ROME — If one hotel market in Europe checks all the boxes for sustained growth, at least in the short term, it might well be Italy.
Has Italy been truly discovered by international travelers, or has the boom in inbound travel been focused solely on the "Big Three" — Rome, Milan and Venice?
Speaking at the Italian Hotel Investment Conference, known as ITHIC, Elisabetta Fabri, president and CEO at Starhotels Group, said for the past 20 years or so, the pandemic notwithstanding, getting tourists to Italy had not been a problem, even if, in her words, the country did not have a “proper industry.”
“Now, we are in a great position, and we are looking very attractive. Half of Italy is totally unknown. Still existing is the craftmanship and the lifestyle. Since the pandemic, everyone wants to be Italian or wants to live like an Italian,” she said.
Fabri said Italy's tourism potential is underscored by the statistic that only 20% of tourists have ventured to the smaller cities and towns of Italy — places that include “A-list” destinations such as Assisi, Bologna, Lecce, Palermo, Pisa and Siena, that perhaps elsewhere might be the principal jewels.
“So, [the Italian hotel industry] needs to start planning and investing. … This is the moment. We need help from the government, not to help fill our pockets, as we are making money anyway,” Fabri said.
Raffaella Peloso, head of valuation hotels, Italy, at business advisory CBRE, said Italy needs to define and refine its hotels and hospitality standards and goals, even if Italy remains at the very top of aspirational destinations.
“Arrivals are predicted to grow 4% annually to 2029, and Italy is remaining competitive compared to other relevant markets. After London and Madrid, Rome is next in many travelers’ plans,” she said.
“We can do what Spain has done, push average daily rate, even in the smaller towns,” Fabri said, adding the country is helped even more by its traditional high season being extended longer across the calendar.
Starhotels has 32 hotels, mostly in Italy but also in France, the United Kingdom and the U.S.
“I would open hotels in Calabria or Sicily, but we need the infrastructure,” Fabri added.
Giorgio Marchegiani, CEO of hotel firm UNA Italian Hospitality, said his company is realizing profits in the winter season thanks to meetings, incentives, conventions and expositions business.
“In our Sicily resorts, we’re not quite at the yearly opening stage, but we are extending the season 15 days earlier and 15 days later, but for this we need to take into consideration commercial levers. To be annual, you need spas, which can be costly.
“To have such an entrepreneurial approach, we have to work with infrastructure providers, mainly the airlines. We know that people from Naples will not go to Sicily in March, but people from Hamburg will, but you need the flights,” he said.
Sara Digiesi, CEO at BWH Hotels Italia, said there's been a trend since the pandemic of international guests having different travel desires than domestic ones.
“If we have a problem, it will be that we have too many tourists in a few top markets,” Marchegiani said.
Overtourism remains, though, with Rome and Venice still very busy.
In 2025, Rome has been inundated with tourists due to the Rome Jubilee of the Catholic Church, which occurs every 25 years, and the death of Pope Francis.
Digiesi said additional demand needs to be created by a better analysis of international calendars, school vacations, major international holidays, the Italian diaspora and what the MICE market is looking like.
Hybrid Italia
UNA’s Marchegiani said that since the pandemic, Italy has been spoiled with very good ADR.
“We should be humble, and we must be patient. There is a huge flow of travelers into Italy, increasingly from India, China and Indonesia.
“The risk-return profile in secondary markets demand higher yields, which is not easy, so for those destinations we must think long term,” he said.
Starhotels' Fabri said her firm has seen success in serviced apartments.
She said she has two such properties, one in Milan and one in Florence, and they receive much attention.
“They compete with Airbnb,” she said.
She added that in some markets, planning permits remain embroiled in bureaucracy.
“I would rather take a hotel that is old and needs to be renovated, as for a new build it is a four-year nightmare to get permits. This is where the system needs to speed up. It is not always a question of returns, as if you invest in a place, it will take longer to be repaid, but we can improve an area,” Fabri said.
BWH’s Digiesi returned to the theme of improving connectivity.
“Sicily is growing very well, as are some markets in (the regions of) Veneto and Puglia. These are driven by international demand. Calabria has been connected for the first time, and we are already seeing results.
“Soft branding is an excellent way of opening regions and without incredible upfront expense,” she added.
Training staff to international levels will go hand in hand with infrastructure and marketing efforts, the panelists agreed.
“We conducted 30,000 hours of training last year, and we now have international opportunities for staff,” Fabri said.
Marchegiani said work is being done in training around hotels’ commercial paths, improving compensation levels, creating performance-based pay and profit-sharing structures and balancing work-life patterns, especially in food and beverage.