Tourism drives the economy but no holiday for one sixth of Italians

One in two Italians will take both short and long holidays this year, another third will opt for either a summer break or the canonical one-week holiday and only 16% will not go on holiday compared to 23% in summer 2023. It is mainly economic difficulties that force people to stay at home, a situation that affects one third of those concerned. Others give up because household bills force them to save money, says 23% of the sample, but there are 14% who have to stay at home to care for dependent persons, parents and other close relatives. This is what is revealed in the "Focus on summer holidays" by the Confcommercio Tourism Observatory carried out in collaboration with Swg.

Among summer 2024 holidaymakers, the objective is the canonical unplugged to rest, to which are added other motivations including: seeing new places, spending time with family and loved ones, tasting typical products, immersing oneself in nature or, at any rate, being outdoors. The choice of travelling companion, or companions, remains fundamental. For more than half of Italians, this is their partner, and this applies both to short holidays - i.e. breaks of 1-2 nights and trips of 3 to 5 nights - and longer holidays with at least 6 nights. Friends turn out to be the ideal travel companions especially for 1-2 night breaks. As far as the spending budget for summer holidays is concerned, almost a third of families, 31% to be precise, planned to spend more this year than in 2023, while for 18% it will be less, mainly due to an increase in family expenses or because of other expenses to be incurred in the coming months. Then there are 42% who expect to spend as much as last summer and 9% who have not yet defined their spending budget. In any case, the average total expenditure per capita planned for the 2024 summer holidays is €1,190, 10% more than last summer (€1,090).

With these prospects, the tourism sector reaffirms its key role in the economic growth of the country system. "Recent data from the Bank of Italy's Economic Bulletin confirm the crucial role of tourism as a driver of Italy's economic growth," Marina Lalli, president of Federturismo Confindustria, recalls. "In 2023, consumption by resident and non-resident families for accommodation and catering services increased by 5.4% in real terms compared to the previous year, a clear sign of the sector's newfound confidence and vitality.

According to ISTAT analysis, in 2023, arrivals of guests from abroad exceeded the domestic component, reaching 52.4% of total overnight stays. This increase in foreign demand not only exceeded pre-pandemic levels, but also highlighted Italy's international attractiveness as a top tourist destination. "Overnight stays by foreigners in Italy have started to grow again, surpassing 2019 values, in line with other countries with a strong tourist vocation such as France, Greece, Portugal and Spain," the president continues. "It is crucial to continue investing in the quality and sustainability of our tourist facilities in order to maintain and increase this positive trend.

This trend continued in the first few months of this year when real spending by foreign travellers in Italy increased by 10.5% in the first quarter compared to the same period in 2022, catching up with 2019 levels. This result was mainly driven by travellers from outside the European Union, such as the United States, the United Kingdom and Japan, which showed a higher average spend per capita. "Data that show the great value that the Italian tourism supply chain represents for growth, employment, and the wealth of territories, families, businesses, and destinations," Marina Lalli concludes. "We need to continue to invest in quality tourism to ensure a sustainable model of tourism development and, at the same time, eliminate the factors of imbalance that still cause seasonal overcrowding or asymmetric distribution of flows.