TOP NEWS

🌍 Ponant Explorations offers three observation scenarios for the solar eclipse on August 12, 2026, off the coasts of Iceland and the Balearic Islands. Serge Brunier, astronaut and universe photographer, along with meteorologist and acclaimed astronomer Joe Rao, will host the Mediterranean cruise. Arctic voyage guests will enjoy insights from French astronaut duo Claudie and Jean-Pierre Haigneré, who have experience aboard MIR and ISS.

🏠 Trip.com Group's report 'Momentum 2025: Travel’s Next Big Trends' based on over 6,000 Asia-Pacific travelers identifies culinary tourism growth, with 62% attending food festivals, 60% choosing hotels for dining, and 52% engaging in street food tours. Films and TV series inspire 70% of travelers' vacation plans. Cruises are set to spike in popularity in 2025, with 44% valuing onboard dining and 38% all-inclusive packages, focusing on destinations like Tokyo, Jeju Island, and the Maldives. Big events and social media influence travel choices, with football, basketball, and Formula 1 creating the most 'hype', and 45% of travelers are directed by TikTok travel content. Emerging micro-trends include astronomical tourism, underwater hotels, and AI for personalized planning.

🏡 Italy shines in the 2025 Forbes Star Award with 91 hotels recognized, including luxury hotels and spas from Rome to the Dolomites. New entries include Castelfalfi with 5 stars, Hotel Pitrizza with 4 stars, and two spas, RAKxa Wellness Spa at Castelfalfi and The Spa at Mandarin Oriental, Lago di Como, each with 4 stars. The country boasts 19 establishments with the coveted 5-star rating, highlighting destinations like Belmond Caruso, J.K. Place Rome, and the Cipriani in Venice.

🏔 Italian travelers prefer mountain destinations: Livigno, Madonna di Campiglio, and Cortina d’Ampezzo see search increases of +32%, +30%, and +18% respectively in winter 2025 compared to winter 2024. Bormio follows with a +19% surge. In contrast, global GenZ travelers favor undiscovered warm beach locations, with Praia Grande and Porto Seguro in Brazil gaining popularity in winter 2025. Young explorers seek regenerative nature experiences like horseback riding and forest bathing.

🎭 Italian cultural tourism shines in 2025, with top visitors from Italy (34.8%, down 1%), Germany (6.8%), France (6.1%), UK (4.5%), and Spain (4.4%). Couples make up 45%, followed by families (29%), groups (14%), and singles (12%). Digital footprint dropped by 14% in 2024, from 10.7 million to 9.2 million pieces of content. Trevi Fountain's new walkway, opened in 2024, attracted 14,000 in its first weekend, collecting €4,600 for charity. The Museo Leonardo da Vinci in Florence outperformed known institutions, doubling its digital footprint in 2024. General sentiment for Italian cultural offerings scored 86/100, with cities like Florence, Milan, Rome, Venice, and Naples exceeding 90/100. Despite a slight dip in 2024 saturation, direct booking rates increased by 6-7%.

🎯 Italy is discussed as a shopping tourism destination at the 8th edition of Shopping Tourism forum organized by Risposte Turismo with Enit on February 28. Italian shopping tourism represents about 2% of total tourist arrivals, with high spending capacity. Outlet commercial space reached 750,000 sqm in 2024, a 4% increase from the previous year, and is expected to grow by 7% in 2025 with a new outlet in Rome. Via Montenapoleone in Milan leads in annual rental values at about €20,000 in 2024, up from 6th place in 2014. Over 70% of American shopping tourists travel more than once for shopping, with 31% doing so four or more times. 45% of these tourists also travel for special events like fashion weeks or Black Friday. 65% of U.S. tourists are interested in guided artisan workshop tours, while 61% are interested in food and wine product workshops.

🏖 Destination Italia integrated Trip Builder into Hubcore.AI, enhancing the operational and administrative efficiency of travel designers. This integration is expected to cut tailor-made processing time by 70%, improve response times, focus on sales rather than procedures, and increase the conversion rate by 20%. Additionally, it predicts a 10% increase in average transaction value, a 1% rise in profit margins, and a 10% reduction in operational costs. Hubcore.AI, now equipped with Trip Builder, offers a comprehensive tool that enriches proposals with high-margin experiential in-house products beyond just accommodation.

🏖️ Rovaniemi, Lapponia, experienced a 400% increase in flights in December over two years, with room rates reaching €370. Saudi Arabia surpassed 100 million tourists in 2023, a 12% increase over 2023 and 56% over 2019. Japan saw a 15% rise in visitors in 2024. Morocco attracted 17.4 million tourists in 2024, up 20%, leading African destinations. Brazil reported a 12.6% increase in international visitors in 2024, totaling 6.6 million.

🍴 The 20th edition of Identità Golose, founded in 2005 by Paolo Marchi and Claudio Ceroni, will take place in Milan from February 22 to 24. It will focus on contemporary culinary trends with renowned chefs and food industry leaders. The event will also emphasize hospitality, featuring the Cluster Hotellerie curated by Elisabetta Canoro, and will introduce new experiences like the Bar Experience and the Salone del Vino, across 13,000 square meters at the Mi.Co. Nord venue.

📌 Marriott Bonvoy's research predicts an optimistic travel scenario for Italians in 2025, with the number of trips expected to remain the same or increase compared to the previous year. Cleanliness ranks highest in influencing accommodation choice, deemed important by 96% and very important by 72% of respondents. Solutions like Chimiver's product range, including Velurex Cleaner Star for cleaning all types of hard surfaces, are influential. The cleaner is available in 1L to 25L containers and is pet-friendly, ensuring long-lasting cleanliness.