The summer of 2026 marks a record year for tourism in Italy, driven above all by the increase in foreign visitors. Between June and August, the Ministry of Tourism reports that Italy recorded 276 million tourist presences, 5.5 million more than the previous summer, and over 72.4 million arrivals. Overall, arrivals and attendance increased by 2%. The regions where there was a greatest increase in requests for overnight stays were Lazio, Emilia-Romagna, Tuscany and Friuli-Venezia Giulia. However, the cost of holidays puts Italian families increasingly in difficulty: according to the Confcooperative Study Center, a week for a family costs on average 2,750 euros, 15% more than in 2025: almost 9 million choose to give it up, half for economic reasons, while at least 2 out of 10 Italians this year have chosen to divide the payment into several installments by financing the holiday through Buy Now, Pay Later.
Data and statistics of tourism in Italy in summer 2026
Among the data published by the statistics office of the Ministry of Tourism, the most significant number for summer 2026 is that of attendance: 276 million between June and August. Compared to summer 2025, there are 5.5 million more overnight stays. Summer arrivals instead exceeded 72.4 million, with an increase of 2% compared to the same period of the previous year for both Italians and foreigners. However, the highlight of the holidays remains in August, and there is also a longer duration of stays compared to previous years.
Bookings on large online platforms also show sustained demand. In the summer quarter, the saturation rate of the facilities approached 62%, an increase of almost 14% compared to summer 2025. The value is higher than that recorded in the same period by Spain and France. The highlight of the holidays remains in August, and there is also a longer duration of stays compared to previous years.
The most saturated regions
Tourism is not just focused on beach destinations. Summer 2026 shows demand distributed between the sea, mountains, lakes and cities of art.
As regards the regions, the Ministry of Tourism found particularly high saturation rates in the summer season in the autonomous Province of Trento (67.3%), in Sardinia (67.2%), Friuli-Venezia Giulia (66.3%), Sicily and Veneto (65.6%).
In particular, the regions that had more requests compared to the previous year were Lazio (+16.3%), Emilia-Romagna (+15.2%), Tuscany (+15.2%) and Friuli-Venezia Giulia (+14.2%).
It is important to point out that this is not a ranking of the regions with the most tourists in absolute terms: the Ministry’s data measures the saturation of accommodation facilities on online platforms, i.e. it indicates how much of the available supply of rooms and accommodation is actually booked in a certain date range.
Costs for Italian families: holidays 15% more expensive
Behind the record tourism numbers, however, there is another side of summer 2026: the cost of holidays.
According to the Confcooperative Study Center, an Italian family spends on average 2,750 euros for a week’s holiday, considering bed and breakfast. This is a figure 15% higher than in 2025. If we then consider a family of four who chooses an all-inclusive treatment in the week of August, the expense can reach up to 6,820 euros, approximately 5% more than the previous year.
The consequence is that not everyone is able to participate in the tourist boom in the same way. According to Confcooperative, this summer 8.9 million Italians stayed at home and for more than half of them the reason is economic.
However, there are also those who, in order not to give up their holidays, choose to go into debt: at least 2 out of 10 Italians who have chosen to go have financed their holiday through the so-called Buy Now, Pay Later, i.e. the possibility of dividing the payment into several instalments. According to the Confcooperative Study Center, the credit provided through this system has increased by 127% in three years and by 23% in the last year alone.
2026 therefore confirms the strength of tourism as an Italian economic sector, but also one of the main transformations of post-pandemic holidays: Italy continues to attract visitors from abroad, while for some Italian families the holiday becomes an expense to be planned more carefully, to be divided into installments or, in some cases, to be eliminated from the budget.
