Italians choose European destinations, especially Spain, France, Germany and Romania.
82% of foreign trips made by Italians have a European destination, with the most visited countries in the year being Spain (13.4%), France (10.7%), Germany (7.1%) and Romania (5.5%). Among non-European territories, Egypt, the United States and Morocco remain the most popular.
In 2024, Spain remains excellently positioned in Italy, being the favourite destination for long holidays and the second destination for short holidays after France. In addition, air connectivity continues to grow, with a 13.8% increase in scheduled capacity between Italy and Spain for the summer of 2024 compared to 2023, offering the possibility of positioning new Spanish destinations and products in this market. In summer and autumn, Spain is the top country (14.7% and 17.1%), but in spring it is preceded by France (16%).
This is indicated by the latest data from ISTAT (Istituto Nazionale di Statistica) in its report ‘Viaggi e Vacanze 2023’, which shows that the top four is completed by France (10.7%), Germany (7.1%) and Romania (5.5%). Among non-European territories, Egypt, the United States and Morocco remain the most popular.
According to the IPSOS Future4Tourism report by IPSOS, in spring 2024 approximately seven out of 10 Italians plan to take at least one holiday. The destination of choice was mainly Italy, but Spain was confirmed as the preferred European target. Along similar lines, the Travellyze analysis, which highlights the top five destinations for Italians in 2024, indicated that after Italy comes Spain, Greece, Ireland and Portugal.
Spending of €4.3 billion
4.8 million Italian tourists visited Spain in 2023, representing 5.7% of the total number of tourists received, spending 4.3 billion euros (5% of the total), which placed Italy in the 4th position as an outbound market of tourists to Spain and in the 6th position in terms of expenditure. The average expenditure per person and per day was 891 and 142 euros, respectively, while the average stay was 6.3 nights.
The main motivation of Italian tourists visiting Spain last year was leisure (83% of the total), followed by work and business trips (9%). They stayed principally in hotels (67%), and mainly travelled without a package tour (88%). Their favourite destinations were Catalonia (26%), the Balearic Islands (16%) and Andalusia (14%). In the first quarter of 2024, the Italian market recorded significant growth compared to 2023, both in terms of tourist flows (+15.5%) and nominal expenditure (+27.8%).