Swedes, like many Europeans, are eager to jump on planes to more or less exotic destinations to escape the winter chill. Swedes are second only to the Brits when it comes to complaining about what meets them when they arrive.

The survey by Kairos Future charts long term trends within travel and tourism in light of the economic downturn and concludes that the downturn will have a greater impact on tourism than the climate change debate. The survey also looked at social responsibility in connection with travelling.

It was found that the Danes and the Dutch were the most laid back and prepared to adapt to their holiday surroundings while the Swedes, Norwegians and Brits were described as “perfectionists” and expected the destinations to adapt to them.

The survey shows that there is a gulf in expectations and reality and that Swedes like to have their grievance heard.

Some of the comments compiled by Dagens Nyheter from the UK’s Daily Telegraph and other sources, indicate that Swedes can complain about pretty much anything.

“Too many Spanish people in Spain”, “too much sand on the beach” and “curry, curry, curry nothing but curry to eat” in India were some of the typical complaints.

One tourist complained that the fluctuating tides meant that their time at the beach was cut short.

Another complained that “no one had told us that the sea was full of fish. The children were scared out of their wits.”

Kairos Future’s “European Travel Trend Survey” collated data from 11,000 respondents in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, the UK, Germany and the Netherlands and was published on March 18th.