Bernabò Bocca, President of Italy hotel association Federalberghi , said he was most concerned about energy costs, which have surged in ...
Bernabò Bocca, President of Italy hotel association Federalberghi, said he was most concerned about energy costs, which have surged in Italy in recent months. “Hotels are energy-intensive businesses, they are open seven days a week, 24 hours a day,” he said. “The cost of energy has become a very important component, a price that the whole world pays.”
Before the pandemic, tourism accounted for around 14% of Italy’s GDP, according to the country’s tourism ministry and Italy’s national tourism agency, ENITsaid that in 2019 more than 63 million foreigners traveled to Italy.
At a recent trade show, Italian Tourism Minister Massimo Garavaglia cited a February survey of US travel sentiment by market research firm MMGY Global, which reported that 47% of the 4,500 respondents were waiting to see how the situation in Ukraine would develop before planning their visit to Europe. “It’s clear that if half the Americans don’t come to Europe, it will be a tragedy,” he said.
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However, other tour operators large and small are still expressing optimism for the upcoming season, despite war and coronavirus concerns. Last week, online travel agency Expedia announced predictions for a strong summer in Europe, saying interest from American travelers wanting to visit Britain, Germany and France this summer has increased fivefold from at the same time in 2020.
On the Costa Blanca, members of the local hotel industry have signed fixed-price contracts with tour operators, which should lead to fewer cancellations. The main challenge for hotels will be to manage rising costs and adapt to supply chain issues.
Mr Cuenca, of Magic Costa Blanca, said he had yet to raise rates and fees at his hotels and expressed cautious optimism for the summer, having already booked around half of his hotel rooms. hotel for the season. “We will have to watch inflation and we may have to adjust our rates to maintain our profit margins,” he said.
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