Sector is a strong candidate to help the Italian economy after the crisis caused by the new coronavirus
Appreciate the beauty of the Italian territory in the name of the environment and sustainability, and also help boost the economy. Cycling tourism could be an important component in helping Italy’s tourism recovery, during the Covid-19 emergency.
This is what the study commissioned by Isnart-Unioncamere – an Italian tourism research institute – and Legambiente – an Italian environmental association, shows.
Total expenses of 4,7 billion
According to the 2019 report, two-wheeled tourism – including Italian and foreign cyclists – generated almost 55 million accommodations, corresponding to 6,1% of total overnight stays in Italy, generating total revenue of 4,7 billion euros, of which, 3 billion entered thanks to foreign tourists. The cyclist's average daily expenditure per capita was around 75 euros.
Trentino Alto Adige captured 30% of the flow
The Trentino Alto Adige region, in northern Italy, captured the most substantial portion (30% of the total) of the entire flow.
However, the most popular cycle paths are Trieste/Lignano Sabbiadoro/Venice (43%), Garda Cycle Path (43%), Tyrrhenian Cycle Path “Liguria/Tuscany/Lazio (29%), Adriatic Cycle Path (29%) and Puglia Aqueduct Cycle Path (29%).
Two wheels save 1,5 million tons of CO2 per year
Using a bicycle – continues the report – saves the emission of 1,5 million tons of CO2 per year in Italy. Furthermore, the bicycle guarantees a natural physical distance and is particularly suitable for local tourism, especially in times of pandemic.
Favorite short range
Data for 2019 indicates that bicycle tourists prefer short trips: cyclists – explains the report – tend to travel within the same area of residence or, at most, neighboring ones; Cyclists in Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna prefer proximity destinations, while Venetians and Tuscans head south to access the roads of Sicily and Calabria.
As for international tourists, Germans and Austrians are concentrated in the Trentino region, the French are distributed more or less equally between Lombardy, Trentino and Sardinia (which is the third reference market also for the British).
According to tour operators specializing in cycle tourism, the average package corresponds to 7 nights, for a value of around 900 euros, and can be itinerant or fixed.
Worth 6% of tourist demand
O weight of cycle tourism in general tourist demand in Italy is on average 6%, while in regions with a greater vocation for cycling the incidence is considerably higher, from 15% to 20%. “In the current crisis situation caused by the Covid-19 emergency, opportunities must also be sought, and the development of cycle tourism is certainly among them. Therefore, it is important to introduce incentives for smart mobility and strengthen alternative means of mobility”, explains Roberto Di Vincenzo, president of Isnart.
“The numbers in the report demonstrate once again, if the need arises, how bicycle tourism can represent a useful response to the crisis. It is useful from a health point of view, for distances and motor activity, from an environmental point of view, and for the economy. And, finally, it is useful for connecting territories”, highlights Giorgio Zampetti, general manager of Legambiente.
For two million Italians, it is a means of daily transport
In 2019, an estimated 20,5 million accommodations by Italian cyclists were estimated, therefore, this year, also considering the short autumn stays (two/three days) at the end of 2020, there would be 25,9 million admissions (+ 26% ). In Italy, in 2019, 1,7 million bicycles were sold (3 per minute) and almost 2 million Italians use them as a means of daily transport.
The report was first published in Il Sole 24 Ore .
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