Germany leads the ranking of the Italian tourism source markets. German inbound tourism reveals almost 60 million overnight stays (59.3 million) in 2017 that consolidate a positive trend that has lasted for decades (an increase of 30.7% in the last 10 years).
German visitors represent 28.2% of all international travelers in Italy. Their inflow has increased by 4.9% and they are attracted above all by nature, sea, food, and wine. Moreover, Germans also spend the most when visiting Italy, with a total expenditure of 5.8 billion euros, 17.3% of the total expenditure.
Italy has also consolidated its place as a favorite destination for international tourism. According to data from ENIT, 208 million overnight stays were registered between January and November last year (+1.8%). In comparison, France registered 134.7 million overnight stays (+5.7%) in this period. Meanwhile Spain, despite being the first in Europe, saw almost 4.7 million foreign visitors less than in the same period in 2017 (-1.6%).
Moreover, the popularity of Italian tourism is also demonstrated by airport transits. A total of 121 million passengers moved through Italian airports in 2018, an increase of 7.2%. This is almost two percentage points more than the European average (5.6%) with 93 million passengers.
The forecasts are also positive towards the future. 2019 is predicted to be a year of growth and initial numbers are confirming this. In the first semester of the year, reservations on flights to Italy are already higher by 2.8% compared to 2018. France seems to be on the same wave, while the decline of Spain continues (-7.6%).