Outdoor tourism in Italy in 2026 revenues estimated at 9.1 billion

Turnover in Italy exceeds 9 billion euros. This is the 2026 estimate of the economic impact of outdoor tourism, a holiday formula that in recent years has been chosen by millions of tourists from all over Europe. In terms of supply, Italia is the continent's second largest market, behind Spain, and ahead of France. This year, direct spending on outdoor holidays in our country will be over EUR 5.12 billion, considering an average direct per capita daily expenditure of around EUR 75. Considering the indirect and induced components, this comes to more than 9.1 billion. A value that, according to the analysis of Thrends, a tourism marketing company, for the sixth edition of the Outdoor Tourism Observatory carried out for Human Company, can reach a maximum of 13.3 billion euros.

This year, there will be 68.4 million overnight stays in campsites, resorts and villages, an increase of 0.4 per cent over 2025. The driving force will be arrivals from abroad with 37.8 million nights or a 55% share. Since the post Covid, Italians have discovered this type of holiday and around 30.6 million overnight stays with a stable trend. The comparison with 2019 shows a double-digit growth, close to +14%, of foreign demand while the domestic market for the same period marks a -9.2%.

"Having overcome the rebound phase after the pandemic, Italia confirms itself as the second largest market in Europe," points out Domenico Montano, general manager of Human Company, a company that has been active in open-air tourism for more than 40 years. "Now the offer must go through qualification and innovation". A trend that sees a constant growth path to qualitatively increase the offer both in terms of comfort, increasingly ensured by mobile homes, which in the villages of the main operators have reached a penetration of 30%, and services in line with those offered by 3 and 4-star hotels.

In the area, the centre of gravity of the offer is in the North East. Between Lake Garda, the Po Delta, the Veneto coast between Caorle and Jesolo, and Romagna, here are the largest villages that welcome thousands of loyal holidaymakers arriving from all over Europe. In this macro area, thanks to its proximity to the German-speaking and Northern European markets, almost 46% of overnight stays, 31.4 million, were concentrated in 2025, an increase of half a percentage point. This is followed by the Centre, with another 16.7 million nights, the South and the Islands (10.6 million) and the North-West (9.5 million). This year, the climate of uncertainty triggered by the current geopolitical situation and the price of oil continues to weigh heavily, so the scenario drawn by Thrends analysts is one of substantial stability in demand.

For the first time, Human Company and Thrends analyse the trend of the sector on a European level. In 2025, there were approximately 3 billion overnight stays in all types of accommodation in Europe, +2.2% on the previous year. The outdoor holiday formula on the other hand saw just over 413.2 million nights (+14%) of which almost 154 million in France alone. In 2025, six countries - France, Italia, Spain, Germany, the Netherlands and Croatia - recorded 351.3 million overnight stays.