About 2.8 million children in Spain — or one in three – come from families who cannot afford to take a summer vacation, with the child poverty rate in Spain the highest in the European Union.
MADRID, 24 July 2025 – One in three Spanish households with children cannot afford summer holidays and instead face hot days stuck inside, said Save the Children, which is offering urban summer camps to children living in poverty.
About 2.8 million children in Spain [1] — or one in three – come from families who cannot afford to take a summer vacation, with the child poverty rate in Spain the highest in the European Union [2].
The highest number of children unable to afford a vacation live in one of Spain’s top tourist destinations, the Canary Islands, where almost half or 47% of children do not have a summer holiday.
Both poverty and the high cost of summer activities are barriers to children’s participation, with holiday costs sometimes representing more than 20% of the annual expenditure of raising a child, according to Save the Children Spain’s Cost of Parenting report [3].
In Europe nearly one in four children face poverty and social exclusion with the situation getting worse, according to research by Save the Children.
Yolanda Carmona, Save the Children's program coordinator in Spain, said:
“Vacations not only represent a break from school; they offer essential opportunities for children's emotional, social, and cognitive development. Far from being mere leisure time, vacations foster creativity, strengthen family ties, allow for contact with nature and exploration of the world through curiosity—key elements for building a full and healthy childhood.
“Child poverty not only limits children's present opportunities, but also jeopardizes their future, perpetuating cycles of social exclusion and inequality.”
Save the Children is supporting 1,500 children living in poverty in Spain to enjoy summer camps this year. During the month of July, these camps offer children field trips to the beach, the pool, cultural visits, and workshops. In addition, the children receive educational reinforcement, a crucial extra support to ensure they don't fall behind when they return to school in September.
Carmona said:
“For many of these children, it's their only vacation and for their families, it represents an opportunity for work-life balance, a daily Tetris challenge for mothers and fathers trying to juggle work with caring for their children.
“We aim to give children and adolescents the opportunity to enjoy the leisure activities they don't have access to during the year. Since last year, we've been working with children to help them plan motivating activities.”
The camps also guarantee at least one healthy meal a day for these children. For families facing financial difficulties, this meal is the only way for their children to receive a balanced and healthy diet during the summer, given that school cafeterias are closed.
Save the Children's urban camps target children between the ages of 3 and 17 in Seville, Illescas (Castilla-La Mancha), Barcelona and Canovelles (Catalonia), Madrid, Fuenlabrada and Leganés (Madrid), Valencia, Alicante, Paterna, Mislata, Paiporta and Sedaví (Valencian Community), Barakaldo (Basque Country), and Melilla.
Globally, Save the Children works with partners and governments and directly with families and children to reduce the numbers of girls and boys in extreme poverty and seeks to increase young people’s hopes and skills for better lives. In Europe, Save the Children is asking governments to take a comprehensive approach to tackling child poverty and include adequate child poverty reduction measures in national action plans, set ambitious national targets for child poverty reduction, aiming to exceed the EU target of lifting 5 million children out of poverty by 2030, and guarantee the sustainability of reforms, ensuring that the financial resources continue funding services in the long run.
[1] Save the Children used the latest Spanish Living Conditions Survey (ECV) to calculate the total number of children under 18 living in Spain going without travel vacations.
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