2012 Tourism with spendthrift foreigners especially Russians
Lost 11 million touristic presences in Italy, fewer rooms filled in hotel but there is an increase in spending by non European tourists.
Read for you by Donatella Cinelli Colombini
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There are few certainties for Italian tourism were the non registered nights seem to be, according to ISTAT, 56%ofte total and in Puglia they would even multiply by 6 the official number. A situation which make any evaluation doubtful and especially makes a credible projection for the future impossible, but Trademark, the major Italian institute for surveys, tries all the same concluding with a situation full of light and shadows.
The first negative element is the amount spent on promotion: summing up all the expenses of all the regions we obtain an amount that is double that invested in Spain, three times as much as what is spent in France and 10 times the USA budget. But if only it were of some use! In fact though it results as being a << conceited exhibition that goes on since 1970 … waist, double expenses, false buyers, false educational trips, mess ups ….>> as they are descried by Aureliano Bonini from Trademark who brings attention to the large number of politic delegations who go abroad.
But let’s take a look at the amount of occupied rooms in hotels, the fundamental axis of our National offer. The Trademark data is based on telephone surveys carried out on Hotel managers and are surely more trustworthy than the ISTAT data. In the 45 chief towns concerned by the
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survey there has been a decline in room occupation equivalent to1,6% (this means a R.O. of 65%) compare to the previous year with a slight increase in prices. Only Florence and Rome exceed the 70% of room use while the negative record belongs to Ferrara who loses 7,4 %. The major increase in room occupancy is in Naples. The major decrease in prices is inVerona(-6,1%) while the most expensive are in Venice, Milan and Florence respectively with 147, 131 and 122 € per night.
While internal tourism has contracted in its volumes and business, the foreigners and especially the non Europeans, have spent 4,6% with respect to 2011, with tax-free shopping that has increased by 30%. The nationalities that have bought most in Italy are USA, Russian and Australian but if we go to see the amount spent per person we realize that the Russians are definitely the top spenders (information from Touring Club italiano and Global Blue).