April 25 without a long weekend but tourism holds: 4.7 million stays

April 25 without a long weekend but tourism holds: 4.7 million stays

The traditional spring benchmark produced encouraging signs: the April 25, 2026 weekend recorded roughly 4.7 million stays in Italian accommodation facilities, with an average occupancy rate of 80%. The figure comes from the monitoring by the Centro Studi Turistici in Florence for Assoturismo Confesercenti.

The main trend is a return to short breaks and proximity travel, helped by stable and sunny weather across much of the country.

• Occupancy by type: mountain destinations 89%, art cities 85%, seaside resorts 84%, lakes 75%, thermal towns 74%, rural and hilly areas 73%.
• Geographic breakdown: North-East and North-West 83%, Centre 80% (notably Tuscany), South and Islands 75% (strong showings in Sardinia, Apulia and Sicily).
• Prices and platforms: average prices about 7% lower than last year, with online platform occupancy broadly stable.

Despite the overall positive picture, uncertainties persist due to global factors such as geopolitical tensions and transport price volatility. Travelers are therefore more budget-conscious and prefer easily reachable destinations, often by private transport.

Preparing for summer, Unioncamere and the Ministry of Labour estimate that 36.2% of over 224,000 horeca businesses plan new hires in the April–June 2026 quarter, for an estimated 418,000 positions — over 20,000 more than the same period in 2025. Businesses are already planning services and staff to meet demand for short stays.

In short, Italy is recovering around short breaks: fewer long holidays but demand sustaining a wide range of destinations — from art cities and villages to mountains and the sea — with attention now turning to the summer season.