Italian National Tourist Board UK & Ireland ITALY AS A TOURISM DESTINATION An overview of the UK outbound market 2014/15
2015 (Provisional data - Quarter 2) The latest data published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) indicates that in the period Jan- June 2015 the overall visits abroad by UK residents were 29.573.000 registering an 8.2% increase with a spending of 16.605 million (+4.3%). OVERALL OUTGOING (Travel Trends 2014) YEAR Holiday travel (000) All inclusive Of which Independent travel Business travel (000) Visits friends and family (000) Miscellaneous (000) TOTAL (000) Variation 2006 45.287 18.951 26.336 9.102 11.963 3.184 69.536 2007 45.437 18.674 26.763 9.018 12.214 2.781 69.450-0,1% 2008 45.531 17.914 27.617 8.920 12.392 2.168 69.011-0,6% 2009 38.492 14.507 23.985 6.887 11.592 1.643 58.614-15,1% 2010 36.422 14.257 22.165 6.639 10.850 1.651 55.562-5,2% 2011 36.819 14.740 22.079 6.846 11.594 1.576 56.836 2,3% 2012 36.173 14.470 21.703 6.956 11.797 1.612 56.538-0,5% 2013 37.603 15465 22.138 6.825 12.475 1.604 58.507 3,5% 2014 38.519 15.868 22.651 6.756 13.272 1.535 60.082 2,7% Source Office for National Statistics: Travel Trends 2014 According to the ONS Travel Trends Report 2014 the total overall visits abroad by UK residents was 60.082.000 registering a 2.7% increase compared to the previous year, of which 47.025.000 in Europe, corresponding to 78.3% of the total. The total of UK nationals was 48.770.000 whilst 11.312.000 was of other nationalities. The total visits for holiday registered a 2.7% increase with 38.519.000 of which: 15.868.000 (+2,6%) all inclusive 22.651.000 (+2,3%) independent travel Visits to friends and relatives accounted for 13.272.000 (+ 6.47%), business travel 6.756.000 (-1%), miscellaneous 1.535.000 (- 4.3%). The overall night stays were 616.492.000 (+0,8%) of which: 365.072.000 for holidays 35.650.000 for business 196.273.000 for visits at friends and family 19.497.000 miscellaneous The average stays were 10 nights. The total expenditure for tourism was 35.5 billion (+1.8%) of which 21.5 billion in Europe accounting for 60.6% The average spend per day was 591 whilst the one per visit was 58.
THE ITALIAN MARKET The tourism market towards Italy is a mature market that can be quantified in 2014 with a share of 4.9% (2.948.000) of the total UK outgoing (60.082.000). Since the beginning of the financial crisis, in the years 2008-2010 Italy suffered a 37% decrease in UK outgoing, but recovered substantially in the period 2010-2014 with a 31.1% increase, not far from the 3.569.000 peak visitors reached in 2007. UK residents travel to Italy 2007-2014 (data in.000) 3.569 3.372 2.630 2.829 2.948 2.6102.2482.334 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 In 2014 Holiday travel represented nearly 69% of the total outgoing to Italy (2.031.000) of which 36.5% all inclusive and 63.5% independent travel. Other segments included Business travel 304.000, visits to friends and relatives 559.000 and miscellaneous 54.000. The overall night stays were 23.223.000 with a total expenditure of 1.681 million. British travellers to Italy spent 1.326 mil on holiday (of which 552 mil for inclusive tours and 774 mil for independent travel). 173 mil was attributed to business travel, 143 mil on visits to friends and relatives and 41 mil for other reasons (miscellaneous). The overall average overnight stays were 8 nights whilst both the average expenditure was 570 per visit and 72 per day. The latest data published by ISTAT (Italian National Statistics Office) shows that in 2013 arrivals of British travellers in hotels and all other types of accommodation in Italy were 2.955.262 with a 2.3% increase compared to 2012. The total overnight stays were 11.381.729 (+2.2%).
UK Arrivals in Hotels and all other types of accommodation in Italy by Region ISTAT DATA (Italian National Statistics Office www.dati.istat.it) 2013 2012 Variation % Lazio (data not provided in 2013) 594224 594224 0 Veneto 534501 510526 4,7 Lombardia 418436 421889-0,8 Toscana 380018 370853 2,5 Campania 231818 248262-6,6 Sicilia 138938 125671 10,6 Piemonte 102866 96390 6,7 Emilia Romagna 102433 94583 8,3 Liguria 76723 68269 12,4 Prov. Aut. Trento 68343 67849 0,7 Sardegna 66272 56674 16,9 Valle d'aosta 56375 59473-5,5 Puglia 42066 37232 13,0 Prov. Aut. Bolzano 39883 37288 7,0 Umbria 36192 32960 9,8 Friuli Venezia Giulia 20016 21460-6,7 Marche 18943 19434-2,5 Calabria 9873 11145-11,4 Abruzzo 9534 9129 4,4 Basilicata 7163 5886 21,7 Molise 645 818-21,1 2955262 2890015 2,3 The most preferred Regions by UK travellers were Lazio, Veneto, Lombardy, Tuscany and Campania that overall represent 73% (2.158.997) of the total arrivals in all types of accommodation. COMPETITION From the statistical point of view Italy is scored fifth in terms of arrivals from the UK behind Spain, France, USA and Ireland. The elements of ITALYS MAIN COMPETITORS (Visits) attraction for the British Market Visits Visits % tourist are the rich COUNTRY share 2014 2013 variation cultural heritage, the 2013 great Mediterranean climate, many flight connections and above all a diversified and quality product that makes Italy competitive against its rivals geographically located in the Mediterranean area that include Greece, Turkey and Croatia. Spain 12.246.000 11.749.000 4,2 20,4 France 8.784.000 8.854.000-0,8 14,6 USA 3.257.000 3.047.000 6,9 5,4 Ireland 3.095.000 2.853.000 8,5 5,2 ITALY 2.948.000 2.829.000 4,2 4,9 Germany 2.323.000 2.423.000-4,1 3,9 Portugal 2.192.000 2.111.000 3,8 3,6 Netherlands 2.111.000 1.972.000 7 3,5 Greece 1.933.000 1.824.000 6 3,2 Belgium 1.740.000 1.624.000 7,1 2,9 Source Office for National Statistics: Travel Trends 2014
THE UK TOURIST The UK tourist travels to Italy mainly driven by cultural enrichment translated into visits to the main art cities that are able to offer a variety of products and services of unique historic and artistic nature. Seaside resorts and lakes are also very strong and often combined with cultural tours. Emerging products are characterized by winter and Summer Mountains as well as National and Regional Parks whilst within the niche one we underline golf, food and wine (gastronomy), cooking courses, horse riding, bicycle tours, walking trails and religious paths. Overall the main attraction factors for travelling to Italy can be summarised as: Cultural and artistic heritage High reputation related to the charming culture and lifestyle Great climate Excellent and frequent flight connections A diversified and unique product thanks to the history and tradition of each Region A product and service of quality and excellence The Office for National Statistics divides tourist flows towards Italy by taking into consideration the age group as follows: AGE Visits % Visits variation % Flow over the total Expenditure in mil % Expenditure variation 0 to 15 186.000 40.9 6.3 97 24.4 16 to 24 317.000 29.4 10.8 140 27.3 25 to 34 611.000 16.2 20.7 286 9.6 35 to 44 493.000-3.3 16.7 238-18.2 45 to 54 545.000 1.1 18.5 336-9.7 55 to 64 471.000-7.3 16.0 317-11.0 65 plus 322.000-12.5 10.9 267 2.3 TOTAL 2.948.000 1.681 Source Office for National Statistics: Travel Trends 2014 The following table instead indicates the traveller s area of residence. AREA OF RESIDENCE Visits Visits variation % Flow over the total Expenditure in mil Expenditure variation London 733.000 6.5 24.9 348-3.1 Other England 1.876.000 59.3 63.6 1136-0.2 Scotland 198.000 11.9 6.7 123-12.1 Wales 84.000 12.0 2.8 45-2.2 Other United Kingdom 57.000-18.6 1.9 29-25.6 TOTAL 2.948.000 1.681 Source Office for National Statistics: Travel Trends 2014
www.loveitaly.co.uk ABTOI COMMENT 2015 We are delighted to report that the uncertain late booking trend of 2014 appears to have tailed off and 2015 commenced well in terms of forward bookings for most UK tour operators. This can be attributed to the strong GBP and the excellent exchange rate, installing confidence once again into the UK market. 2015 saw the return of quality holidays and although the consumer still seeks value for their money, quality was the foremost priority for this year. Accommodation specialists report an increase in enquiries for villas with pools reflecting the trend for more expensive properties. Their premium properties have performed exceptionally well but this has been to the detriment of the smaller, more basic accommodation that has struggled to see good occupancy over the season. For hotel packages, the trend has been towards better quality 4 and 5* hotels and high occupancies would reflect this. A percentage of operators report difficulties in finding accommodation in Sicily during the 2015 peak season. All operators report high flight prices continue to present problems, particularly for later bookings. Very little change regarding regional popularity. Tuscany and Amalfi remain the top two most popular locations for the British market with Tuscany showing a better increase in enquiries during 2015. Again, Puglia is seeing a consistent rise in bookings for 2015 and more UK travel companies are adding Puglia to their portfolio. Activity holidays are the success story for 2015 and those with walking and cycling programmes have enjoyed a surge of interest for Italian adventure style vacations. A number of operators report an interest in Lake Garda which has led to programme expansions in this area. City breaks remain popular again for 2015 and multi city itineraries using the popular train service hold their ground. In conclusion, a positive end to the summer season of 2015 and an optimistic view of 2016 as early bookings appear strong. We are hoping that the GBP remains strong, thus providing good value for Italian holidays and importantly, maintaining confidence for the UK market.
AIR CONNECTIONS AND DATA According to the Civil Aviation Authority, in 2014 the total number of passengers that flew to and from Italy from the UK was 11.921.369. 11.354.077 has travelled on a scheduled flight whilst 567.292 with charter flights. Compared to 2013 there has been an increment of 8,1%. REGIONS Airports 2012 2013 2014 % Var 2013/14 Lombardy Milan 2.688.667 2.713.944 2.690.123-0.9 (Malpensa, Linate) Bergamo - Brescia Latium Rome 2.493.774 2.577.596 2.799.137 +8.6 (Fiumicino, Ciampino) Veneto Venice, Verona, 1.674.424 1.721.449 1.851.521 +7.6 Treviso Tuscany Florence, Pisa, 1.046.432 1.043.003 1.156.094 +10.8 Grosseto Campania Naples 742.386 679.909 812.077 +19.4 Emilia Romagna Bologna, Parma, 531.106 510.080 588.449 +15.4 Rimini, Forlí Sicily Catania, Palermo, 311.200 361.065 483.477 +33.9 Trapani, Comiso Piedmont Turin, Cuneo 309.323 320.694 333.506 +4 Sardinia Alghero, Cagliari, 257.529 299.215 311.462 +4.1 Olbia Liguria Genova 164.118 164.063 208.180 +26.9 Apulia Bari, Brindisi 187.388 202.372 218.964 +8.1 Friuli Venezia Giulia Trieste 109.880 105.854 110.420 +4.3 Marche Ancona 108.845 115.176 120.494 +4.7 Abruzzo Pescara 79.775 85.849 98.613 +14.9 Umbria Perugia 74.095 75.339 84.879 +12.7 Calabria Lamezia Terme 67.406 57.460 54.243-5.6 TOTAL 10.846.348 11.033.068 11.921.369 +8.1 Source: Civil Aviation Authority 2014 The Office for National Statistics indicates that in 2014 the number of British travellers that has used the airplane as a means of transport to go to Italy was 2.655.000 (90% of the total number of arrivals). The passengers departed from the following airports: Heathrow 281.000 Gatwick 743.000 Manchester 303.000 Stansted 516.000 Other England 680.000 Scotland 132.000 Wales 0
DISCLAIMER The following list is approximate owing to the constant flight changes operated by the relative companies. Also, some of the destinations are seasonal. For an accurate update related to destinations, costs and timetable we suggest to contact either the companies directly or the Tour Operators. AIRPORT OF DEPARTURE London City Airport London Gatwick London Heathrow London Luton London Stansted ITALIAN DESTINATIONS Milano Linate Alitalia/C.A.I. second Firenze Cityjet/AirFrance Roma Fiumicino Alitalia/ Cityliner Venezia - British Airways/CityFlier Alghero Thomson (summer) Bari - Easyjet, British Airways (summer) Bologna Easyjet Cagliari - Ryanair Catania - Easyjet, British Airways (summer) Thomson (summer) Genova British Airways Milano Linate Easyjet Milano Malpensa - Easyjet Napoli - British Airways, Easyjet, Thomson (summer) Olbia Easyjet Palermo Easyjet Pisa - Easyjet Roma Fiumicino - British Airways, Easyjet, Norwegian Air Shuttle/ASA Torino - British Airways, Easyjet (winter), Inghams (winter) Venezia - British Airways, Easyjet, Monarch (summer)thomson (estate) Verona - British Airways, Easyjet, Monarch (summer) Bologna British Airways Firenze - Vueling Milano Linate Alitalia/C.A.I. first/british Airways Milano Malpensa - British Airways Pisa - British Airways Roma Fiumicino - Alitalia, British Airways Venezia British Airways Alghero Ryanair (summer) Milano Malpensa Easyjet Olbia Easyjet (summer) Pisa Easyjet (summer) Roma Fiumicino - Monarch Trapani Ryanair (summer) Venezia Easyjet (feb.2014) Alghero - Ryanair Ancona - Ryanair Bari Ryanair Bologna Ryanair Brindisi Ryanair Cagliari Easyjet Comiso - Ryanair
Genova Ryanair Lamezia - Ryanair Milano Bergamo - Ryanair Napoli - Easyjet Palermo - Ryanair Parma Ryanair Perugia - Ryanair Pescara - Ryanair Pisa Ryanair Roma Ciampino - Ryanair Torino Ryanair Trieste Ryanair Venezia Treviso Ryanair Belfast Birmingham Bournemouth Bristol Cork Dublin East Midlands Edinburgh Pisa - Jet2 (summer) Catania - Thomson (summer) Milano Bergamo - Ryanair Milano Malpensa Flybe Napoli Thomson Roma Fiumicino Monarch Torino Inghams,(winter) Trieste Ryanair (summer) Venezia Monarch (summer) Napoli - Newmarket Holidays (voli occasionali) Pisa Ryanair (summer) Torino Thomson (inverno) Milano Bergamo Ryanair (summer) Milano Malpensa BMI Regional Napoli Thomson (summer)easyjet (summer) Olbia Easyjet (summer) Pisa Easyjet Roma Fiumicino Easyjet Venezia Treviso, Ryanair (summer) Milano Bergamo Ryanair (summer) Pisa Ryanair (summer) Alghero Ryanair (summer) Bologna Ryanair (summer) Aer Lingus (summer) Catania Aer Lingus (summer) Milano Bergamo - Ryanair Milano Linate/Malpensa - Aer Lingus Napoli Aer Lingus (summer) Palermo Ryanair (summer) Pisa Ryanair (summer) Roma Ciampino - Ryanair Roma Fiumicino - Aer Lingus Torino Ryanair (winter) Venezia - Aer Lingus Venezia Treviso Ryanair ((summer) Verona Aer Lingus (summer) Milano Bergamo Ryanair Napoli Thomson (summer) Pisa Ryanair Roma Ciampino Ryanair Venezia Treviso Ryanair Bologna Ryanair (summer) Cagliari Ryanair (summer) Milano Malpensa Easyjet
Glasgow Glasgow Prestwick Knock Leeds Bradford Liverpool Manchester Newcastle Southampton Southend Naples Easyjet (summer) Pisa Ryanair (summer) Roma Ciampino - Ryanair Venezia Jet2 Verona Jet2 (summer) Napoli Thomson (summer) Roma Fiumicino Jet2 Milano Bergamo - Ryanair Pisa - Ryanair Roma Ciampino Ryanair Milano Bergamo - Ryanair Milano Bergamo Ryanair (summer) Olbia Jet2 (summer) Pisa - Jet2, Ryanair (summer) Roma Fiumicino - Jet2 Venezia - Jet2 Venezia Treviso Ryanair (summer) Verona Jet2 (estate) Napoli Easyjet (summer) Pisa Ryanair (summer) Catania- Thomson (estate) Milano Bergamo - Ryanair Milano Malpensa - Flybe Napoli - Thomson (summer) Pisa - Jet2 Roma Ciampino-Ryanair Roma Fiumicino - Jet2 Trapani Ryanair (summer) Venezia Jet2, Monarch, Easyjet, Thomson (summer) Verona Monarch Napoli Thomson (summer) Pisa - Jet2 (summer) Roma Fiumicino - Jet2 (estate) Venezia Jet2 (summer) Verona Flybe (summer) Venezia Easyjet IMAGE OF ITALY IN THE PRESS The image of Italy as a tourism destination as portrayed in the British press and by the traveller is a destination rich of diversity and interest. The most popular are still the large art cities such as Venice, Rome and Florence, but also Veneto, Tuscany, Lazio, Campania, Lombardy and Sicily in general. Over recent years there has been an increase of popularity towards other Regions, such as Apulia, Emilia Romagna, Piedmont, Liguria, Umbria and Marche. However, all Italian Regions (with the exception of Calabria and Molise) have appeared on British media thanks to their unique and diversified offer. Great attention is given to the cultural offer, but also for lakes and seaside, open air tourism, winter ski, food and wine travel, hamlets and wellness. In 2014 Italy was voted Favourite Country in the Condé Nast Traveller Annual Readers Awards as well as the Destination of the year in the Food and Travel Magazine Readers Awards. In 2014 the Italian National Tourist Board launched an international advertising campaign (also covering the UK)
with the slogan A holiday made in Italy is tailor made for you with the aim to promote Italy as a tourism destination by highlighting its main products, the beauty of its heritage, history and culture. In 2015 the destination is hoping to increase the arrivals of UK residents thanks to the 2014 promotional campaign, the variety of events happening all over the territory and promoted through the website www.verybello.it and www.italia.it, Expo Milan from the 1 st of May to the 31 st October 2015 and the strengthening of the Pound against the Euro giving the traveller a higher spending capacity. In the first semester of 2015 the provisional data published by the Office for National Statistics indicates that Italy has registered a 19.4% increase in British arrivals (a total of 1.645.000 visits) and a 15.6% increase in expenditure ( a total of 831 millions). Despite the recent economic crisis that has created both an economic slowdown and a drop in outbound tourism in general, from the point of view of the British press, a decline in interest and the number of tourism articles about Italy has not been noticed, on the contrary, an increase instead has been observed. The British media continue to love Italy and to present it as an inspirational country where you can find the best of landscape, culture, art and gastronomy. Despite the fact that Italy cannot be regarded as a good value for money destination, however, the newspapers still suggest spending holidays in our country, maybe directing the reader towards the lesser-known or less popular destinations, and ways to save and organise a budget holiday. During 2014 about 1,300 tourism articles on Italy were published compared to 950 at the end of October 2015, of which a large part is thanks to the assistance given by ENIT-Agenzia London. Among the publications most loyal to Italy from the standpoint of tourism articles, certainly The Daily and Sunday Telegraph, among the daily newspapers, and Condé Nast Traveller, among the magazines, are those that publish the highest number of articles on Italy. Public interest about Italy in British publications is proved once again this year by some acknowledgments and awards given to Italy as follows: -Conde Nast Traveller Readers Awards 2015 Italy was voted for the 5th consecutive year as Favourite Country in the World by readers of the prestigious magazine. Times Sunday Times Sunday Times Travel Magazine Travel Awards 2015 Italy was awarded Best European Tourist Destination in the 3rd edition of the prestigious Readers Travel Awards of The Times Group (Times, Sunday Times, Sunday Times Travel Magazine). The city of Rome won second place in the category Best European City. - Food and Travel Magazine- Travel Readers Awards 2015 Italy is Destination of the Year - Family Traveller Magazine Awards 2015 (1 Edizione) Rome is Best European City Break for Families - Travelzoo Travel Destination Awards 2015 (2 edizione) Italy is Top Destination in Europe and Top for Short Haul This is also a sign that the traditional markets, and in particular the United Kingdom, remain fundamental for Italy as they offer a market consisting of faithful travellers, both of a good economic and cultural level, who love our country and visit it regularly.
For information on statistics and market trends please contact: Alex Bartolozzi alex.bartolozzi@enit.it Tel. +44 20 7399 3558 ITALIAN NATIONAL TOURIST BOARD UK & IRELAND 1, Princes Street London W1B 2AY Tel +44 20 7408 1254 www.italiantouristboard.co.uk www.enit.it www.italia.it www.twitter.com/italiantouristb