This is a best prospect industry sector for this country. Includes a market overview and trade data.

Overview

 20152016201720182019
Number of Italian Travelers to the U.S.1,039,000983,0001,032,1071,073,383
 		373,900(p)*
Jan to May
% Change8%-5%4.4%4.0%1.4%(p)*
Total Italian Travel & Tourism Exports (Millions of USD)$4,310$4,075$4,171**
% Change4.7%-5.8%2.4%**

Data Sources: U.S. Department of Commerce, ITA, National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO) from the Summary of International Travel to the U.S. (I-94) report
 (p) Preliminary subject to future revisions. / *Preliminary 2019 I-94 visitor arrivals data will be revised during calendar year 2019.

Italy ranks as the 12th largest overall inbound market to the United States and the 4th in Europe after The United Kingdom, Germany and France. The market for Italian tourism to the United States registered an increase of 4.4% in 2017 compared to 2016 and 4% in 2018 compared to 2017. In 2018, there were 1,073,383 Italian visitors to the United States. Despite challenging conditions, the Italian travel market looks set to growth steadily in the coming years by 4-5% annually. The summer and the end of the year holiday season is typically the peak travel period.

The United States continued to be the preferred long-haul destination for Italian tourists in 2018. Data from the U.S. Department of Commerce National Travel & Tourism Office (NTTO) show the states most visited by Italians: New York (47%), while Florida accounts (23%), California (19%) and Nevada (11%).

New York and New Jersey also continue to be the first port of entry with a 45% market share. However, Miami has seen a fastest growth in 2018 to reach a market share of 19%. The other largest gateways for Italian travelers are Los Angeles and Honolulu that account respectively for 19% and 17% of all Italian visitors.

Air Travel
Three U.S. carriers American Airlines, Delta and United, two Italian carriers, Alitalia and AirItaly, as well as Emirates Airlines and Norwegian Air offer daily non-stop service between the United States and Italy. Direct flights are offered from major cities (Milan, Rome) and seasonally (Spring/Summer) from Venice, Bologna and Naples, to several American destinations including Atlanta, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Detroit, Dallas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Oakland Philadelphia and Washington DC. During Spring/Summer months, more than thirty non-stop flights connect Italy to the United States, most of them with daily departures; this amounts to over 180 direct flights each week.

According to data published by the Italian Air Aviation Agency (ENAC) for 2018 the route Rome Fiumicino to Tel Aviv is the most popular non-EU route in Italy with 813,363 commercial passengers followed by Milano Malpensa to New York JFK with 791,985, and Rome Fiumicino to New York JFK with 754,088 passengers. Other popular routes from Italy to the US are Rome Fiumicino to Newark (291,841 passengers), Rome Fiumicino to Atlanta (224,958 passengers), Rome Fiumicino to Los Angeles (202,335 passengers), Milan Malpensa to Miami (176,283 passengers), Rome Fiumicino to Miami (166,095 passengers), Rome Fiumicino to Philadelphia (156,347 passengers), Milano Malpensa to Newark (145,394 passengers), Rome Fiumicino to Boston (121,131), Rome Fiumicino to Detroit (110,031), Rome Fiumicino to Charlotte (105,887),  Rome Fiumicino to Dallas Ft. Worth (104,655) and Rome Fiumicino to Washington Dulles (85,929). Summer flights from Venice to New York JFK, Philadelphia, Newark, Chicago and Atlanta total 373,167 passengers.

In terms of hotel bookings, most major U.S. hotel chains are represented in Italy: Best Western International, Fairmont & Raffles, Hilton Worldwide, Hyatt, Marriott International, Starwood and Wyndham Hotel Group, thus making bookings in the US is relatively easy for the Italian traveler.

The Italian tourist profile:
Italians are increasingly looking for active and cultural trips, while sea and sun is becoming less attractive.
  • Outbound traveler is average aged between 35 and 54;
  • Seniors represent an emerging and relevant traveler segment profile with high purchase power and able to travel in any period of the year;
  • Main part of travelers come from urban areas and have a medium-high social and cultural profile;
  • Increasingly, women are making travel arrangements;
  • They generally prefer organized tours with Italian speaking guides;
  • Italians consider elements of importance: security, quality of accommodation and food, gastronomy;
  • Italians are traditionally last minute bookers.

The Italian Travel Industry in summary
Tour Operators: in Italy there are more than 280 Tour Operators, but only four exceeding 100 million euros a year in bookings value. Small/medium sized companies are the real engine of the market, preferred for their greater flexibility and speed of response, personalized services, and innovative products.

Travel Agencies Networks: around 8500 travel agencies are currently working in Italy of which 7000 are associated to a travel network. The main 5 Italian networks are:
Welcome/Geo, Bluvacanze, Gattinoni Mondo di Vacanze, UVET, Robintour.

Travel Agencies: only 54 percent of sales of travel agents are Tour Operators products; 46 percent is defined as “self-tour operating” with direct negotiations between the Italian travel agent and the inbound and/or hotel in the destination. The main market trends include: vertical integration of the travel network and group trips organized by single travel agencies.

OTA (Online Travel Agencies): online booking is becoming more and more complex. From mass market websites created to “save money” (e.g. Volagratis, Lastminute), to the research of the “hidden secrets” (e.g. SecretEscape, TripAdvisor).  Creation of special packages for web users sold through specialized portals (e.g. SecretEscape) or dedicated to specific targets (e.g. active travel, travel with bloggers…).

E-Commerce
The Italian tourism market continues to be dominated by the steady growth of e-commerce and mobile sales. Online travel continued to perform very well in 2018, driven by increased trust and habit of travelers in searching online, looking for information and reviews, but also making bookings, given the perceived value for money that the internet offers. At the same time, mobile bookings also grew rapidly, as smartphones are widespread among Italian consumers.

Direct booking through OTAs (Online Travel Agencies) is increasing with a total of 7 online travel agencies available (Expedia, TripAdvisor, Volagratis, Trivago, eDreams, Booking, SecretEscape). Travel related e-commerce in Italy is growing at a rate of 9% and represents 20% of the entire value of travel and tourism expenditures. 15% of the travel e-commerce is directed towards accommodation bookings, 12% towards tour packages and 73% towards train and air tickets. Within accommodation bookings about 1 in every 5 transaction is made through a sharing economy platform.

Leading Sub-Sectors
Best prospect travel destinations for Italians include: New York City; San Francisco, Los Angeles and the state of California; Miami, Orlando, the Florida Keys and the state of Florida; Las Vegas and Nevada; Boston, Massachusetts and New England; Chicago and the state of Illinois; U.S. National Parks and surrounding areas (i.e. Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Colorado); the Rocky Mountain region (Idaho, Montana, Oregon, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming); Philadelphia and the state of Pennsylvania; Dallas and the state of Texas; and Hawaii.
 
Opportunities
In January 2018, Brand USA named Hills Balfour as the new representation firm for the overall European market. To sharpen its Italian focus, Hills Balfour is partnering with Milan-based Interface Tourism Italy, a marketing, public relations, and representation agency that operates exclusively in travel and tourism.

Trade Shows:
TTG Incontri: October 9-11, 2019, Rimini, Italy. TTG Incontri is requesting to participate in the Trade Fair Certification program of the U.S. Department of Commerce.  http://www.ttgincontri.it/

BIT Milan – Brand USA Pavilion: February -11, 2020, Milan Italy.  BIT is requesting to participate in the Trade Fair Certification program of the U.S. Department of Commerce. http://bit.fieramilano.it/?lang=en

Showcase USA-Italy: February 29-March 3, 2020 (just before ITB in Berlin), Rome, Italy. Showcase USA-Italy is the only marketing event exclusively dedicated to promoting Italian tourism towards the United States. U.S. exhibitors can meet with high-quality Italian companies, focused on promoting tourism to the U.S. Our team will provide participants a complete and all-inclusive program of matchmaking appointments with Italian companies and media, logistical assistance, on-site business counseling and support, as well as a pre-event briefing. www.export.gov/italy

Web Resources
  • U.S. Department of Commerce, International Trade Administration, Office of Travel and Tourism Industries: http://travel.trade.gov/
  • Travel Trade & Destination Marketing Associations:
    • Visit USA Association Italy:             http://www.visitusaita.org/
    • U.S. Travel Association:                   http://www.ustravel.org/
    • BrandUSA:                                          http://www.visittheusa.com | http://thebrandusa.com
    • Italian Tourism Agency:                  http://www.enit.it

U.S. Commercial Service Contacts:
Ms. Luisa Salomoni, Travel and Tourism Commercial Specialist
U.S. Commercial Service, U.S. Consulate Milan
Tel: +39 02 626 88 525
E-mail: luisa.salomoni@trade.gov
Web: http://export.gov/italy

 

Prepared by our U.S. Embassies abroad. With its network of 108 offices across the United States and in more than 75 countries, the U.S. Commercial Service of the U.S. Department of Commerce utilizes its global presence and international marketing expertise to help U.S. companies sell their products and services worldwide. Locate the U.S. Commercial Service trade specialist in the U.S. nearest you by visiting http://export.gov/usoffices.