South Tyrol: Tourism is booming despite prices explosion - records in danger!

South Tyrol: Tourism is booming despite prices explosion - records in danger!

Neumarkt, Italien - South Tyrol has developed into one of the most popular holiday destinations in Italy in recent decades. With its impressive mountain landscapes, picturesque wine growing areas and culinary delights such as Knödel and Kaiserschmarrn, the region is attracting more and more tourists. In 2024, South Tyrol recorded over 8.7 million guests, which means a massive increase of 2,500 percent compared to 1950 when only around 330,000 vacationers visited the region. The number of overnight stays also rose from around 1.82 million in 1950 to over 37 million in 2024, which corresponds to an increase of 1,930 percentderwesten.de.

The trend is particularly striking that the number of arrival has increased faster than the overnight stays since 2003, which indicates shorter vacation stays. Merano was once the most popular goal, but after the 1990s, Wolkenstein overtaken the city in the number of overnight stays. From the 2000s, Kastelruth became the leading destination with 1.78 million overnight stays in 2024. In contrast, Neumarkt recorded a dramatic decline in accommodation by 52.2 percent in the same period.

Record numbers in tourism

The past tourism year 2022/23 was once again record -breaking for South Tyrol. Over 8.4 million guests booked at least one night, and the number of overnight stays exceeded the 36 million mark for the first time. Tourists currently have 11,747 accommodation companies with a total of 241,624 beds. It is noteworthy that the overnight stays of domestic guests remain stable at 10.6 million, while the number of guests from Germany has increased to 17.4 million, which makes up for 48.3 percent of the overall overnight stays, howsuedtirolnews.itreported.

A specific increase of 9,438 beds compared to the previous year can be determined, with the greatest increase in private quarters. In South Tyrol, 64 percent of the beds are distributed to hospitals, while 36 percent are offered in non -hospitals. The highest density of accommodation companies can be found in Merano, followed by Tyrol and St. Ulrich.

Price increase and international guests

Despite the positive development in the tourism sector, the past year was not without challenges. A price explosion at Klopapier caused resentment among the locals and vacationers. Nevertheless, the international guest share remains stable and shows strong growth - the number of guests from Asia rose by 78.5 percent, with also remarkable climbs from the USA (36.2 percent) and Poland (30.2 percent).

The longest length of stay is recorded by guests from Africa at 6.6 days, followed by Luxembourg and Poland. In the summer of 2023, a slight decline in overnight stays was shown by 1.1 percent compared to the previous year, while winter accommodation rose by 19.2 percent.

Overall, South Tyrol remains a dynamic travel destination that captivates with its exclusive landscape and the variety of leisure opportunities both in the summer and in the winter season.