(by correspondent Cinzia Conti) A satisfying year with some records but still some thorny issues to resolve. The president of Federalberghi Bernabò Bocca puts them on the table on the eve of the Ttg Travel Experience, the leading event organized by the Italian Exhibition Group (Ieg) at the Rimini Fair from 14 to 16 October.
"We have had - he says in an interview with ANSA - an increase in presences and arrivals which is partly motivated by the fact that the introduction of the Cin, the code assigned by the Ministry of Tourism to each accommodation facility (hotels, B&Bs, holiday homes and short-term rentals), has brought out presences and arrivals which in previous years, on the other hand, were not recorded, they were submerged, so to speak. Then there are certainly some places which have fared better and others which have fared worse and therefore I believe that if in the end of the year we will reach hotel turnover figures in line with last year, which was an excellent year anyway, we certainly won't be able to complain. If there were always years like 2025 and 2026, we would be satisfied."
The theme is always not to count the heads of tourists but the spending: "As far as turnover is concerned, the second half of the year is going well. We started off great with the Olympics, then the war broke out and the Americans began not to book anymore, not to travel. We had a one-month booking hold for the months to come, so in May and June we suffered a bit on the North American market. Then they calmed down and understood that in Italy there were no dangers and risks and they started booking again, so much so that we had a great September, we're having a great October for these travelers is usually 60-90 days."
On the other hand, many Italians also remained on holiday in Italy: "Obviously the seaside destinations benefited and we had an excellent turnout from the European market. The Middle East on the other hand remained at a standstill, so some places like Milan suffered in the months of May and June, but those customers started coming again in July, so there were some moments of stoppage, but with absolutely satisfactory recoveries which will lead to a positive 2026 for national online tourism, we we believe, with 2025".
According to the president of the hoteliers, among the issues to be resolved are "the redevelopment of tourist accommodation facilities (with a structural measure to support investments), the development of new services (reforming the anachronistic rules that do not allow the offer to be expanded), the reduction of the fiscal pressure (starting from the taxes that weigh on instrumental properties even when businesses are closed or half-empty) and the fight against rampant illegal construction (to guarantee safety and protect tourists, citizens, workers, businesses and treasury)".
Bocca underlines the great contribution that tourism companies "offer to the production of Italian wealth (234 billion euros), to the development of employment (1.6 million employees), to the surplus of the currency balance (57 billion euros spent by foreigners in Italy)" and announces a programmatic platform of the Federalberghi system which will be officially approved by the Board of Directors in Rimini and hopes "the government and Parliament will accept and make this contribution of ideas their own, already on the occasion of the presentation and discussion of the budget law for the year 2027".
Finally, the issue of short-term rentals which, Bocca assures, he will never stop dealing with: "We continue to maintain that we operate on the same market as short-term rentals, indeed they operate on the same market as us. As long as they are allowed to rent for just one dry night, they are on our market and must submit to the same rules as us; if instead a minimum stay of 5 nights were set, then it would be a different market there, because those who want to stay 5-7 days in a city might prefer accommodation in an apartment rather than in a hotel. But the fact that they open and close like an accordion, even in historic centres, only during periods of pressure, without having the huge costs that we have, this in my opinion is unfair competition and it is a phenomenon that must be regulated" And he reiterates: "Nobody is asking to stop it absolutely, but it must still be regulated better".
With the Minister of Tourism Gianmarco Mazzi Bocca explains that he has constant conversations every week. "He is perfectly clear about our needs and requirements. What I insist on asking him is also, compatibly with public finances, to focus on the redevelopment of the Italian hotel park, but with simple tools. For example, this latest tender for 110 million called Green Tour had such a complicated application to present that many small and medium-sized businesses ultimately gave up."
