Tourism: Bankitalia, foreign spending in Italy in May 5.2 billion, +17%
Last May, Italy’s tourism balance of payments recorded a surplus of 2.8 billion eurosup compared to the same month in 2023 (2.2 billion). Spending by foreign travellers in Italy (5.2 billion) grew by 17%, compared to a 9% increase in the number of Italian travellers abroad (2.4 billion). These are the main ones that emerged from the Bank of Italy’s survey on international tourism. In the three months ending in May 2024 as a whole, Bankitalia continues, tourism revenues increased by 12% compared to the same period in 2023, also due to the growth in per capita spending. The increase in exits, equal to 9%, was instead driven exclusively by the greater number of travellers.
Still on average for the last three months available, for the first time since summer 2021 the trend in spending by travellers from EU countries was more favourable than that of non-EU travellers (13% and 10% respectively compared to the corresponding period). The increase in spending by Italians was also higher in European destinations, 17% and 2% respectively.
Tourism: Confesercenti, Tuscany records Ferragosto
Tuscany’s tourism businesses are preparing for a Ferragosto long weekend with a market stable or slightly increasing compared to last yearbut above all with a lower propensity to spend on tourist demand. To date, the volume of bookings for the period 14-18 August (4 nights) indicates an occupancy rate of 90% of the facilities present on the online portals. This is what emerges from the survey by the Centro studi turistiche per Assoturismo-Confesercenti Toscana on the saturation of the regional accommodation offer available online for the central days of August.
“Ferragosto sold out in Tuscany,” comments Nico Gronchi, president of Confesercenti Toscana. “In particular, there has been a sudden recovery in seaside resorts, with peaks in the center, in the south of Tuscany and on the island of Elba, which are almost sold out in all locations.”
Employment rates above average and slightly up from 2023 were detected for the coastal areas (96%). For mountain resorts, saturation is 95%. Stable, but still positive, is the booking data recorded for rural and hill areas, which pushes occupancy to 93%. For spa resorts, saturation was detected at 82%, down by about 2 points. Finally, even for cities of art, occupancy recorded stops at 82%, i.e. with the same values as 2023. With the exception of coastal areas, which present values well above the regional average, the data for other homogeneous areas of the region reach excellent saturation levels. Among the first, those with the highest saturation rates are the Island of Elba, the Etruscan Coast and the Maremma Coast. The value recorded for the Garfagnana facilities was very positive: 98% saturation compared to 95% last year.
“Tuscany is still maintaining numbers even in the cities of art, in line with previous years, despite the very high temperatures”, Gronchi points out. “We are recording, however, that there has been a peak in last minute bookings. This is a sign that tells of a bit of difficulty for a tourism that must find its own dimension and also of a spending capacity that is slowing down in this month of August, but it is a trend that is now accompanying this entire tail end of summer. In a general sense, however, for these days of Ferragosto, Tuscany is a record Tuscany”.
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