TOP NEWS

🏖️ Touring Club Italiano and Fondazione Campus annually offer the executive master Management dello Sviluppo Turistico Territoriale for recent graduates and professionals. The course, updated each edition, includes artificial intelligence in tourism for its 5th edition. Hybrid format (online and in-person in Milan) starts on November 15, with registration closing October 31, 2024.

🏕 22% of Italians, out of 30 million going on summer vacation, will choose outdoor locations like campsites and farmhouses, a 7% increase from 15% in 2023. The average holiday duration is 9 days, with August being the most popular month, followed by July and September. 62% favor the beach, while 78% will stay in Italy, with Tuscany, Puglia, and Sicily as top destinations. Tourist budgets have surged by up to €500 compared to last year.

🗺 Italy's passport ranks second in the Global Passport Ranking by Henley Passport Index, allowing 192 visa-free entries. Singapore leads with 195 visa-free entries. France, Germany, Japan, and Spain share the second spot with Italy. The United States fell from fifth to eighth place, now offering 186 visa-free entries. The UAE entered the top ten for the first time with visa-free access to 185 countries. Russia dropped to 45th with 116 visa-free entries, while Iraq, Syria, and Afghanistan occupy the bottom positions with 31, 28, and 26 entries, respectively.

🎬 Italian amusement parks recorded 2023 as their best year ever, with a revenue increase of 11%, amounting to approximately €348 million. Visitor numbers rose by 6.39 percentage points, reaching 19,644,126. The average spending per guest increased by +4.2%, marking a +30% growth since 2019. Opening days in 2023 expanded by 14% compared to 2022. Live event investments for 2024 are estimated at €16.5 million by the Associazione Parchi Permanenti Italiani.

🏨 Hotel d'Inghilterra Roma – Starhotels Collezione, set in the heart of Rome near Piazza di Spagna and Via Condotti, will reopen on September 27 after a second extensive restyling phase, following last year's renovations. President Elisabetta Fabri led the restoration, maintaining the historic architectural elements and antique furnishings while reducing the room count from 84 to 80 to enhance luxury. The hotel now features a new SPA Suite, revamped restaurant Cafè Romano, and a sixth-floor Terrazza Romana offering panoramic views. Skilled artisans were involved in the restoration, part of the “La Grande Bellezza – The Dream Factory” project supporting Italian beauty and craftsmanship.

🏕 Kylie Jenner vacationed in Tuscany, attended Andrea Bocelli's 30th-anniversary celebration, and then moved to Venice. Sofia Vergara stayed in Forte dei Marmi, met Eros Ramazzotti, and saw a Bocelli concert. Gwyneth Paltrow started her Italian tour in Elba and proceeded to Umbria. Will Smith was present at a Coldplay concert in Rome and a Bocelli event. The Beckhams enjoyed Sardinia, nearing their 25th wedding anniversary. Jennifer Lopez chose the Amalfi Coast, Margot Robbie visited before Wimbledon, and Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom were in Porto Cervo before the French Riviera.

🏁 The first major summer exodus in Italy begins tonight, with significant movements expected from July 26-27, from urban centers to vacation spots along A1 Milano-Napoli, A14 Bologna-Taranto, and A30 Caserta-Salerno. The busiest traffic days will be August 3 and 10, with 28 million Italians traveling. A traffic management plan by Autostrade per l’Italia includes a heavy vehicle circulation ban on weekends and removing major roadworks. A new control room in Rome monitors traffic and infrastructure in real-time across 3,000 km of network.

🏖️ Over 6.4 million overnight stays are expected between today and Sunday, marking the last weekend of July with 80% of Italian hospitality venues booked. Demand surge, notably international, peaks tourism presence for the summer quarter. Lakes and mountains see a rise, reaching 92% and 82% occupancy, while art cities hit 75%. Trentino Alto Adige leads with the highest saturation rate at 83%, contributing to the Northeast's overall leading status. The Northwest follows closely at 82%, with Liguria and Valle d'Aosta standing out. Central Italy reports 80% occupancy, and the South and islands slightly lower at 81%.

🚢 Summer 2023 sees skyrocketing ferry prices to Italian islands. Civitavecchia-Olbia route for a family with two children and a car surpasses €1,600. Livorno-Palermo and Genova-Palermo routes exceed €1,000, while Naples to the Aeolian Islands tops €900 without a cabin. Federalberghi Isole di Sicilia reports a 56% increase in state-contracted ferry and hydrofoil services, as per Christian Del Bono, president of the association, calling it a "sword of Damocles" for residents and tourism operators.

🏖️ Domestic travel dominates the tourism industry, with the US market generating $1 trillion (68% of total), China at $744 billion (74%), and Europe around 70%. Italy, the second European destination with 11% preference, saw 134 million arrivals and 451 million presences in the past year, up 3% from 2019, contributing 10% to its GDP. Key source markets include the US, Germany, UK, China, and France, totaling 38% of global tourists, with emerging markets in India and Southeast Asia. Upcoming destinations to watch are Saudi Arabia, India, Japan, Thailand, Laos, Malaysia. The trends focus on luxury, unique experiences, and sustainability, requiring trained personnel and public-private coordination.