Italians are also returning to travel outside of Italy. After more than two years of interruption imposed by the epidemic, there will be more than 500,000 New Year’s Eve people to spend the last night of the year across the border. This was estimated by Assoviaggi, the Association of Travel Agency Confesercenti and Tour Operators, on the basis of a survey carried out on members.
Good news for organized tourism, whose budget for 2022 remains unsatisfactory: The restart relates, in fact, mainly to accommodation facilities, while travel agencies and tour operators recorded a slower recovery, in a context conditioned by the increase in management costs and prices. Europe remains the most popular destination for self-employed tourists, but the demand for medium and long-term travel is increasing. Italians are looking for cultural destinations or postcard beaches – maybe both – to spend the last different night of the year.
The Middle East resumes. In terms of countries, Egypt is making a strong comeback, chosen for the riches of the millennial cultural heritage of the land of the pharaohs, as well as for its seaside resorts. But the entire Middle East region is in growing demand: Oman, which is rich in UNESCO sites and beaches, and the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, whose investment plan in tourism is giving first results. The numbers are still small, because it is a destination for those who can afford it: about 7,000 euros are needed to celebrate the year 2023 in Arabia, whose cultural treasures – such as the Nabataean cities – have always been difficult to access for tourism and anywhere today. The peculiarity of the trip is that you are among the first or very few travelers in the world to visit the country.
The Indian Ocean is also full of ItaliansThe Maldives and Zanzibar are in the lead, and some of them also return to Thailand. Excellent numbers for the Canary Islands and a wonderful New Year’s return to the US, with New York and Miami favored despite an unfavorable exchange rate.
“After more than two years of hiatus, in these holidays there is finally a first return of outbound tourism, directed outside Italy. Difficulties remain: Travel prices increased by 20/30%, and the international situation does not help. But the demand of Italian travelers for some destinations is still seeing a rebound, even if pre-virus levels are still a long way off,” explains Gianni Rebecchi, President of Assoviaggi.
2022 – he adds – has been recorded since spring Kinda slow recovery. However, the year-end figures give us hope for that Faster restart in 2023to return to normal in 2024. A ray of hope after very difficult years: from 2020 to 2022, total losses in the turnover of organized tourism are estimated at -27.1 billion.
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