According to a new calculation, the electric car beats the petrol car in price to Lake Garda and the French Riviera on your do-it-yourself holiday.
A new analysis shows that there is money to be saved by choosing an electric car over a petrol car for your self-drive holiday.
The analysis was prepared by Spar Nord. It looked at the costs associated with some of the Danes' favorite do-it-yourself holiday destinations.
The study takes into account more than just fuel or electricity. Wear and tear, depreciation and road tolls are also included in the calculation.
This gives a more complete picture of the real costs.
If you take the trip from Aarhus to Lake Garda in Italy and back, there is money to be made. A petrol car costs approximately 9,000 kroner for the trip. An electric car can do the same trip for around 7,000 kroner.
If the journey begins in Copenhagen, the figures are a little different. The trip to Garda Lake costs approximately 8,500 kroner in a petrol car. In an electric car, the price is down to approximately 6,500 kroner.
– If you are currently planning and booking a holiday to, for example, Lake Garda or the French Riviera, it is not unimportant for the holiday budget whether the more than 3,000 kilometers are to be driven in a petrol or electric car, says Jens Nyholm, chief economist at Spar Nord.
– Because if you have the opportunity to drive the trip in an electric car rather than a gasoline car, it can mean a saving of a few thousand kroner.
Lower costs of electric cars
Market analyst Jan Lang from Bilbasen points to falling total costs for electric cars.
– It has generally become cheaper to own an electric car." "Specifically, we can see that the total cost of owning an electric car during 2024 decreased by 13 percent for the 10 best-selling new electric cars, while the corresponding figure was 17 percent for the 10 best-selling used electric cars."
– There have been significantly more electric cars on the roads in recent years, and in the last year alone the number of electric cars has increased by 74 percent according to figures from Statistics Denmark, explains Jan Lang.
"The development must be seen in the context of the price war we have seen, which has made it significantly cheaper to buy an electric car."
– In addition, lower depreciation on electric cars and reasonable consumer prices for electricity have made it economically advantageous to own an electric car.
However, neither Spar Nord nor Bilbasen's analyst addresses why electric cars are so popular in Denmark. It may be related to the artificially low taxes on cars. Read more about it here .
Another popular destination is the French Riviera. A trip from Copenhagen and back costs around 11,200 kroner in a petrol car. With an electric car, the price comes to around 8,700 kroner.
Planning the do-it-yourself holiday
This results in a difference of almost 2,500 kroner in savings by choosing the electric car. The money can be spent on other holiday experiences.
– Although many Danes have reasonable savings and are not pressured by their personal finances, most would probably like to optimize their holiday budget.
– And here, the expenses for fuel or electricity consumption will be the item in the car budget that is easiest to increase, continues Jens Nyholm.
He recommends good planning of the choir trip.
– Therefore, it is wise to plan the journey and, in this context, look for reasonable prices and transparency from the providers of electric charging stations, concludes Jens Nyholm.
About the investigation:
The calculations of TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) are based on the 10 best-selling new cars and the 10 best-selling used cars in Denmark in January and February.
The average TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) for petrol cars is DKK 2.79/km and for electric cars DKK 2.09/km. Diesel cars are not included in the analysis, as diesel cars are not among the most sold cars.
Fuel consumption is set at an average for petrol cars of 14.10 km/l. Electric cars are set at 20 kWh per 100 km. This is 15 percent below the stated consumption figures, as it is taken into account that the vast majority of the trip takes place on country roads or motorways.
