ups registered with the Chamber of Commerce, a year later there were 6,572. Compared to 2014, when only 1.945 minors registered at the Chamber of Commerce, this number has risen explosively. A good development, says Heleen Dura-Van Oord. She is a board member at Jong Ondernemen, a foundation dedicated to entrepreneurship within education. The labor market is changing rapidly, she explains. Of 65 percent of the new jobs that will be created, we do not yet know exactly what they will entail. Young people will have to be prepared for this. According to financieel nieuws, skills such as self-reliance, creativity and agility are therefore more important than ever. By doing business you train it. You also gain all kinds of knowledge that is important in the job market of the future. 5-VWO student Fleur Strijk also noticed this when she had to set up her own business in the economics school subject with the help of the Junior Company program of the Jong Ondernemen foundation. “I found it particularly difficult to prepare an invoice.
Together with three classmates, she founded Kiss2Survive, a company that easily develops portable resuscitation kits for students. “My father works on an ambulance and has his own company in CPR training,” explains Strijk. “So I know how important it is that passers-by can resuscitate. The resuscitation backpacks contain a respirator mask, plasters, gloves and a manual. “A company in Zeeland makes the bags for us”, says Strijk. All in all, they have sold 750 bags so far. They have not yet earned much from it. But that doesn’t matter, said Strijk. “It was especially fun and educational.
While Strijk was encouraged to do business from school, Huijs experienced no cooperation at all. There was a strict attendance requirement in my French studies. I couldn’t really combine that with my company. She is now following fewer courses of her new law studies, but it is still sometimes puzzling. She therefore believes that study programs should take this into account more. Now you are actually being punished a bit for being an entrepreneur.” Still, stopping her business is absolutely not an option for Huijs. In the future, I just want Fleur Presents to grow.
Erika White is a graduate of Parsons School of Design. Erika is based in Manhattan but travels much of the year. Erika has written for NPR, Motherboard, MSN Money, and the Huffington Post. Here at Morning News Ledger, Erika covers entertainment stories, focusing on performance arts and culture.
