Conferenze e Fiere

📅 In 2025, the Giubileo could be a growth opportunity or a deterrent for foreign tourists concerned about high tourist flows. TTG Today's latest issue, available at Bmt and online, discusses strategies to capitalize on this event. It also covers hotel chain investments in Central and Southern Italy, summer season trends among travel agents, cruise market developments, promotional initiatives by Italian regions, airport movements in Central and Southern Italy, and Mediterranean competitors offering alternatives to 'just sea' vacations.

🏖️ Paride Vitale stars in Club del Sole's new promotional campaign as a brand ambassador, launching today on social media, including Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok. The campaign features a web series titled 'Il Testimonial Perfetto' with four episodes where Vitale collaborates with various talents like Not Ordinary Family, travel creator Giovanni Arena, chef Davide Nanni, and Natasha Stefanenko with daughter Sasha Sabbioni. The series showcases Club del Sole's family-friendly vacations, dog-friendly services, food offerings, and active holiday experiences, emphasizing an authentic narrative beyond traditional advertising as described by CEO Francesco Giondi.

🎭 Pordenone named Italian Capital of Culture 2027. Announcement by Minister of Culture Alessandro Giuli during the official proclamation ceremony at the Ministry of Culture's Sala Spadolini. Pordenone was chosen over Alberobello, Aliano, Brindisi, Gallipoli, La Spezia, Pompei, Reggio Calabria, Sant’Andrea di Conza, and Savona. Minister of Tourism Daniela Santanchè highlights the cultural wealth and tourism opportunity, expecting to attract global visitors and stimulate local economic development.

🏖 Oman expects to surpass 76,000 Italian arrivals in 2025, aiming for a 7% increase from the over 72,000 visitors in 2024, which included about 24,000 cruise tourists. This marks a recovery to pre-Covid levels, with 103 active tour operators compared to 110 in 2019. Key events in 2025 include the Beach Games in April, the prestigious Oman Perfume Show from May 29 to June 2, and the Jewel of Arabia Expedition in January 2026. Oman Air has restored 11 daily flights from Milan and Rome. The capital, Muscat, is enhancing its cultural appeal with a new museum district and promoting year-round tourism, including during Ramadan and with new trekking trails and the "Hanging Terraces" hospitality project.

🏖️ Mauritius hosts vibrant cultural events in March, attracting tourists globally. Holi, celebrating good over evil, is on March 14, featuring symbolic bonfires and colored powder throwing. Ougadi, the Telugu New Year, occurs on March 30, beginning with the purifying Mangala Snaanam, followed by celebrations with decorations, performances, and traditional dishes. These festivals offer a blend of emotion and culture, providing unforgettable experiences.

✈ Wizz Air will launch a new flight route connecting Catania, Sicily to Wroclaw, Poland starting March 31, 2026. Flights will operate twice a week, every Tuesday and Saturday. This addition by Wizz Air strengthens the connection between Sicily and Poland, complementing existing routes to Katowice and Warsaw, and expands their network from Catania to 19 routes across 11 countries.

🏠 Croatia targets the Central-Southern market, with Viviana Vukelic, director of the Croatian National Tourist Board in Italy, aiming to attract year-round tourists and promote organized tourism. Key upcoming flight connections in 2025 include Croatia Airlines' Milan Malpensa to Zagreb from July 2, Ryanair's Palermo-Zagreb from March 30, Bari-Zadar from May 2, and Rome Fiumicino-Zadar from May 3, along with easyJet's Milan Linate-Split from June 23. The strategy focuses on a premium target market and sustainable travel, with positive summer prospects noted in Naples.

🌆 Gianluca Caramanna, member of the Productive Activities Committee and advisor to the Italian Ministry of Tourism, assures that the 'Jubilee effect' will positively impact incoming tourism. Caramanna compares the expected long-term benefits to those seen by France following the Olympics, predicting an increase in tourists choosing Italy in the coming years. He emphasizes the need for quality over quantity in the competition with Spain, which has more accommodations but a lower level of offer. No specific dates or numbers are provided.

🍸 Distilleria Alma in Modica, Sicily, founded in 2021 by Annalisa Spadaro, Hugo Gallardo, and Alejandro Lopez, is Italy's first dedicated rum producer, crafting Rum Mater. Two sugar cane types are cultivated: sweet, fruity viola and earlier-maturing yellow from Spain. Sugarcane is harvested manually from March to June, with juice fermented for 72 or 96 hours before distillation. The Mater line includes various rum profiles and Mater Gin from Panela raw sugar. The distillery began with an acre in 2022, expanding to three acres in 2023. Mater Rum is distributed by Rinaldi 1957 since February, a company with a €22.3 million turnover and a portfolio of over 130 brands.

🏦 Mia Hezi, president of Visit Usa Italia, commented on the first edition of the Forum Visita Usa, a spin-off of the Showcase Usa, in Turin. The event facilitated one-to-one meetings with members like Alidays, America World, Condor, and others, and featured presentations from six U.S. destinations, including New York City Tourism + Conventions and Visit California, plus the airline Condor, aiming to strengthen collaboration and promote U.S. tourism in the Italian market.