A sparkling summer thanks to the good performances recorded in the sea and mountain resorts but the tourism system is unable to match the pre-pandemic values and presences. “ We have had a very positive summer, which is not over and so we still have to manage this last part of the summer. Then we are focusing on winter, because we want there to be an excellent and perfect winter season – said yesterday Massimo Garavaglia, Minister of Tourism during his visit to the Motorhome Show in Parma -. Taking into account that for many foreign clients in Northern Europe, what is a cold month for us, October, for them it is August, we still have a good summer queue to manage ».
That of 2021 can be considered a halved season, concentrated in about eighty days, with great difficulties for hoteliers and restaurateurs in finding trained staff and a foreign tourism limited to that of proximity that reaches beaches and peaks of the Belpaese by car. Bank of Italy data show + 53% of foreign tourist spending in June but compared to June 2019 the loss is close to 66%. Record summer for Liguria which, according to the data presented yesterday by Giovanni Toti, president of the Region, hosted 5.4 million visitors with a growing trend continued also in September thanks to + 33% of foreigners arriving mainly from Germany and Switzerland. And now aim for the lengthening of the season.
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Marina Lalli, president of Federturismo Confindustria, is focusing on the seasonal adjustment. “This year there will be and it gives us good hope because all organized groups are confirmed and bookings are taking place – says the president -. Sea and mountains have gone great and continue to do so in September. It remains to be seen whether with the organized groups and the few foreigners we will be able to keep the structures open for the autumn ».
“After a bad start, we had a good July, an excellent August and an excellent September tail – remarks Bernabò Bocca, President of Federalberghi – but in the cities of art tourism is latent and is very far from the levels of 2019”. Rome, Milan and Florence continue to suffer due to the room occupancy rate more than halved compared to the past due to the stop of the North American, Russian, Chinese and Japanese markets ». To complicate the work the many last minute bookings “that arrive day by day and make it difficult to plan the activity as well as the difficulty in finding staff” urges Bocca.
Fabrizio Licordari, president of Assobalneari (bathing establishments) says he is moderately satisfied «in the general context in which many activities are still suffering the beaches have represented the driving force behind the restart – Licordari recalls -. We have just left the last weekend of the season behind us and with the start of the schools the attendance is decreasing. There are no foreigners and to return to pre-pandemic levels, another 30-40% of presences were needed ».