According to the International Centre for Studies on Tourism Economics (CISET), there are good prospects for incoming and outgoing tourism to Italy in the next two-year period.
The research includes tourist flows to Italy falling into four areas – Mediterranean, Central Europe, Northern Europe, and outside Europe. The growth of incoming tourism from the traditional markets is estimated at +2.1% in 2014 and +2.8% in 2015.
In 2014 the international tourism demand for Italy is expected to increase for non-European countries (+2.9%), with an increase of 3.6% from the United States. 2015 is likely to record a further increase of arrivals from non-European countries with a growth rate of 5.0%.
Central European countries remain the main source market for Italy accounting for more than 20 million visitors. The region is expected to perform in line with the average of the current year (+1.4%), while the growth forecast for 2015 is estimated at +1.3%. The flows from the countries of the Mediterranean have registered a turnaround with a slight increase in 2014 (+0.5%) and the growth is expected to be reinforced albeit only slightly in 2015 (+0.8%).
As for the outbound market, international departures from Italy between 2014 and 2015 are expected to exceed 23 million, with growth rates of +2.1% and +2.5% respectively. The most popular holiday destinations for Italians are in the Mediterranean where the researchers expect an above-average growth. The Mediterranean area attracts more than half of outbound tourists from Italy.
Central Europe is expected to lure less Italians in the coming years – the growth rates are estimated at + 1.7% for 2014 and + 2.3% for 2015.
Finally, the countries outside Europe will be characterized by a lower than average performance (+1.3% in 2014, 0.6% in 2015), partly because of the socio-political turmoil and despite the recovery of tourism in North Africa. Among the traditional overseas destinations, the United States will experience a +2.1% and +0.1% growth from Italy between 2014 and 2015.